Of Interest: Knit + Stitch Show โ€“ย Northern Ireland โ€“ Ticketย Giveaway

Join the Knit + Stitch Show in Northern Ireland from the 13th to the 16th of November at the Eikon Exhibition Centre. 

Stock up on quality craft supplies from over 100 exhibitors, explore Textile Galleries featuring world-renowned textile artists, a vast array of workshops, talks & lectures, and more to be announced! Whether youโ€™re a seasoned crafter or just getting started, thereโ€™s something for everyone.  

Itโ€™s the perfect place to shop, learn, and connect with like-minded crafters.

Where: Eikon Exhibition Centre, Balmoral Park, Halftown Rd, Lisburn BT27 5RF, United Kingdom.

When: Thursday, the 13th through Sunday, the 16th of November.

How to Enter the Giveaway:

โ˜… If you read this on our Instagram or Facebook, LIKE this post and COMMENT โ€“ โ€˜Yes, Knit + Stitchโ€™. If you share the post, your tagged friends must also LIKE and COMMENT to be entered into the Giveaway.

โ˜… For readers NOT using social media, please EMAIL- feltmakersIE@gmail.com and write โ€˜Yes, Knit + Stitchโ€™ in the Subject Line.

This Giveaway (the first of FIVE as we have 5 pairs of tickets) runs through midnight, Sunday, the 14th of September. We will collect the names and randomly draw ONE winner(Please do not enter more than once โ€“ ie via entering through multiple platforms.)

On Monday afternoon, the Giveaway winner will receive a coupon code from Feltmakers Ireland, which she can use to book a pair of free tickets via the Knit + Stitch Show website.

T&Cs: This code is for a pair of Standard Single Day Adult tickets, valid on any day. It is not valid on VIP, Two-Day, or group tickets. Tickets are for entry only; transport to and from the venue is not included.

Please note that the winning tickets need to be pre-booked

Discounted Entry

If you donโ€™t win the Giveaway, you can still use the code FELTMAKERSIR to save ยฃ2 at checkout.

โ€‹โ€‹T&Cs: ยฃ2 off standard adult / concession tickets only. Offer not valid on VIP, Child or group tickets. Offer expires Sunday, the 2nd of November 2025. Booking fee applies.

For more information about the exciting events, textile galleries, workshops, and vendors at the Knit + Stitch Show Northern Ireland, or to book tickets with the above discount code, visit the website using this unique link โ€“ https://www.knitandstitchshow.co.uk/northernireland/feltmakers-ireland/

Find and follow Knit + Stitch Shows on Instagram โ€“ @knitandstitchshows

This promotional giveaway is not sponsored, endorsed, administered, or associated with Instagram or Facebook.


GIVEAWAY CLOSED – Monday, the 15th of September – the tickets to the 1st Giveaway have been awarded.

Disclaimer for Feltmakers Ireland Blog

Feltmakers Ireland aims to share information about awards, education, events, exhibitions, and opportunities that you will find interesting. Our sharing is neither paid for by nor an endorsement of these individuals or organisations.

Contact Us: If you have any concerns about content, please email us at feltmakersie@gmail.com.

Questions: For questions about content, please follow the link to the organisation involved in hosting the event.

Of Interest: Seam Collective’s Exhibition, Textiles Talks and #SeptTextileLove Challenge 2025

Seam Collective, a contemporary textile collective of textile practitioners based in the southwest of the UK, has three items of interest: an exhibition, a series of textile talks, and a textile challenge.

The Exhibition

Firstly, they have a group exhibition, ‘Warped and Wasted’, which focuses on textiles, sustainability, and collaboration.

Where: ACEarts, Market Place, Somerton, Somerset, TA11 7NB, UK

When: The show runs until the 11th of October.

More information about the exhibition can be found on their website – https://seamcollective.org/warped-and-wasted/

Textile Talks

Secondly, the Seam Collective will host a series of Textile Talks, both in-person and online, on Friday, the 3rd of October. The collective and invited peers in the fields of textiles, visual arts, and sustainability will discuss issues of textiles and sustainability, adding to the critical dialogue around sustainable arts practices locally, nationally, and internationally.

For more information and to book tickets to individual talks or the entire event, visit the LoomShed’s website – https://theloomshed.com/calendar-event/seam-collective/

The Challenge

Finally, the Seam Collective is once again hosting their annual online challenge, #SeptTextileLove. (They have been doing this challenge for nine years!) You can visit Instagram to see the work they are sharing from the exhibition, re-share it with a ๐Ÿ’›, or contribute your own posts that relate to the daily prompts. They request that you include the hashtagsย #SeptTextileLoveย andย #SeptTextileLove25 in your caption, and tagย @seam_collective. There are also new daily hashtags, such asย #STL25Day1, #STL25Day2,ย and so on, making it easier to find posts.

For more information, visit this page on their blog, which also includes a downloadable PDF of all of the prompts – https://seamcollective.org/2025/08/31/septtextilelove25-prompts-%f0%9f%92%9b/

Their Instagram @seam_collective


Disclaimer for Feltmakers Ireland Blog

Feltmakers Ireland aims to share information about awards, education, events, exhibitions, and opportunities that you will find interesting. Our sharing is neither paid for by nor an endorsement of these individuals or organisations.

Contact Us: If you have any concerns about content, please email us at feltmakersie@gmail.com.

Questions: For questions about the content, please follow the link to the organisation hosting the event.

Recap: Opening of ‘Common Threads Exhibition’ in Kilkenny

By Annika Berglund

Poster of ‘Common Threads Exhibition’

The ‘Common Threads exhibition’ opened on Thursday, the 7th of August at the Design and Crafts Council of Ireland’s (DCCI) National Design & Craft Gallery, Castle Yard, Kilkenny. The show curated by Sarah Ross features a mix of work from Feltmakers Ireland and the Quilters’ Guild of Ireland.

The turnout at the opening was great, and we all had the opportunity to see an amazing array of works by both feltmakers and quilters. Seeing the two types of crafts side by side was very illuminating; they represented very different ways of making, yet both featured intricate and fantastic work. As a feltmaker, I gained a deeper respect for the skill and patience required to create the quilted artworks on display.

Photos of the Gallery

At the opening, Feltmakers Ireland was represented by at least 14 of our members, who enjoyed the buzz and the lovely weather.

From left to right: Eithne O’Dea, Hilary Delaney, Joanne Foley, Mary O’Rourke, Claire Merry, Hรฉlรจne Dooley, Sandra Reynolds, Annika Berglund, Fiona Leech, Jane Fox, Siobhan Healy Ryan, Sharon Wells, Leiko Uchiyama, and Deirdre Crofts. Editor’s Note: We apologise if we have noted anyone’s name incorrectly.

The exhibition was opened by the head of the DCCI, Mary Blanchfield, followed by a speech by Moya Gerarthy of the Quilters Guild of Ireland. After that, it was my turn. Our blog mistress, Juliane, asked me for my written notes, but since I only had keywords, the gist of it was that the two sets of works looked great together!

Then, I talked about the symbology of how wool is made, where wisps of wool combine into a strong whole through pressure and agitation, and I drew parallels to how our members come together and form a community. Finally, I extended a heartfelt thank you to the DCCI and our curator, Sarah Ross, who selected the work and worked with the gallery personnel to create a stunning exhibition. She spoke last and talked about the (massive) work involved in picking and how impressed she was with the quality of work on show.

We heartily recommend a visit to the gallery before the end of the show, which runs until the 1st of November.

~~ Annika Berglund, Dublin Ireland.

Portraits of Members

Some more information about the show:

A contemporary textile exhibition exploring connection through fibre and form. This contemporary textile exhibition delves into the theme of connectionโ€”between people, materials, and traditionsโ€”through the tactile language of fibre and form. The exhibition will run from August 7 to November 1, 2025, offering visitors a rich sensory experience that celebrates both innovation and heritage in Irish textile art, showcasing the intricate and expressive work of artists from Feltmakers Ireland and The Quilters Guild of Ireland.

From our press release:

“This show is a testament to the creativity and technical expertise of the members of Feltmakers Ireland. Each piece tells a unique story, a vision realised in the medium of wool. It is a celebration of the diversity of feltmaking across Ireland. We are proud to showcase work that not only honours our craft but also pushes the boundaries of contemporary textile art.”

Feltmakers members included in the exhibition:

  • Annika Berglund
  • Christine Jordan
  • Claire Merry
  • Deirdre Crofts
  • Eithne Oโ€™Dea
  • Elaine Peden
  • Emily A Thompson
  • Fiona Leech
  • Heather Byrne
  • Hรฉlรจne Dooley
  • Hilary Delaney
  • Jane Fox
  • Joanne Foley
  • Juliane Gorman
  • Karena Ryan
  • Leiko Uchiyama
  • Lidiia Necheporenko
  • Neasa Ryan
  • Ramona Farrelly
  • Sandra Reynolds
  • Sharon Wells
  • Siobhan Healy Ryan
  • Tamzen Lundy

Some Work from the Exhibition

Appreciation

Thank you to the Design and Crafts Council of Ireland, curator Sarah Ross, the Quilters Guild of Ireland, and the National Design and Craft Gallery of Ireland. Also, thanks to Annika for writing up the recap for the guild.

Thank you to the Gallery for the professional photos of the space, which we ‘borrowed’ from Instagram. Lastly, thank you to the members who shared their pictures via Instagram or WhatsApp. We apologise if we missed any artists’ works.

For more information about visiting the National Design and Craft Gallery of Ireland, please visit their website – https://www.dcci.ie/events/common-threads/?campaign=dcci-ndcg

Disclaimer for Feltmakers Ireland Blog

Feltmakers Ireland aims to share information about awards, education, events, exhibitions, and opportunities that you will find interesting. Our sharing is neither paid for by nor an endorsement of these individuals or organisations.

Contact Us: If you have any concerns about content, please email us at feltmakersie@gmail.com.

Questions: For questions about the content, please follow the link to the organisation hosting the event.

Exhibition: Mary Quant Retrospective – MOSI – Newbridge

‘Mary Quant and the 1960s Mini Revolution’ has opened at the Museum of Style Icons (MOSI) at Newbridge Silverware, in Co Kildare. 21 pieces of the collection were previously exhibited at the V&A in London in 2020.

Admission is free, and the exhibition will run until the end of 2025.

For more information, visit https://visitnewbridgesilverware.com/museum-of-style-icons/

Related: An interesting article by Ruth O’Connor in IMAGE features an interview with Jannette Flood, the steward of the collection. – https://www.image.ie/style/mary-quant-inside-the-irish-exhibition-celebrating-one-of-the-20th-centurys-most-influential-designers-963461

Disclaimer for Feltmakers Ireland Blog

Feltmakers Ireland aims to share information about awards, education, events, exhibitions, and opportunities that you will find interesting. Our sharing is neither paid for by nor an endorsement of these individuals or organisations.

Contact Us: If you have any concerns about content, please email us at feltmakersie@gmail.com.

Questions: For questions about the content, please follow the link to the organisation hosting the event.

Of Interest: London Textile Month – September 2025

London Textile Month is a city-wide festival celebrating cloth, culture, and creativity. Curated by Selvedge magazine, this inaugural edition brings together artists, makers, brands, and institutions for a month of workshops, exhibitions, talks, and open studios โ€“ spotlighting textiles.

London Textile Month runs from the 1stโ€“30th of September, 2025.

Here are two wool-related events:

  • As part of London Textile Month, there is a symposium, Interwoven: Wool Across Borders – a one-day event celebrating a decade of Khadi London CICโ€™s pioneering work in regenerative textiles.

When: Monday, the 22nd of September, 10 AM – 5 PM
Where: Museum Of The Home, 136 Kingsland Road, London E2 8EA

  • On Sunday, the 28th, there will be The Woolmen Sheep Drive & Livery Fair, with sheep crossing the Southwark Bridge – https://sheepdrive.london/

For more information about the various events and activities that are happening, visit Selvedge’s website – https://www.selvedge.org/collections/london-textile-month

Their Instagram @selvedgemagazine

Disclaimer for Feltmakers Ireland Blog

Feltmakers Ireland aims to share information about awards, education, events, exhibitions, and opportunities that you will find interesting. Our sharing is neither paid for by nor an endorsement of these individuals or organisations.

Contact Us: If you have any concerns about content, please email us at feltmakersie@gmail.com.

Questions: For questions about the content, please follow the link to the organisation hosting the event.

Exhibition: Sandra Coote – Solo Show in Co Cavan

Poster for Sandra Coote's exhibition - Spoken in fibre -features two landscapes and a portrait

Feltmakers Ireland guild member Sandra Coote has a solo exhibition at the Cavan County Museum. Titled ‘Spoken In Fibreย – Wool art inspired by the poetry of Charles J. Coote’, this new exhibition features felted paintings byย Sandra Coote.

There is a lovely article about Sandra, her work, and its inspiration, which was the poetry of the great-grandfather of her husband, on The Anglo-Celt’s website – https://www.anglocelt.ie/2025/07/20/poetry-and-art-rooted-in-place/

Sandra dyes all the wool she uses, which comes from her own farm or local farmers; it is entirely sourced from County Cavan.

Where: Cavan County Museum, The Eden Gallery, Virginia Rd, Kilmore, Ballyjamesduff, Co. Cavan, A82 YP70

When: The opening is this Thursday at 7:30 PM. The exhibition runs until Saturday, the 23rd of August.

For more information about visiting the museum, visit their website – https://cavanmuseum.ie/cavan-museum

Sandra’s Instagram: @crafts_of_ireland

Disclaimer for Feltmakers Ireland Blog

Feltmakers Ireland aims to share information about awards, education, events, exhibitions, and opportunities that you will find interesting. Our sharing is neither paid for by nor an endorsement of these individuals or organisations.

Contact Us: If you have any concerns about content, please email us at feltmakersie@gmail.com.

Questions: For questions about the content, please follow the link to the organisation hosting the event.

Exhibition: Textiles – the Art of Mankind – Fashion and Textile Museum – London

The Fashion & Textile Museum in London has an inspiring exhibition titled ‘Textiles: The Art of Mankind’. This show highlights the rich and enduring connection between textiles, humanity, and the world. Several guild members have attended and spoken highly of the experience!

Where: The Fashion & Textile Museum, 83 Bermondsey St, London SE1 3XF, United Kingdom.

Exhibition dates: Now through the 7th of September 2025.

For more information, visit their website – https://fashiontextilemuseum.org/exhibitionsdisplays/textiles-the-art-of-mankind/

Their Instagram @fashiontextilemuseum

Disclaimer for Feltmakers Ireland Blog

Feltmakers Ireland aims to share information about awards, education, events, exhibitions, and opportunities that you will find interesting. Our sharing is neither paid for by nor an endorsement of these individuals or organisations.

Contact Us: If you have any concerns about content, please email us at feltmakersie@gmail.com.

Questions: For questions about content, please follow the link to the organisation involved in hosting the event.

Exhibition: The Fine Art of Textile – Coach House Gallery – Dublin

The Fine Art of Textile in the Coach House Gallery, Dublin Castle, is an international exhibition of contemporary textiles that cross artistic genresโ€”painting, sculpture, drawing, and sewing. It is curated by Irish artist Nuala Goodman, with the assistance of Italian journalist Maria Luisa Caffarelli.

The exhibition’s core is the Milan-based collective โ€˜Fringeโ€™, founded in 2022 by four female artists from different countries. Fringe is a vibrant, creative force exploring the expressive potential of textiles. There is Sanchita Ajjampur, who re-interprets the ancient skills of raffia weave and embroidery creating sustainable handcrafted works; Lisa Farmer, whose art pieces lie somewhere in between basketry and tapestry; Nuala Goodman whose โ€˜Wild Tapestriesโ€™ uses preloved and precious textiles to create works of art, and Colomba Leddi whose synthetic, linear forms create spatial redefinition.

Curated by Irish artist Nuala Goodman, ‘The Wild Donegal Tweed Project’ is a collaboration between five Donegal tweed companies and art and design students from NABA (Nuova Accademia di Belle Arti) in Rome.

Through the Irish Times fashion journalist Deirdre McQuillan, the five Donegal companies (McNutt of Donegal, Magee 1866, Molloy & Sons, Triona Design and Studio Donegal) have donated their fabrics to the NABA textile workshop. The woven, natural and sustainable quality of Donegal tweed appealed to the students as an alternative to cheap synthetic materials. Tweed cushions (45 x 45 cm) were chosen as the ideal form for re-imagining techniques such as smocking, embroidery, felting, patchwork, layering and more.

– Text from the OPW.

Where: The Coach House Gallery, Dublin Castle, near the Chester Beatty.
When: 6th of June, 2025 – 24th of August, 2025
Opening hours: 10 AM โ€“ 5 PM
Free admission

For more information, visit the OPW’s website – https://dublincastle.ie/category/dublin-castle-exhibitions/

Disclaimer for Feltmakers Ireland Blog

Feltmakers Ireland aims to share information about awards, education, events, exhibitions, and opportunities that you will find interesting. Our sharing is neither paid for by nor an endorsement of these individuals or organisations.

Contact Us: If you have any concerns about content, please email us at feltmakersie@gmail.com.

Questions: For questions about content, please follow the link to the organisation involved in hosting the event.

Exhibition: Flax Flower Project Unveils Felt Installation at Titanic Museum – Belfast

Twelve talented artisans from three felting organisationsโ€”Feltmakers Ireland, Feltmakers North, and the International Feltmakers Association (IFA)โ€”have collaborated on the Flax Flower Project, a unique wet-felted installation set to debut at the Titanic Museum on Tuesday, the 1st of July, 2025. The exhibit, which celebrates Belfastโ€™s rich heritage in flax and linen production, will run through August 2025 and return each summer thereafter.

The Flax Flower Project showcases intricate floral designs crafted from sustainable materials, including Merino wool, bamboo fibres, Margilan silk, silk fibres, and flax strands for hanging. This vibrant display blends traditional craftsmanship with innovative textile art, highlighting the cultural and industrial significance of flax in Belfastโ€™s history.

Behind the Scenes

Shelley Steele and Jane Fox co-coordinated the Flax Flower Project. Shelley expressed her enthusiasm: โ€œItโ€™s been a great pleasure to organise The Flax Flower Project alongside Jane Fox. Bringing together such talented artists to honour Belfastโ€™s legacy has been truly rewarding.โ€

Loli Cox, a member of Feltmakers Ireland and IFA, added: โ€œI was thrilled to join this project, which celebrates Belfastโ€™s flax and linen heritage while showcasing the sustainable art of feltmaking. This exhibit not only honours our past but also inspires sustainable creativity for the future, aligning perfectly with Feltmakers Irelandโ€™s mission to promote natural fibres like sheepโ€™s wool for wearable and artistic applications.โ€

The project reflects the felting organisations’ commitment to sustainable textile practices and the revival of traditional crafts. It highlights feltmaking as a sustainable art form, while also celebrating the heritage of linen-makingโ€”a craft that was once a cornerstone of Belfastโ€™s economy. Through the tactile and creative process of wet felting, these artisans will educate the public about the historical and cultural significance of flax and wool, promoting eco-conscious artistry.

The contributing artists are Sharon Bell, Loli Cox, Jane Fox, Siobhรกn Healy Ryan, Marie Hopkins, Viktor Hurtovyi, Elaine McCombe, Laura Moffett, Jacki Sleator, Shelley Steele, and Fiona Whyte.

The Artists

For more information about the Flax Flower Project or to schedule a visit to the Titanic Museum exhibit, please visit the website. – https://www.titanicbelfast.com/

Feltmakers Ireland is dedicated to promoting sustainable textile practices and raising awareness of natural fibres through innovative and traditional feltmaking techniques – https://feltmakersireland.com/

The IFA fosters a global community of feltmakers, encouraging creativity and collaboration in the art of feltmaking – https://www.feltmakers.com/

Feltmakers North supports artisans in Northern Ireland, preserving and advancing the craft of feltmaking through education and exhibitions. https://feltmakersnorth.blogspot.com/

Disclaimer for Feltmakers Ireland Blog

Feltmakers Ireland aims to share information about awards, education, events, exhibitions, and opportunities that you will find interesting. Our sharing is neither paid for by nor an endorsement of these individuals or organisations.

Contact Us: If you have any concerns about content, please email us at feltmakersie@gmail.com.

Questions: For questions about content, please follow the link to the organisation involved in hosting the event.

Exhibition: Annika Berglund – Blick Galleri – Stockholm, Sweden

Guild member Annika Berglund has a solo art exhibition in Stockholm, Sweden.

It will be her first time showing work in Sweden, and she hopes to make connections with Swedish artists and feltmakers. She will be in the gallery throughout the exhibition and hopes to meet those who can attend.

When: the 26th of June to the 6th of July.

Where: Blick Galleri, Hornsgatan 32, Stockholm, Sweden

Several of her pieces are also on display at the Olivier Cornet Gallery’s group exhibition, ‘Out of Lines’, in Dublin, Ireland.

Instagram: @annikaberglund.art @olivier_cornet_gallery

Disclaimer for Feltmakers Ireland Blog

Feltmakers Ireland aims to share information about awards, education, events, exhibitions, and opportunities that you will find interesting. Our sharing is neither paid for by nor an endorsement of these individuals or organisations.

Contact Us: If you have any concerns about content, please email us at feltmakersie@gmail.com.

Questions: For questions about content, please follow the link to the organisation involved in hosting the event.