About Clodagh’s practice & Wool Cult
Hello! My name is Clodagh and I’m the artist & designer behind Wool Cult. I set out on the path of a career in what I love by studying Textile Design in the National College of Art and Design in Dublin. My degree collection Kinship has gone on to win and be shortlisted in several awards including the Overall Student Winner and Materials Award at the DCCI Future Makers 2025, the Textiles Award at the IDI Graduate Awards 2025 and the Robin and Lucienne Day Shortlist 2025.
Specialising in knit, weave and crochet, my practice explores the connection that humans have with nature on all levels of biology, history and spirituality. Blurring the lines between visual art and usability is something I straddle in my work. There are two aspects in my approach to craft and design of textiles; Keeping a clear creative narrative in the final product, as well as creating an overall intuitive feeling in the user.
I keep a clear concept in my work by means of self-written poetry, handwriting and imagery. Fibre, colour and tactile techniques work to create more of an overall feeling in the user, both on a mental and corporeal level. Using exclusively natural, organic fibres is one of the key elements of my designs, with Donegal wool being a material that makes the most appearances.
I design for longevity and create pieces that are made to cherish and be passed down through generations. When a possession has emotional connotations, it’s more likely to be repaired and well taken care of. In my opinion, textiles should be shared and used just as much as admired. Wool Cult is a space to make this dream happen. Bespoke blankets, hand-crafted scarves, textile artworks and commissions
Early Textile Life and Studies
Yarn has been a prevalent source of joy for most of my life. When it came time to deciding what to study in higher level, a quick moment of reflection made it clear that Textile Design was the clear winner.
The story of my life in textiles started at the age of six when I learned to knit in Primary School. Other girls’ grannies would come in every Friday and help us cast on, cast off… anything needed to knit a teddy bear. As others fell out of love with their knitting needles, my passion only grew stronger. Consulting YouTube regularly for new knitting techniques, and eventually teaching myself to crochet, meant nearly every loved one was getting a handmade gift for their birthday.
In 2019 I participated in the BOI Junk Kouture Competition with my friend, Hannah. Our dress Lunar Lady, made from three thousand factory rejected tampons, aimed to de-stigmatise the awkwardness around the menstrual cycle. Performing on stage at the finals in the 3Arena is something I look back on very fondly.
My skill level dramatically improved during an 8 month internship at the Inis Meáin Knitting Company in the Aran Islands, off the coast of Galway. Not only did I gain valuable knowledge about industry and knitting techniques, but living on the Aran Islands taught me a lot about myself and life in general. I’m grateful to have had such a unique experience be such a big teacher in both my personal and professional career.
My final year in college was the hardest I’ve ever worked! Creating a collection of 9 blankets with my Kinship project, all while supporting myself and working a part-time job was complete madness looking back. However, the outcome was totally worth it! My Kinship collection is the proudest body of work I’ve ever produced and has proved to be a nice launching pad into my career, as I have won awards from the Design and Craft Council of Ireland and the Institute of Designers Ireland.
I would call myself quite a social person; I love meeting new people, and working with others gives me a huge sense of fulfillment. In a way, textiles scratches this itch of connection with others… creating a fabric that people can physically hold and share is beautiful to me. I am so excited to get creating with Wool Cult!
