Bushmills designer cuts a dash as BBC Northern Ireland show 'A Stitch Through Time' returns

Combining a passion for fashion with inspiration drawn from the rich Ulster-Scots legacy in our textile history, four of Northern Ireland’s best emerging fashion designers take on sustainability and design-based challenges, against the clock, to prove they have what it takes to make it in the cut and thrust world of contemporary fashion.

Vying to win the votes of the judges – top designers Una Rodden and Katie Larmour – and be crowned winner of A Stitch Through Time are: fashion graduate Annie McColgan, 24, from Portadown; DIY fashion influencer AJ Tinsley, 25, from Belfast; Fashion & Textiles student Aoife Harvey, 23, from Londonderry; and 3D fashion designer Giovana de Bona, 27, originally from Brazil, living in Bushmills.

Each week, host Claire will be joined by author and textile historian Bruce Clark, a descendent of one of Northern Ireland’s great linen families, to reveal the fascinating history behind the design challenges and the outfits.

The first episode on Monday, July 17, BBC One Northern Ireland at 8pm, is inspired by the Herdman family of Sion Mills, who had a vision of creating a model village and achieved it against all odds.

The first challenge tasks the designers with making an apron from pre-loved linen garments while in the six-hour challenge, the designers must create a ‘Sunday Best’ look from linen.

A Stitch Through Time is also available in its entirety on BBC iPlayer from 8.30pm on Monday 17 July.