From Donegal to Rome: Tweed meets Italian fashion

Donegal Tweed - an immersive journey through Irish heritage

Donegal Tweed is an ancient fabric, used since the 16th century, which owes its name to County Donegal in the north-west of Ireland. Originally handwoven, today this renowned fabric is part of the rich Irish cultural heritage that has spread the world over.

With Milan being one of the fashion capitals of the world, and Italy the birthplace of some of the greatest global fashion houses, introducing Rome-based fashion students to one of Ireland’s most famous fabrics only made sense.

A unique marriage

Artist and lecturer Nuala Goodman of the Nuova Accademia di Belle Arti (NABA) in Rome, led a workshop for NABA students on working with the heritage material.

Their work was later displayed at an event hosted by the Irish Embassy in Rome, where Irish Times Fashion Editor Deirdre McQuillan hosted a detailed exchange on the history of this iconic fabric and the marriage between the unique Donegal tweed and Italian fashion.

"The project created an invaluable exchange between craftsmanship and tradition on the one hand and artistic approach and innovative languages on the other, building a bridge between Ireland and Italy and creating a fertile dialogue,” says Silvia Simoncelli, Head of Education at NABA Rome.

“I believe such opportunities are pivotal in enriching the educational path of our students, as they create a bond with a precious savoir-faire that needs to be and passed on to the next generations, and at the same time they produce a positive effect on tradition, since they contribute to preserve its cultural value by making it contemporary,” she continues.

Fresh and creative twists on an iconic fabric

Five of Donegal Tweed’s top textile houses - McNutt, Magee1866, Molloy & Sons, Triona, and Studio Donegal - donated tweed cushions, giving the 15 NABA students an opportunity for creativity through the application of textile treatments.

“It was fascinating to see how we experimented with tweed and tried to add a fresh and creative twist to it by using various techniques such as embroidering, needle felting, and heat pressing,” says Simon Khoury, one of the students who participated.

“I got to dive into hand crafting techniques using a culturally valuable, unique, and complex textile, which one wouldn’t think could be manipulated and applied in such diverse ways,” added Valeria Isabel Paredes Zuniga, another student.