About Linen Shirt Company
Reimagining Irish Linen
Irish Linen as a fabric is world renowned and part of our heritage. I have been captivated by its beauty for many year's, endeavouring to create Collections that can bring your wardrobe from the Winter to Summer with ease. Reimagining this beautiful natural fibre in a contemporary & stylish way, let Linen Shirt Company show you how Linen can be trans seasonal as well as extremely functional for all types of wardrobe collections.
Our Story & Mission
At Linen Shirt Company we are passionate about Irish design and have been creating and manufacturing in Ireland since 1972. As third generation designers, the love of our trade and craft are at the roots of our Company’s story. Our mission today is to help re-invigorate the whole sector in Ireland from the ground up. The dream is that one day every person has the opportunity to own a piece of clothing in their wardrobe with "made in Ireland" proudly stamped on the label. So you may ask " how will we achieve this?".
Linen Shirt Company is not just a new label but a vehicle to help us invest in a new training programme for the sewing machinists of the future. It's with this investment, we believe we can not only safe guard this fantastic industry for future generations but help it grow to new levels. By passing on the skills we have been honoured enough to have learned through the year's, we hope to make not only our dreams and goals become a reality, but those of designers coming up behind us wishing to manufacture here in Ireland too.
Where it all began
As a child I was fascinated by fabrics and the magic that surrounded them. Growing up around my parents clothing factory was like taking part in an interactive magic show. I travelled with Mum and Dad to international Trade Fairs from an early age, eagerly listening to textile merchants enthusiastically showing my parents their latest collections.
“I was hooked!”
Weeks later, chosen fabrics would arrive and so the magic would begin. Quickly rolled out in the cutting room by the ‘first magicians’, patterns were laid down, drawn around, cut out, then passed to the next magicians ‘the machinists’. Like a well orchestrated piece of music, before long the fabric was transformed into clothes and ready to be sent out to retailers.
By the time I was 7 yrs old, I was desperate to become a magician myself. So began my journey, sewing on industrial machines with the other ladies on school holidays. As the years followed, I began studying my craft ‘officially’, attending the Grafton Academy at just 12yrs for summer courses in Pattern cutting. Upon completing a 4 year Degree in Fashion and Textiles at the National College of Art and Design (NCAD) in Dublin I gained further experience in international design studios, working alongside John Galliano’s pattern cutter Bill Gayton. Working my way through the different departments, from cutting room, factory floor to design studio from such an early age was invaluable to my education in the industry.
It would become not only a job but a way of life.
Today the excitement of opening a new roll of fabric and imagining what it could become still fascinates me. I’m passionate about manufacturing in Ireland and love working with other like minded producers. Sourcing all our fabric for Linen Shirt Company here in Ireland, we strive to support our home grown textile industry and our local weaver friends too!
Anneliese xx
