Sew a Softie with Lucy Hill at Draiocht

What to Expect

Sew a Softie is a hands-on sewing workshop run by textile artist Lucy Hill in Draiocht’s First Floor Gallery, where participants make their own soft toy from start to finish over the course of the session. It’s a beginner-friendly format aimed at giving kids and families a proper introduction to sewing, with all materials supplied so nobody needs to arrive with anything beyond enthusiasm.

Draiocht runs a steady stream of these smaller gallery-based family workshops alongside its main theatre and cinema programme, and this kind of practical, take-home-a-finished-thing session tends to be popular with the summer holiday crowd in Blanchardstown and the wider Dublin 15 area. Running across two days with two sessions each gives families a choice of times, which makes it easier to fit around other summer plans.

Workshops like this are a reliable way to fill a slot in the summer holidays without a full-day commitment, and the First Floor Gallery space at Draiocht is set up specifically for this kind of hands-on activity rather than being a repurposed corner of the theatre. Booking ahead is worth doing since these family craft sessions have limited capacity and tend to fill up once the school holidays are underway.

Good to Know

• Thursday 13 and Friday 14 August 2026, sessions at 11:00am and 1:00pm each day
• First Floor Gallery, Draiocht, Blanchardstown
• Run by textile artist Lucy Hill
• Suitable for families; all sewing materials provided
• Booking by phone through Draiocht’s box office
• Check the Draiocht website for suggested age range and price

Getting There

Draiocht is inside the Blanchardstown Centre in Dublin 15, well served by Dublin Bus and Go-Ahead routes from the city and surrounding suburbs. There is extensive parking at the Blanchardstown Centre itself, making it an easy stop for families combining the workshop with a wider shopping centre visit.