An Grianán National Lace Week 2026: five days among bobbins and Irish lace
Ireland welcomes October with a week dedicated to learning, sharing, and preserving lacemaking. From October 5th to 9th, 2026, An Grianán celebrates its National Lace Week in Termonfeckin, County Louth. Among the offerings is a bobbin lace course with Ann Keller, accompanied by various Irish needlework traditions. It's an upcoming event and especially appealing to those who enjoy working slowly, surrounded by other skilled hands.
Five days to live among threads
El An Grianán official program for 2026 Lace Week is scheduled between Monday, October 5th and Friday, October 9th. It shares these dates with Waterford Week, also designed for those with unfinished projects who want to make progress with guidance from mentors.
The program brings together bobbin lace with Ann Keller and courses in Carrickmacross, Mountmellick, and Limerick with Eleanor Calnan. This combination offers a glimpse into very different techniques. Bobbin lace arranges numerous threads on the lace bobbin, while other Irish specialties create designs using appliqué, embroidery, or netting. The result is a small overview of the country's textile heritage.
Practical information of the week
- Dates: From Monday, October 5th to Friday, October 9th, 2026.
- Location: An Grianán Adult Education College, Termonfeckin, Co. Louth, A92 X9TF, Ireland.
- Bobbins: course taught by Ann Keller.
- Other techniques: Carrickmacross and Limerick lace, Mountmellick's work and support for ongoing projects.
- Reservations: phone 041 982 2119 and email admin@an-grianan.ie.
The organizers advise that dates are subject to change and recommend booking in advance. The brochure describes the week as a four-night residential course, with arrival on Monday at 15:00 PM and departure on Friday at 11:00 AM. Rates depend on ICA or WI membership, room type, and the single supplement, so it is advisable to confirm availability and the current price directly before traveling.
A center open to adults
La Irish Countrywomen's Association An Grianán explains that it combines stays with courses in art, crafts, cooking, and personal development. It is open to both women and men and does not require membership in the association. The center has been operating in Termonfeckin since 1954 and has made shared learning an essential part of its identity.
Its Irish name means "sunny place." The image fits well with a house where learning isn't limited to copying a pattern. During the week, participants can compare ways to tension, arrange pairs, solve a background problem, or revive a project that's been waiting for months. A conversation alongside the crafting kit often clarifies what seemed impossible to solve alone.
The residential format adds something that a short class can't: time to repeat, undo, and look again. Meals and breaks extend the conversations, and each task becomes a gateway to family memories, different schools of thought, and personal ways of understanding the craft.
Bobbin lace alongside Irish lace
The organization itself considers lacemaking a highly skilled craft and celebrates two national weeks in 2026, one in February and the other in October. During these weeks, bobbin lace, Carrickmacross, Limerick, knitting, and tatting are practiced. The stated goal is for this knowledge to be passed down and kept alive.
For a visiting lacemaker, this mix is quite charming. It allows her to recognize familiar techniques and discover solutions born from other materials. Carrickmacross works with appliqué on a base; Limerick embroiders on netting; bobbin lace, on the other hand, creates the fabric from the interlacing of threads. Seeing them together helps one understand that the word "lace" brings together different families, united by patience and a love of emptiness.
A getaway to Louth County
Termonfeckin is close to the coast and Seapoint Beach. The center also offers views of the Boyne Valley, a region of historic landscapes located in the corridor between Dublin and Belfast. Drogheda is very close by, so a stay can combine classes with a stroll through one of Ireland's oldest cities.
National Lace Week arrives just a few days after the start of October. Anyone wishing to participate should check availability as soon as possible; those unable to travel yet can keep it in mind as an example of something valuable: an institution that sets aside time, space, and companionship so that inherited threads can continue to find new hands.
