Fabricademy Bootcamp 2026 Wrap Up 🇮🇪

Open Source Circular Fashion workshop

In the Open Source Circular Fashion workshop participants focused on sustainability and open source practices through collaborative knowledge sharing and responsible material approaches. Through hands-on experiments with materials and laser cutting techniques they rethought clothing production using modularity, adaptability and design for disassembly strategies in a zero-waste workflow.

Workshop led by Claudia Simonelli. Participants learned how to design adaptable garments using 3D modeling software and digital fabrication through laser cutting.

DAY 02 - BioMaterials, Screen Printing & 3D BioPrinting, Hands-on Workshop

Natural dyes and lake pigments for Screen Printing

The lecture led by Cecilia Raspanti, introduced participants to the topics of BioFabrication & Biochromes, learning about values-driven design and sustainability principles.**

Led by Cecilia and Grainne Murphy - Creative Spark Print Lab Coordinator - this hands-on workshop introduced participants to the fabrication of lake pigments and screen-printing inks derived from natural dyestuffs.

Participants learned the process of transforming natural dyes into stable pigments to craft direct printing inks for screen printing on textiles, where frames were impressed by silhouettes of native Irish plants, used to design their Fabricamp tote bags.

Experimenting with color and shades, they created unique prints while discovering sustainable approaches to textile coloring.
Among the inks created: madder, nettle, oak galls,...

Biofabricating Materials Workshop

The Biomaterial Fabrication workshop, led by Anastasia Pistofidou, explored material driven design through a variety of recipes, natural biopolymers such as alginate yarns made from seaweed, gelatin and natural latex, looking into eco-friendly solutions for fashion, textiles and product design.

They worked with different additives and formulations, creating conductive bioplastics that were later used in combination with electronics.

3D Bioprinting and Clay Workshop

The 3D Bioprinting Workshop, conducted by Carl McAteer & Claudia Simonelli, demonstrated the potential of 3D printing with a variety of biomaterials, including clay and alginate-based biodegradable pastes derived from local food waste.

Once printed and dried, the clay pieces were fired and transformed into durable ceramic objects.

DAY 03 - E-textiles & Wearables Workshop & a trip to Northern Ireland

E-textiles & Wearables Workshop

The lecture and hands-on workshop, led by Fabricademy alumna and Dr. of Engineering at Nottingham Trent University Jessica Stanley, introduced participants to integrating electronics into textiles and wearable systems.

Working with conductive and resistive materials, participants explored stitches, textile circuits and pressure-sensing techniques while creating their own soft sensors. Through prototyping and material experimentation, they gained a practical understanding of how electronics can be embedded within fabric. They used the FabriXIAO board and the e-textiles kits provided during the bootcamp, to develop a soft circuits and interactive sensor ready to be integrated into their future projects.

Seaweed Harvesting & Tasting

In the afternoon the bus with participants reached Crawfords Rock in Northern Ireland where they joined the family-run seaweed business operating near Kilkeel Harbour for a workshop rooted in local knowledge and tradition.

Together, we explored the shoreline, learned responsible seaweed harvesting techniques and discovered the many applications of Irish seaweed — from food seasonings and supplements to wellness products. The experience concluded with a seaweed tasting followed by a dinner at sunset.

Back at the lab, Fabricademy participants processed the harvested seaweed into materials for their final projects.

DAY 04 - 3D Printing for Fashion & Focus Groups

On the 4th day of the Bootcamp, Anastasia Pistofidou introduced participants to 3D printing Fashion and novel techniques for designing and 3D printing fabric.

Participants explored generative design with Grasshopper and managed to translate their concept and digital designs into 3D Printed textiles, exploring different filaments and ways to reshape fabrics.

DAY 04 & 05 - Focus Groups, Project Development

Participants applied the week’s learning through group projects within their focus areas.

Tufting with Claire McAteer

Claire McAteer introduced them to the process of creating tufted rugs using a tufting gun, yarn and fabric backing, while guiding participants through basic techniques of shaping and textile construction.

Screen Printing & Biomaterials with Cecilia Raspanti & Grainne Murphy

The group gathered the harvested seaweed and collaboratively processed the material to create a seaweed-based garment. They also explored silkscreen printing, developed lake pigments from locally harvested nettles and contributed to a shared biomaterials archive.

3D Printing + Fashion with Carl McAteer

The group formed by Carl McAteer, Galina Mihaleva and Stephanie Johnson focused on Fashion & Digital Craftmanship, featuring a 3D printed dress with integrated seaweed, fabricated through computational design and large scale 3D Printing.

Bioelectronics with Anastasia Pistofidou & Jessica Stanley

The group focused on merging Biomaterials & E-textiles, blending local heritage craft with electronic textiles and soft sensors.
They dove into local patterns and combined lasercutting, biomaterials and electronics in a collaborative installation that featured LED lights, felted wool, irish Seaweed and conductive biomaterials.

The group focused on biomaterials & E-textiles, blending local heritage craft with electronic textiles and soft sensors.
They dove into local patterns and combined lasercutting, biomaterials and electronics in a collaborative installation that featured LED lights, felted wool, irish Seaweed and conductive biomaterials.

3D Printing Modular Fashion with Claudia Simonelli

Day 06 | Open Exhibition at Foresters’ Hall, Dundalk

The closing exhibition & artist talks was held on the final day of the bootcamp and showcased a selection of Fabricademy International projects along with the ones developed at the Creative Spark Enterprise Fab Lab, the Fabricademy hub that will host the full program in September.

Fabricademy Bootcamp 2026 Ireland was possible through the support of Creative Spark Dundalk and our valuable sponsors, Design & Craft Council of Ireland & Dundalk Credit Union.

Photo Credits:
Claudia Simonelli | Fabricademy &
Seán McMahon

Always wanted to explore the Future of Textiles, Technology and Bio-Design and learn skills in high-demand? Apply to Fabricademy this September at a lab close to you, anywhere in the world!

View Course Brochure and learn more about Fabricademy