West Donegal fashion designer launches new drive to bring back old skills

A west Donegal fashion designer is on a concerted drive to bring back traditional heritage skills in a bid to breathe new life into communities across the county, together with the wider Northwest region.

Sarah Gallagher, from Bunbeg, who designs under the ‘Sarah Lorraine’ label and has opened a boutique, has come up with an initiative to teach sewing to novices, and harness those skills to build an enterprise that she believes will offer real opportunities and options to job seekers in the area.

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Sarah says she had a moment of inspiration while watching some of her family members sewing and mending some garments.

“It truly felt like a moment that connected my past with my future,” she says. “I grew up watching my mother and aunts sewing; they were so nifty, with brilliant imagination and could literally transform garments. There was almost a magic in that, and they always seemed so contented and rooted in what they were doing.

“As a designer, I am so conscious of the need for excellent crafting skills, and I thought it would be a great idea to offer courses to get people sewing!

“I now organise weekly two-hour sessions, where participants bring garments to renew and practice sewing techniques. The reaction has been so incredibly positive, and it has really taken off.

“We meet every Tuesday for two hours and people bring old garments they can practise with and renew. Sewing is an incredibly useful and valuable skill. It is one that ‘travels’, people can sew from anywhere at all and it offers real opportunities to women, in particular, who may wish to work from home and earn a living. It’s really like the old ‘cottage industry’ which is part of our fabric in of life in Donegal. This sustained families over generations”

“I come from a line of strong women who were ahead of their time and always promoted self-sufficiency and independence. Learning a skill like sewing really embodies those principles. Sewing is an invaluable skill; most of us grew up with items of clothing that may have been handed down and were ‘new’ to us.I was brought up with a huge grá for and respect for the people and traditions that went before me, and I am blessed to have some items belonging to my grandmother, for instance. As well as being beautifully symbolic, this is real sustainability.

“Each year, the fashion and textile industry produces vast quantities of clothing, much of which ultimately ends up in landfill sites. It is estimated that over 92 million tonnes of textiles are discarded annually, making fashion one of the most wasteful industries

“So many clothes are going into landfill, we know that this is one of the greatest polluters, billions of items go into landfill every year. It is shockingly wasteful.

“We can all do our bit to reduce this, and this is another reason why my courses have taken off. People want to do something that they know will make a difference, something they can control and something that is tangible.

“I am so happy that I am playing my own part in this by passing on the skills I learned, it is lovely to think that we are continuing what was an intrinsic part of Donegal for aeons.

Going full circle is part of Sarah’s DNA. She delights in the fact that she has now working out of the same shop that was first opened by her great-grandmother in Magheraclogher, Bunbeg.

“I absolutely love the fact that my shop, Sarah Lorraine, is now operating out of the same premises that my lovely great-grandmother, Annie Bonner ran,” Sarah adds. “She was a legend both in my family and in this area and I know she would be proud of what I am doing.

“I want to build on this initiative of teaching people to sew and grow a team of workers for my brand who in turn will be pivotal to its growth. I want to provide options for women essential as it is they who make up the bulk of the participants. I am all about lasting initiatives that are genuinely meaningful.”