Olde Towne Garden gift shop brings touch of Ireland to Wantagh

There are bonds, some visible and others that speak of a magical mysticism, in a gift shop crammed with bits of Ireland picked out by sisters from Galway.

At the Olde Towne Garden Irish and Victorian Gift Shop in Wantagh, visitors delight in  items curated by co-owners Ann Durkin and Ellen Dolan-Curran, like a thick cable knit sweater from the Aran Islands off Galway, the Cadbury bars and "safety" symbols like Ireland’s Connemara marble beads to rub away the worry.

"We only sell what we would have in our own home," Dolan-Curran says.

Some of their most popular items reflect the Irish belief in the interconnectedness of life, according to the sisters. On necklaces hang the Celtic cross, an ancient symbol of eternity where heaven and earth coexist. Claddagh rings show the heart, representing love, cradled by hands, representing friendship, and topped by a crown, meaning loyalty.

"They all have meaning like the Celtic intertwine [that] represents our lives and how we’re all connected and our souls join together," Dolan-Curran notes, referring to a design that weaves lines over and under each other. "Sometimes, you’ll think of somebody you haven’t seen in a few days or a few weeks and they’ll walk in the door."

When the sisters opened their doors in 1994, the shop was a garden center. They then found out Long Island had a large Irish-American community. Gradually, the garden items made way for Irish crafts from here and abroad, along with products from women-owned businesses that benefit others.

Durkin, the second of nine children, and Dolan-Curran, the fourth, have been a working pair for decades. On their family farm in Ireland, they counted sheep, fed chickens and brought in the cows.

The sisters came to the United States in 1985 on temporary work visas and intended to return to Ireland — but the weather and Americans were so inviting, they say, they made the United States their new home. 

"We dovetail very well,"  Durkin remarks about running about business together."We don’t put a limit on the hours we put in ... Things you really couldn’t ask of someone else, you would because you’re both partners in the business."

Forty years after leaving Galway, the sisters credit their business survival to the locals and the Irish-American community. "They come to us as opposed to going online or they come to us first," Durkin says. She adds, "And a little bit of Irish luck."

Connemara worry beads start at $8, Claddagh rings at $50 and sterling silver warrior shield cuff links at $155.

Olde Towne Garden Irish and Victorian Gift Shop, 1902 Wantagh Ave., 516-826-2574, irishvictorian.com.