Lace and Iron make a thing of beauty in Headford

IT was a collaborative affair which brought many people and interests into one creative space in Headford: lacemakers, a blacksmith, CE employees, the Client Liaison Officer of the Design and Crafts Council Ireland (DCCI), the librarian, the local parish priest, a politician, and the Keep Well Campaign.

The glue that bound this disparate group together was the desire to provide something useful and beautiful in the town of Headford in the year which celebrates the 50th anniversary of the establishment of DCCI in 1971.

The result is a magnificent iron bench the design of which is based on the 18th Headford bobbin lace pattern. It is located right outside the library at one end of the town and is now a companion for a similar bench in the Community Orchard at the other end of Headford. The two benches are now proud “bookends” of the town.

Read the full feature in this week's edition of The Tuam Herald, on sale in shops and online www.tuamherald.ie