Wicklow writer calls on hoarders and collectors to join her for unique exhibit

Bray writer Sadhbh Devlin and her colleague and fellow writer Eve McDonnell from Wexford have teamed up to bring the world of memorabilia to life with a fascinating event called My Tabletop Museum.

If you have – or perhaps had – a passion for collecting toys, stamps, thimbles, old gig tickets; or maybe you are one of those hoarders that can’t bring themselves to throw out that bus ticket from Paris when you were student on your first trip abroad.

Or perhaps your children have outgrown their dolls and toy soldiers and they are not taking up valuable space for their one iPhone. Have you got a bowl full of beach finds or a shelf of Beanie Boos, fan-tastic action figures or novelty egg cups? Maybe you collected stamps in the ‘60s, scratch n sniff stickers in the ‘80s or nightclub fliers in the ‘90s and have them stashed away in a drawer . . . you get the picture.

Whatever your passion – whether it’s postcards, Pokémon, or porcelain pigs – every piece has a story and Sadhbh and “her fellow magpie and story-hunter”, Eve, would love to hear it and get a gander at all your stuff.

Sadhbh and Eve are teaming up with dlr Libraries to bring an exciting event called ‘My Tabletop Museum’ to life, and Sadhbh explained why.

“I am fascinated by the things that people collect and the stories behind their passions,” she said. “I also believe that most of us have a museum-worthy collection at home – whether we realise it or not.

“It might be a formal collection such as coins, stamps or movie memorabilia, but collections of more obscure items are equally as exciting to me. Maybe you’ve saved every birthday card your grandmother ever sent you, or you can’t pass a pretty pebble without tucking it into your pocket or maybe you can’t bring yourself to throw away a colourful, disposable ice-cream spoon. These types of objects would make a perfect ‘Tabletop Museum’.”

“We have some amazingly curious and quirky collections already lined up for the event,” said Eve, “but we have room for more, and if you’d like to get involved, we’d love to hear from you. I’ll be polishing up my Hagstones! Oooh, or maybe my seaglass!”

Eve also advises that tabletops are limited, so please remember to complete your form by the closing date. You can then join Sadhbh, Eve and the wonderful library staff on Saturday, February 17 in the dlr LexIcon Library, Dún Laoghaire for the official opening of your special museum. You can also join in with some creative workshops facilitated by some celebrated Irish authors and illustrators. All are welcome to attend the viewing of the museums and take part in the various events on the day and it promises to be a fascinating and fun event for all the family.

Whether you are age nine or 90, if you’d like to share a few of your favourite things and become the curator of your own little tabletop museum for the day, complete an Expression of Interest form online, email [email protected] for more information or request a printed form from dlr library staff. The deadline for form submissions is Saturday, January 20.

The online entry form can be found at: libraries.dlrcoco.ie/events-and-news/library-news/my-tabletop-museum-dlr-lexicon

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