Textile Takeover

Angeline Murphy Design is a home sewer and craft blogger based in Northern Ireland. Angeline shares sewing tips and techniques on her social media.

We're coming together in the Parochial Hall to create a unique, collaborative art piece – a beautifully embroidered linen featuring elements of the museum and its rich history. Whether you're a seasoned stitcher or new to the craft, this is your chance to add your personal touch to a shared masterpiece. Embroidery has a unique ability to bring people together, transcending age, gender, and cultural differences. So come along, get creative, and help craft something special for the museum!

Don’t miss this opportunity to contribute to a work of art that will be displayed for all to see. Let’s stitch together, one thread at a time.

Ditch fast fashion and discover one-of-a-kind treasures at Sally Vintage! Our vintage pop-up shop offers a curated collection of pre-loved clothing, reducing textile waste and giving new life to incredible finds. With sustainable style and unique pieces, you'll look amazing while feeling good about your impact on the planet.
 

Switch is coming to The Ulster Folk Museum!

Here's how it works:

To make sustainable fashion accessible to everyone, this Switch is a pay-what-you-can system. You can take up to 3 new to you items home with you, for a price you think is fair. The garments on offer have been specially handpicked by Moya from EnvironmentalÉadaí. There'll be vintage and modern, women's and men's - the aim is for no one to leave without some second-hand, sustainable éadaí! 

Come along and bag yourself some new-to-you clothing! 

We limit our Switch to 3 items of clothing. This is to ensure that everyone gets a chance to find something great! It's highly recommended you get down early to bag the best bits.

If you have good quality clothes you'd like to donate to the Switch, please contact @environmentaléadaí on Instagram, or email [email protected] to arrange drop-off/collection. We arrange donations in advance, so we can wash & quality check all items. Donations must be clean, and in good condition - only donate something you'd like to get! No pyjamas/underwear or any non-clothing items.

Moya is from Donegal, and now lives in Belfast. Her work in the fashion and film industries inspired her to make a change within one of the most environmentally damaging industries in the world - the textiles industry. Moya runs the bilingual instagram account @EnvironmentalÉadaí where she shares her tips for sustainable living, agus an Ghaeilge. SWITCH is a circular economy, eco-conscious clothes swap which aims to reframe the way we consume clothing. 

SWITCH will take place in the Reawakening Project Hub (location 27 on the map). 

For three generations the master weavers at Mourne Textiles have produced the mid-century visions of Norwegian design pioneer and founder, Gerd Hay-Edie.

Now led by Gerd’s grandson Mario Sierra, Mourne Textiles creates contemporary home furnishings inspired by a rich weaving heritage, rooted in the landscape and community of Northern Ireland – but with a contemporary, international, collaborative outlook.

By harnessing the skills and traditions of the past with a modern, contemporary aesthetic, Mourne Textiles creates traditionally woven scarves, rugs and homeware products that acknowledge the rich weaving heritage in Northern Ireland.
 

Fashion Revolution Ireland is the Irish branch of a global campaign for a just and equitable fashion system for people and the planet.

In a world of fast fashion, what is the true cost of our clothing? Join Carrie Ann Moran of Circular Fashion Ireland and Fashion Revolution as we dig into the true cost of clothing. This interactive session will look at the complexities of the global fashion industry, and the impact on both our planet and people. As the fashion industry is now confirmed as one of the world’s most significant contributors to climate change, how can we transition and make sustainable fashion attainable? 

Carrie Ann Moran is an award-winning Irish social entrepreneur, recognised nationally as a leading voice on circular fashion.  For over 15 years, Carrie Ann has pushed sustainable fashion in Ireland, gaining recognition for her industry perspective and her pragmatic approach to embedding sustainability and circularity themes into the mainstream.  She holds an honours degree in Law, Dip in Fashion, Post Grad Environmental Management and an MSc in Environmental Sustainability.   

Chat to the Bangor Repair Café in the Parochial Hall to discover how you can be part of the solution to textile waste. Bangor Repair Cafe is a community-based organization dedicated to promoting sustainability through repair and reuse. Their volunteers provide free repair services and workshops, empowering individuals to extend the life of their belongings and reduce waste. They believe in the power of community and the importance of sustainability in creating a better future for all. 

At the stall, you can expect to see:

• Repair Demonstrations: Watch the talented volunteers as they demonstrate how to mend clothing, fix zippers, sew on buttons, and perform other common repairs. Learn useful techniques that you can apply at home to extend the life of your wardrobe.
• Hands-On Repair Support: Bring your damaged items and receive one-on-one guidance. Whether it's a torn shirt, a broken bag, or a pair of jeans needing hemming, the team is there to advise you on how best to restore your items.
• Sewing Techniques Q&A: Bring your sewing questions to the team, anything from basic stitches to more advanced techniques. Discover how easy and satisfying it can be to repair and customize your own clothing.
• Sustainability Inspiration: Gain insights on how to upcycle fabric and fabric scraps to prolong their life and create wonderful new items, all of which can make a big difference in reducing textile waste.

Claire O’Flaherty is a bespoke shoemaker based in Belfast. She has been making shoes for over 35 years. Following a two-year footwear manufacturing course at Cordwainer’s College in London Claire completed an apprenticeship with John Lobb Ltd and has continued to make shoes for them ever since. In 1990 Claire was an inaugural recipient of a Queen Elizabeth Scholarship which enabled her to develop her skills with shoemakers throughout the UK. Claire taught bespoke shoemaking at Cordwainer’s College for several years and has previously demonstrated shoemaking at UFTM and other NI venues.

Claire will demonstrate a range of skills involved in shoemaking. These will include preparing leather components, lasting (pulling a leather upper over a last), thread making and time-permitting, welt sewing.

Hannah is a local artist and visitor guide at the Ulster Folk Museum and Ulster Transport Museum who has been making rag rugs for the past ten years. This simple craft produces the small rugs which can be spotted in many of our exhibition buildings.  Rag rugs were an opportunity to get additional use from old textiles and a chance for creative expression. 

Hannah’s pieces continue the spirit of sustainability inherent in this craft by reusing the museum Costume Department’s scrap fabrics and thoroughly well-worn clothing.

Joanne Glassett is a maker working in traditional textile crafts. She demonstrates hand weaving on a 19th-century loom in the Ballycultra weaving shed at Ulster Folk Museum. Learn more about heritage craft demonstrations at the Ulster Folk Museum here. 

Meet our Linen Weaver Roisin at Ballydugan Weaver's Cottage, where she will be explaining the linen process from sewing the seed to the finished cloth and all the stages it involves. There'll be a handling collection so not only will you learn the process but you'll be able to feel how the flax changes at each stage. 

Come and meet The Northern Ireland Patchwork Guild. The Guild was established in 1977, and is dedicated to the art and craft of patchwork quilting. Learn about patchwork quilting from the Guild in the Parochial Hall. 

See demonstrations from Ulster Guild of Spinners, Weavers and Dyers in the Parochial Hall. The Guild is a group of fibre lovers who enjoy spinning, dyeing, weaving, feltmaking, knitting, crocheting, learning about different fibres – or sometimes just drooling over yarns!

Tackling the issues with the textiles industry can not be done by individuals alone – it is a systemic issue that needs top-level intervention from governments across the world. Pop to our post office to send a post card to your local representative asking for action!

Malin Hemphill, a Visitor Guide at the Ulster Folk Museum, was taught how to make cordage out of stinging nettles by his Dad. Since the Iron Age, nettles have been produced into cordage for basket weaving, fishing lines, and jewellery and even woven into garments. 

Today this ancient skill is not as commonplace as it once was, but is still very useful for making strong cordage out of entirely natural sources. See Malin demonstrate how to make nettle cordage in the Parochial Hall. 

Call into the drapers to pick up a pattern for a small, easy-to-make item you can make at home using small scraps of textiles. You can choose between a tie-on pocket, a detachable collar, or a small bag for needlework projects—all items found in our collections.

Join Angeline as she shares her journey into sewing and how her experience on the Great British Sewing Bee has shaped her creative path. She’ll be sharing behind-the-scenes tales from the Sewing Bee, highlighting exciting projects like her collaboration with Jo Malone, and recounting her insightful visit to Patrick Grant's factory in Blackburn, where I learned about his passions and mission to encourage people to for buy less. 

We'll also dive into the importance of sustainability at home, exploring how sewing, mending, and repair can improve both our mental health and the environment. You won't want to miss this engaging talk – with opportunities to ask questions afterwards!

Jump the Hedges is an award-winning sustainable design studio based in Belfast, founded by former Adidas designer Síofra Caherty. The studio has a material and waste-led approach to product creation as opposed to the traditional fashion industry 'design-led' approach. This approach ensures that waste material is fully utilised to create valuable and long-lasting products.  Bags are created from reclaimed truck tarpaulin, aeroplane seat parts and waste leather.  The studio was awarded Future Maker of Ireland Awards in 2015, 2016 and 2021 and a prestigious RDS Craft Award in 2022.  The studio is regularly featured in the media and most recently on the Irish RTÉ news series 'Climate Heroes'.  Alongside creating bags the studio leads workshops on sustainability with local schools and communities.

Síofra's talk will focus on her recent 'Farm to Garment' project. This was a two-year project aimed at building a fully transparent supply chain and recognising each pair of hands that contributes to the making of a garment.  The project took Síofra across Europe, from cotton fields and spinning mills in Greece to fabric knitting & garment factory floors in Portugal.

‘Out of the past flows the future’  Gerd Hay-Edie, 

Join Mario Sierra for an overview of Mourne Textiles and its origins, both the weaving mill and it's textile designs. Take a look at the traditional weaving techniques used to manufacture their collection of blankets, cushion, fabrics, scarves and rugs. Mourne Textiles celebrate and learn from our weaving heritage, keeping these skills alive for future generations. 

Mario will also be touching on their recent Crowdfunding project ‘Fibre to Fabric’. This project involves the restoration of flax processing and spinning equipment along with the reviving of the skills needed to operate these machines which were once common within Northern Ireland's textile landscape. 

In a world of fast fashion, what is the true cost of our clothing? Join Carrie Ann Moran of Circular Fashion Ireland and Fashion Revolution as we take a deep dive into the true cost of clothing. This interactive session will introduce attendees to the complexities of the global fashion industry and the impact it has on both our planet and people. As the industry is now confirmed as one of the world’s most significant contributors to climate change, how can we transition and make sustainable fashion attainable? 

Carrie Ann Moran is an award-winning Irish social entrepreneur, recognised nationally as a leading voice on circular fashion.  For over 15 years, Carrie Ann has pushed sustainable fashion in Ireland, gaining recognition for her industry perspective and her pragmatic approach to embedding sustainability and circularity themes into the mainstream.  She holds an honours degree in Law, Dip in Fashion, Post Grad Environmental Management and an MSc in Environmental Sustainability.   

Recycling precious textile scraps is nothing new. Our parents and grandparents were masters of creativity and thrift, turning small remnants and offcuts of fabrics into useful items to wear and use around the home. Based on the textiles collection at the Ulster Folk Museum, this short talk will reflect on craft skills in recycling textiles and how the past can inspire the future.  

Valerie has curatorial responsibility for the collection of dress, textiles and needlework at the Ulster Folk Museum.  The collection dates from 1760 to the present day and includes significant examples of fashionable and everyday historic dress, transport uniforms, embroidery, Irish lace, and patchwork quilts. She researches, manages and develops this collection to support the museum’s work in relation to collections access and interpretation.