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heritage · Saturday 17 October 2026 · 6:00pm 
Make Your Own Traditional Irish Samhain Mask
At Maria Edgeworth Centre · Ballymahon Road, Edgeworthstown, Co. Longford
At Maria Edgeworth Centre · Ballymahon Road, Edgeworthstown, Co. Longford
Before Halloween meant plastic costumes and shop-bought sweets, Irish households marked Samhain with masks made from whatever was to hand and customs meant to keep wandering spirits at bay. On Saturday, 17 October 2026, historian Dr Melissa Shiels leads a hands-on workshop at the Maria Edgeworth Centre in Edgeworthstown where participants make their own traditional Irish mask while learning the folklore behind it, part of the Longford and Westmeath Home of Halloween programme.
Dr Shiels, a recent PhD graduate specialising in sixteenth-century Irish history and historical clothing recreation, walks the group through how Irish communities once marked the end of the harvest and the start of the darker half of the year. The session covers customs such as Snap Apple and guising, and explains why people wore disguises at Samhain, believed to protect the wearer from spirits abroad on the night the veil between worlds was thinnest. Participants then make their own mask from materials supplied on the night, working alongside the group rather than following a strict template, with Dr Shiels on hand to explain the symbolism behind different designs. The evening winds down with tea, coffee and barmbrack, and a question and answer session where attendees are invited to share their own family Halloween memories and traditions.
The Maria Edgeworth Centre is on the Ballymahon Road in Edgeworthstown, on the N4 between Longford town and Mullingar. On-street and nearby car parking is available in the town centre, a short walk from the venue.
A Samhain evening in Edgeworthstown is a good reason to explore the wider town, home to more literary and historical sites than most visitors expect. There is more to see in Edgeworthstown and across Co. Longford.
Heading to Maria Edgeworth Centre in Edgeworthstown? Longford has plenty more to see. Read the Edgeworthstown area guide, find what else is on, and explore the towns and villages nearby.