Free pop-up shop at 2 Potato Market brings second-hand style, repair and youth-led creativity to Carlow Town for Carlow County Council’s Climate Action Week, 5–10 October 2026
Fabric of Change Pop-Up: a week of Circular Fashion in the heart of Carlow
A vacant shop in Carlow Town is to be transformed into a week-long celebration of style, creativity and second chances, as Fabric of Change Carlow opens its Pop-Up Shop at 2 Potato Market from Monday 5th to Saturday 10th October 2026.
The pop-up is the first public activation of Fabric of Change Carlow, a two-year pilot programme delivered by VOICE Ireland and Carlow County Council with support from Zero Waste Europe. Free to enter and open to everyone, it brings local charity shops, crafters, makers and circular fashion professionals together under one roof during Carlow County Council’s Climate Action Week.
Visitors will find rails of second-hand and pre-loved clothing curated with local charity shops, a swap shop, a creative repair corner, live repair and upcycling demonstrations from local experts including Amanda from Steadfast, and a consultation wall where anyone can have their say on the future of fashion in Carlow. Opening at lunchtime and after school on weekdays and from 12 to 6pm on Friday and Saturday (see details in the notes). Admission is free.
Made to Last: building skills in the Community
Running inside the shop all week is Made to Last, a youth upskilling programme led by Carlow County Council’s Environmental Awareness Office.
In the weeks beforehand, post-primary teachers, youth workers, library staff, Youthreach facilitators, charity shop managers and community group members will take part in evening “Train the Mentors” workshops covering basic hand repair, visible mending and simple embellishment, and how to run a relaxed, youth-led repair space. The aim is to have a network of trained local mentors in place, with skills that stay in Carlow’s schools, libraries and youth settings long after the shop closes.
From the 5th October, those teachings move into the pop-up itself, where young people aged 12 to 19 take part in the programme through hands-on workshops. Activities will include styling complete outfits from second-hand clothing, transforming unworn garments, making jewellery from broken or discarded pieces, reworking unsold stock into something new, and trying knitting, crochet and embellishment techniques. Pieces created during the week will stay on display in the shop, turning the unit into a living exhibition of creativity and circular fashion.
A further highlight will be a special display of work by students from Tullow Community School, whose award-winning and finalist entries in the ReLove Fashion competition show how imagination can turn discarded textiles into striking garments.
A project rooted in a growing local movement.
Fabric of Change Carlow builds on research carried out by fourth-year International Business students at South East Technological University (SETU), who explored local attitudes to fashion consumption, clothing repair and textile waste. It also follows a year of work by Carlow County Council with local partners, including the Charity Shop Challenge, which invited residents to discover the quality and variety available on their doorstep, and the Threads Through Carlow map and video series highlighting pre-loved retailers in the town centre. During Climate Action Week, all these strands come together under one roof.
Beyond this first pilot, Fabric of Change Carlow will continue to work and engage with residents, schools, charity shops, community organisations and makers to encourage repair, reuse, sharing and buying pre-loved across the county.
Solene Schirrer, Fabric of Change Programme Manager with VOICE Ireland, said:
“Fashion should be creative, not wasteful. Across Europe, communities are rediscovering the value of repair, reuse and sharing, and Carlow is becoming a fantastic example of what happens when local authorities, schools, charity shops, community groups and residents come together to reimagine our relationship with clothing.
This project is not just about clothes. It is about building a community that thinks differently about consumption, creativity and waste. With Made to Last as part of the pop-up, young people aren’t just visiting the shop but they’re also learning new skills. We’re delighted to be partnering with Carlow County Council on the first year of Fabric of Change Carlow, and we look forward to seeing the programme grow.”
Dee Sewell, Environmental Awareness Officer with Carlow County Council, said:
"Through our partnership with VOICE Ireland, we want to make it easier and more enjoyable for people to get more value from the clothes they already own. Whether someone attends a workshop, discovers the benefits of buying and selling second-hand, finds a unique outfit at the pop-up shop, or simply comes along for inspiration, we hope they leave with ideas they can put into practice straight away."
Visiting the pop-up
The Fabric of Change Pop-Up Shop runs from 5th to 10th October at 2 Potato Market, Carlow Town, 12-6pm daily. Entry is free and no booking is needed. Made to Last workshops for young people are pre-booked; schools and youth groups can book through Carlow County Council’s Environmental Awareness Office using the contact details below.
- Opening hours:
Monday 5 October: 12 noon–1.30pm and 4pm–6pm
Tuesday 6 October: 12 noon–1.30pm and 4pm–6pm
Wednesday 7 October: 12 noon–1.30pm and 4pm–6pm
Thursday 8 October: 12 noon–1.30pm and 4pm–6pm
Thursday 8 October: 6.30pm–8pm, knitting and crochet workshop: Free booking here.
Friday 9 October: 12 noon–6pm
Saturday 10 October: 12 noon–6pm - Fabric of Change Carlow is a two-year pilot programme delivered by VOICE Ireland in partnership with Carlow County Council, with support from Zero Waste Europe. It will map textile flow in Carlow Town, engage with residents and businesses to design practical alternatives to buying new, and pilot projects that will build a circular fashion network for Carlow.
- Made to Last is an educator and youth upskilling programme led by Carlow County Council, aimed at young people aged 12–19 and the adults who work with them. It combines “Train the Mentors” workshops for adults with youth-led practice sessions and is hosted inside the Fabric of Change Pop-Up Shop for the duration of the week.
- VOICE Ireland is an environmental charity working on waste reduction, the circular economy and resource use in Ireland and at EU level.
- Solene Schirrer and Dee Sewell are available ahead of and throughout the week for interviews and filming at the Pop-up on Potato market.
- Further images available on request.
Contact
Solene Schirrer
Fabric of Change Project Lead – VOICE Ireland
+33614671676
Dee Sewell
Environmental Awareness Officer, Carlow County Council
0873450820