This topic – falling in love with an Irish man or woman and leaving all you’ve ever known for life in the Irish countryside – is fairly close to my heart because I am one of those people. In 2013, I left my home country of Canada and moved, six months pregnant with no job prospects, to live closer to my husband’s family in rural Ireland.
When my husband and I decided to move to his home place, everyone told us we were mad. The recession hadn’t quite calmed and the economy wasn’t great. We didn’t have any guaranteed income for possibly many months and we were leaving a comfortable life in Toronto while expecting our first child.
The thing is though, moving to Ireland was the single best decision we have ever made (besides that time we got married). When you make a decision from the heart, things have a way of falling into place. We moved to Ireland to find a fantastic community to support us, a lush farmland to nourish our souls and bodies and a perfectly imperfect home in which to raise our children.
Here are a few stories from a similar perspective.
Kirsten Ivors, Tinnock Farm, Ballingarry, Co TipperaryWhen Kirsten Ivors first came to Ireland over 10 years ago from her native Australia, it wasn’t for love – it was for horses.
“I came to Ireland to work with horses in 2005,” she explains over coffee. “I met my husband (Trevor Ivors) on New Year’s Eve in Kilkenny – he was my first kiss for 2006!”
Kirsten and Trev, as he is known, fell in love, married within 10 months of meeting and made the decision to settle in his native Ballingarry.
They found a fixer-upper outside the village and have spent the past several years building a life together with their two daughters, Mae and Lily, and building onto and around their house to create the smallholder’s haven known as Tinnock Farm.
“When Trev and I first met, he had just finished hurling (he was a member of Ballingarry’s senior hurling team) and was an apprentice carpenter. Now, he is a full-time carpenter and we have been slowly adding on to our farm over the years.”
Besides raising chickens for eggs and growing much of their own food, Kirsten has made a name for herself as a craftsperson, specialising in sustainable soy-wax scented candles and operating under the brand Tinnock Farm Tipperary.
“I have always been crafty, I used to make candles in Australia,” she says. “There was a gap in the market for candles made with natural and sustainable products, so I thought I would fill it.”
With scents like pear and freesia, Irish forest and bluebell, Kirsten’s candles are as indulgent as they are stylish, appearing in her signature reusable glass jars (complete with twist top) or, as part of a recent aromatherapy collaboration with ceramicist Aisling McElwain, displayed in McElwain’s hand-made ceramic pots (all available online).
For Kirsten, love brought her to Tipperary and the life she and Trev have built together largely inspires her work.
We lived in Australia for a couple of years before returning to Tipperary and settling in Tinnock
“The scents for me are evocative of times gone by,” she says, “as well as things I find around the farm. In a sense, we are living our brand – raising our kids outdoors and as naturally as possible.”
Country life was something Kirsten always wanted for herself, having been raised in the Australian city of Brisbane.
“(Trev) and I come from completely opposite things,” she laughs. “I was raised in the city and always wanted to live in the country; Trev grew up in a small village and always wanted to go bigger. We lived in Australia for a couple of years before returning to Tipperary and settling in Tinnock.”
When asked what drew her to life in the Irish countryside, besides the love of her life, she immediately reverts to the surrounding landscape and quiet Irish lifestyle.
“I love everything green,” she exclaims. “I love the (farm) animals. And the people are so different here (compared to Australians).”
A self-proclaimed introvert, Kirsten also craved the quiet of Irish country living, being close to nature and living in a relatively isolated area. With such a friendly, open, bubbly personality, though, it’s difficult to not immediately consider her a close friend.
“I like being out there by myself,” she says. “Through the school run, I know most of the locals now. But I’m still happy just working around Tinnock!”
Siobhan Kelly, Errill, Co LaoisCanadian Siobhan Kelly has been farming alongside her husband, Errill native Pat, for the past 12 years. It was certainly love that brought her to a life in the Irish countryside, but it was a general love for Ireland that brought her here for the first time.
“I met Pat when I came down to Errill one weekend almost 19 years ago,” she reminisces. “I was invited down (from Dublin) by some friends for a 40th birthday party. I hadn’t even noticed Pat was in the pub until the end of the night! He came over and plopped down on the stool beside me and introduced himself. I knew straight away that this guy was pretty special – we had great chemistry and he could make me belly-laugh!”
After six years of casual dating, Siobhan made the difficult decision to leave Pat and Ireland and move back to her home in Nova Scotia, on Canada’s east coast. However, the decision never felt right and she and Pat kept in touch. After several months of phone conversations, Pat asked her to come back to Ireland and marry him. She said yes and immediately made plans to move back to Ireland.
“(When I left Ireland) I had had enough of the high cost of living in Dublin – houses were very expensive to buy on your own and I didn’t feel I was moving anywhere with my job,” she explains. “I missed my family terribly and didn’t feel things were going anywhere with Pat, so I made the decision to move home.”
When she made the decision to come back to Ireland, she easily left a secure job and access to her family, with whom she is very close. Love, in the end, brought her back to Irish country living.
I always said growing up that I would never leave the oceans
She and Pat now manage their dairy farm and have two children, Patrick and Kate. Between the farm and her kids, Siobhan has become an active member of the Errill community and has made many close friends.
“I feel really lucky to be living where I live here in the country,” she says. “The fresh smells (though sometimes they’re not-so-good when slurry is being spread!), the freedom, the beauty, the people – the village where we live is like an extended family. We really have a wonderful community spirit.”
At times, she feels homesick – particularly if she’s missing a family event – but, to her, Errill has become home; just in a different way.
“I always said growing up that I would never leave the oceans,” she laughs. “Well, I couldn’t be further from it now! Ireland is a different home, and it’s a different feeling. I am very happy and comfortable here.”
Aziz Yildiz, Comfrey Cottage, Cashel, Co TipperaryAziz Yildiz changed his entire lifestyle when he decided to move from his home in Adana, Turkey’s fourth largest city, to a small country cottage outside Cashel to be with his wife, Sarah. He had previously worked in the hospitality industry in the United States, but even this experience couldn’t have prepared him for life in the Irish countryside.
“At the beginning, the change was somewhat of a shock – the weather,” he laughs. “Coming to Ireland was a massive step for me; leaving my family once again. Also, the lifestyle is completely different to life in a large Turkish city.”
Aziz and Sarah are both active members of the Tipperary food community. Together they run Comfrey Cottage – they grow micro-greens, fresh, organic salad leaves and seasonal vegetables to supply local restaurants and food businesses. They also import Turkish spices, which they package and sell under the Comfrey Cottage brand.
Up until recently, Aziz also ran a food truck called Mr Mangal (Mangal being the Turkish word for grill) specialising in authentic Turkish kebabs, which were grilled over charcoal. Working in his family’s restaurant from a young age partly inspired him to start this venture; though he also wanted to bring some authentic ethnic food culture to Tipperary.
Although he experienced some culture shock at first, he has now fully integrated into the Irish lifestyle.
So many will go out of their way to help me
“He always says he feels at home,” Sarah says. “Meeting friendly, caring people, being part of the community in Ireland always makes him feel welcome and often reminds him of his own culture at home.”
When faced with the questions of what he enjoys the most and least about Irish country living, Aziz doesn’t hold back his praise for Irish hospitality.
“While I find I have more privacy here (in Cashel), the people are also so hospitable and caring,” he explains. “So many will go out of their way to help me.”
Of course, there are setbacks involved with living far from family, and both Aziz and Sarah have had their share of family emergencies in recent times. This makes life in Ireland difficult for him, as his mother currently battles cancer in Turkey.
“We both want to be with our families more often (now),” he continues. “And we plan to visit Turkey more often than we have been.”
Read more
Finding the perfect formula at Ayle Farm
Breaking the grass ceiling: the female farmers daring to be different
This topic – falling in love with an Irish man or woman and leaving all you’ve ever known for life in the Irish countryside – is fairly close to my heart because I am one of those people. In 2013, I left my home country of Canada and moved, six months pregnant with no job prospects, to live closer to my husband’s family in rural Ireland.
When my husband and I decided to move to his home place, everyone told us we were mad. The recession hadn’t quite calmed and the economy wasn’t great. We didn’t have any guaranteed income for possibly many months and we were leaving a comfortable life in Toronto while expecting our first child.
The thing is though, moving to Ireland was the single best decision we have ever made (besides that time we got married). When you make a decision from the heart, things have a way of falling into place. We moved to Ireland to find a fantastic community to support us, a lush farmland to nourish our souls and bodies and a perfectly imperfect home in which to raise our children.
Here are a few stories from a similar perspective.
Kirsten Ivors, Tinnock Farm, Ballingarry, Co TipperaryWhen Kirsten Ivors first came to Ireland over 10 years ago from her native Australia, it wasn’t for love – it was for horses.
“I came to Ireland to work with horses in 2005,” she explains over coffee. “I met my husband (Trevor Ivors) on New Year’s Eve in Kilkenny – he was my first kiss for 2006!”
Kirsten and Trev, as he is known, fell in love, married within 10 months of meeting and made the decision to settle in his native Ballingarry.
They found a fixer-upper outside the village and have spent the past several years building a life together with their two daughters, Mae and Lily, and building onto and around their house to create the smallholder’s haven known as Tinnock Farm.
“When Trev and I first met, he had just finished hurling (he was a member of Ballingarry’s senior hurling team) and was an apprentice carpenter. Now, he is a full-time carpenter and we have been slowly adding on to our farm over the years.”
Besides raising chickens for eggs and growing much of their own food, Kirsten has made a name for herself as a craftsperson, specialising in sustainable soy-wax scented candles and operating under the brand Tinnock Farm Tipperary.
“I have always been crafty, I used to make candles in Australia,” she says. “There was a gap in the market for candles made with natural and sustainable products, so I thought I would fill it.”
With scents like pear and freesia, Irish forest and bluebell, Kirsten’s candles are as indulgent as they are stylish, appearing in her signature reusable glass jars (complete with twist top) or, as part of a recent aromatherapy collaboration with ceramicist Aisling McElwain, displayed in McElwain’s hand-made ceramic pots (all available online).
For Kirsten, love brought her to Tipperary and the life she and Trev have built together largely inspires her work.
We lived in Australia for a couple of years before returning to Tipperary and settling in Tinnock
“The scents for me are evocative of times gone by,” she says, “as well as things I find around the farm. In a sense, we are living our brand – raising our kids outdoors and as naturally as possible.”
Country life was something Kirsten always wanted for herself, having been raised in the Australian city of Brisbane.
“(Trev) and I come from completely opposite things,” she laughs. “I was raised in the city and always wanted to live in the country; Trev grew up in a small village and always wanted to go bigger. We lived in Australia for a couple of years before returning to Tipperary and settling in Tinnock.”
When asked what drew her to life in the Irish countryside, besides the love of her life, she immediately reverts to the surrounding landscape and quiet Irish lifestyle.
“I love everything green,” she exclaims. “I love the (farm) animals. And the people are so different here (compared to Australians).”
A self-proclaimed introvert, Kirsten also craved the quiet of Irish country living, being close to nature and living in a relatively isolated area. With such a friendly, open, bubbly personality, though, it’s difficult to not immediately consider her a close friend.
“I like being out there by myself,” she says. “Through the school run, I know most of the locals now. But I’m still happy just working around Tinnock!”
Siobhan Kelly, Errill, Co LaoisCanadian Siobhan Kelly has been farming alongside her husband, Errill native Pat, for the past 12 years. It was certainly love that brought her to a life in the Irish countryside, but it was a general love for Ireland that brought her here for the first time.
“I met Pat when I came down to Errill one weekend almost 19 years ago,” she reminisces. “I was invited down (from Dublin) by some friends for a 40th birthday party. I hadn’t even noticed Pat was in the pub until the end of the night! He came over and plopped down on the stool beside me and introduced himself. I knew straight away that this guy was pretty special – we had great chemistry and he could make me belly-laugh!”
After six years of casual dating, Siobhan made the difficult decision to leave Pat and Ireland and move back to her home in Nova Scotia, on Canada’s east coast. However, the decision never felt right and she and Pat kept in touch. After several months of phone conversations, Pat asked her to come back to Ireland and marry him. She said yes and immediately made plans to move back to Ireland.
“(When I left Ireland) I had had enough of the high cost of living in Dublin – houses were very expensive to buy on your own and I didn’t feel I was moving anywhere with my job,” she explains. “I missed my family terribly and didn’t feel things were going anywhere with Pat, so I made the decision to move home.”
When she made the decision to come back to Ireland, she easily left a secure job and access to her family, with whom she is very close. Love, in the end, brought her back to Irish country living.
I always said growing up that I would never leave the oceans
She and Pat now manage their dairy farm and have two children, Patrick and Kate. Between the farm and her kids, Siobhan has become an active member of the Errill community and has made many close friends.
“I feel really lucky to be living where I live here in the country,” she says. “The fresh smells (though sometimes they’re not-so-good when slurry is being spread!), the freedom, the beauty, the people – the village where we live is like an extended family. We really have a wonderful community spirit.”
At times, she feels homesick – particularly if she’s missing a family event – but, to her, Errill has become home; just in a different way.
“I always said growing up that I would never leave the oceans,” she laughs. “Well, I couldn’t be further from it now! Ireland is a different home, and it’s a different feeling. I am very happy and comfortable here.”
Aziz Yildiz, Comfrey Cottage, Cashel, Co TipperaryAziz Yildiz changed his entire lifestyle when he decided to move from his home in Adana, Turkey’s fourth largest city, to a small country cottage outside Cashel to be with his wife, Sarah. He had previously worked in the hospitality industry in the United States, but even this experience couldn’t have prepared him for life in the Irish countryside.
“At the beginning, the change was somewhat of a shock – the weather,” he laughs. “Coming to Ireland was a massive step for me; leaving my family once again. Also, the lifestyle is completely different to life in a large Turkish city.”
Aziz and Sarah are both active members of the Tipperary food community. Together they run Comfrey Cottage – they grow micro-greens, fresh, organic salad leaves and seasonal vegetables to supply local restaurants and food businesses. They also import Turkish spices, which they package and sell under the Comfrey Cottage brand.
Up until recently, Aziz also ran a food truck called Mr Mangal (Mangal being the Turkish word for grill) specialising in authentic Turkish kebabs, which were grilled over charcoal. Working in his family’s restaurant from a young age partly inspired him to start this venture; though he also wanted to bring some authentic ethnic food culture to Tipperary.
Although he experienced some culture shock at first, he has now fully integrated into the Irish lifestyle.
So many will go out of their way to help me
“He always says he feels at home,” Sarah says. “Meeting friendly, caring people, being part of the community in Ireland always makes him feel welcome and often reminds him of his own culture at home.”
When faced with the questions of what he enjoys the most and least about Irish country living, Aziz doesn’t hold back his praise for Irish hospitality.
“While I find I have more privacy here (in Cashel), the people are also so hospitable and caring,” he explains. “So many will go out of their way to help me.”
Of course, there are setbacks involved with living far from family, and both Aziz and Sarah have had their share of family emergencies in recent times. This makes life in Ireland difficult for him, as his mother currently battles cancer in Turkey.
“We both want to be with our families more often (now),” he continues. “And we plan to visit Turkey more often than we have been.”
Read more
Finding the perfect formula at Ayle Farm
Breaking the grass ceiling: the female farmers daring to be different
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