Fascinating History Of Textiles Comes To Life In Wellington Event

A talk revealing the textile history of New Zealand is the drawcard to a high tea with a difference in Wellington in September - all to raise money for Hospice.

Celebrating the 15th anniversary of the Fabric-a-brac event, Material Histories will see Claire Regnault speaking about the stories of Te Papa’s textile collection and fabrics, dresses and quilts across time. Claire is Curator at Te Papa and Author of Dressed: Fashionable Dress in Aotearoa New Zealand 1840 to 1910 (Te Papa Press 2021).

The event is to celebrate the 15th anniversary of the Fabric-a-brac event. Fabric-a-brac is a market that is about ‘things to make things - focused on fabric and sewing-related items’. A fundraiser for Hospice, it is now held in ten locations around New Zealand and has raised $160,000 for hospice in New Zealand since starting up in 2009.

“At Fabric-a-brac stallholders, and customers share memories, stories, aspirations and ideas. It’s the story of stallholders’ lives - the mothers or grandmothers that have left textiles behind, of their memories of fabric remnants and what they were made into, fabric that you can’t buy anymore. So often we have people recognising fabric from their own childhood. Really the event is almost like a living history of textiles. So we are delighted to have Claire as our guest speaker at the celebration of our first 15 years!”

Material Histories on Saturday 21 September is a high tea, with Claire as the keynote speaker. The next Wellington Fabric-a-brac market is the weekend after, on Saturday 28 September.

Claire Regnault is Senior Curator New Zealand Histories and Cultures at Te Papa and has worked in the art gallery and museum sector since 1994. Her curatorial practice is eclectic in nature and she is particularly passionate about New Zealand’s fashion history. She is an active member of the Costume and Textile Association of New Zealand and regularly contributes to the association’s symposia and journal. She is the author of Dressed, winner of the 2022 Ockham New Zealand Book Award for Illustrated Non-Fiction.

Material Histories
A high tea in celebration of 15 years of Fabric-a-brac
Saturday September 21, 10am-12noon
St Anne’s Hall, Newtown
Pre-booking essential - ticket sales link at
www.fabricabrac.com

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