'Youthquake:1960s' 16th February 2026 Blandford Fashion Museum is excited to present the 'Youthquake:1960s' exhibition, as part of the Fashioning Our Future project with The Salisbury Museum. Thanks to funding received from The National Lottery Heritage Fund for the Fashioning Our Future project, students from Arts University Bournemouth and local Sixth Forms have been working with the museum team to bring to life this dynamic exhibition. Choosing objects from the museum’s extensive fashion collection, the students explored 1960s boutique fashion alongside homemade garments encapsulating the free-spirited energy of the 1960s. Many of the garments featured in the exhibition represent innovative sartorial statements expressed during the 1960s era through bold garments made at home. This adventurous attitude to style is a theme that resonated with the students, aligning with their concerns around sustainability and making conscious fashion choices. In addition to marveling at the glorious 1960s fashions on display, visitors can also step into fashions of the era with a specially selected collection of garments for dressing up and handling. From crochet to patchwork, bold minidresses and boho maxi dresses, expect to be immersed in the 1960s era in this fantastic fashion exhibition.

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Workshops Step out in Style this Spring! Monday 30th March 2026 10:30 - 12:00 pm Read More

Online Talks List Online Talks for 2026 coming soon ...... Calling all Fashion Designers! Be inspired by our 'Youthquake:1960s' exhibition to design your own garments. We will use our Youthquake:1960s exhibition as a starting point to spark creativity in designing some exciting and innovative garments. Students from Arts University Bournemouth and local 6th forms worked with the staff from the Fashion Museum to bring this dynamic exhibition to life. We will also examine the the sketches, paintings and collage work of Heidy and Isabelle Becks. All materials will be supplied but feel free to bring your own pens, pencils and colouring materials with you. Under 16s must be accompanied by a parent/carer https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/calling-all-fashion-designers-tickets-1984958686866?aff=ebdsoporgprofile Read More

Title Join us at the Blandford Fashion Museum on April 2, 2026 at 10:30 AM for a fun, hands-on event where you can create your own Easter decorations! Don’t miss out on making your space extra special this Easter! We will stitch an easy pattern onto wooden eggs and make a window decoration. All materials are supplied. A drink and a biscuit are included in the price and you can also look around the Fashion Museum, if you wish. All children must be accompanied by a parent/carer. This workshop must have 4 attendees to run, so invite your friends to join you. https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/easter-decorations-tickets-1984771603294?aff=ebdssbdestsearch Previous Next

Governance Blandford Fashion Museum is a charity registered under the name of Cavalcade of Costume Limited (Charity Number: 1052471) and also a registered company limited by guarantee. It is governed by a board of Trustees each serving for a term of three years. Presently there are nine trustees including the Treasurer and Chairman.In addition to an Annual General Meeting, the Trustees meet monthly. The day-to day management of the museum is the responsibility of the Management committee under the direction of the Operations Manager. This committee meets quarterly. The Costume and Display team, led by the Museum’s Curator, are responsible for the care of the museum’s collections and the programme of exhibitions.Feel free to contact us for any further information.

Blandford Fashion Museum welcomes groups to view our wonderful exhibitions. We are open for such visits on either Monday, Thursday or Friday between 10.30am and 4.00pm. In the first instance, email the museum to check whether the date you would like to come is available. If the date is free, we will then email you a booking form along with the museum’s bank details so that immediate payment can be made. Only BACS payments are acceptable – no cheques or cash. The booking will only be confirmed once full payment has been received. We do not take bookings over the phone. Lastly, our team is made up of part-time volunteers so you may not receive an immediate response to your request. We aim to get back to you as quickly as possible so please allow a week for a reply. Our displays are over two floors. The building is a mix of Georgian, Victorian and 20th century construction. Both floors are on varying levels and may not be suitable for all visitors. Sadly, we do not, as yet, have a lift. There are ground floor toilets facilities and are easily accessible. We have a tearoom and gift shop and you may wish to enjoy a drink and a piece of cake when you visit. However, there is limited seating and it can be busy with our regular customers. There are 4 categories of visits. Please read carefully to decide which category applies best to your proposed visit. Bronze Visit This is designed for a group of up to ten people to view the current exhibitions accompanied by one of our volunteers. The tour normally lasts about one and a half hours. After the tour you may want to enjoy a cup of tea and a slice of a cake in our award-winning tearoom and gift shop. Please note – refreshments are not included in the entry price. The cost is £100 and payment will be made at the point of booking. This is fully refundable if you cancel more than a week before the proposed visit. Email collections@blandfordfashionmuseum.co.uk to check for availability and a booking form. Silver Visit Silver is for larger groups (up to 20) who would like a more in-depth experience. The visit will be led by a costume and/or textile professional who will share their extensive knowledge with you. The visit will be divided into 2 groups; half the group will tour the museum while the other half will enjoy, at close quarters, some of the costumes we have in our archive. The groups will then swap over. The visit will last up to 3 hours. After the tour you may want to enjoy a cup of tea and a slice of a cake in our award-winning tearoom and gift shop. Please note – refreshments are not included in the entry price. The cost is £250 and payment will be made at the point of booking. This is refundable if you cancel more than a week before the proposed visit. Email collections@blandfordfashionmuseum.co.uk to check for availability and a booking form. Gold Visit This is designed for students (up to 5) to view items in the archive for project research. The length of time can be discussed with the collections manager. The cost is £25 per hour and payment will be made at the point of booking. This is fully refundable if the visit is cancelled at least a week beforehand. These visits will be limited to either Thursday or Friday. Email collections@blandfordfashionmuseum.co.uk to check for availability and a booking form. Platinum Visit A bespoke service available to individual researchers. A one-to-one visit costs £25 per hour and details will be discussed with the collections manager at the time of booking. These visits will be limited to either a Thursday or Friday. Email collections@blandfordfashionmuseum.co.uk to check for availability and a booking form. Group Visits

Exhibitions 'Laura Ashley : From Kitchen to Catwalk' Extended until Summer 2026 Read more 'The Textile Collection of Elisabeth Frink' February 2024-May 2026 Read more 'Power Dressing' February 2025 - November 2026 Read more '20th Century Brides : A Hundred Years of Wedding Dress' 16th February 2026 Read more 'Youthquake:1960s' 16th February 2026 Read more More... More ... More... More... More...

Accessibility Access to the Tearoom and Shop via ramp Accessible toilet Restricted wheelchair access to the ground floor Illuminated magnifying glasses available from the ticket desk Hearing induction loop available in the Lecture Room for use during talks and lectures Free entry for one carer / companion accompanying a disabled visitor. Were currently working on making the building more accessible for all visitors. We have steps to access the first floor but a digital screen is available to view the full collection.

Email - facilities@blandfordfashionmuseum.co.uk - Daily operational queries collections@blandfordfashionmuseum.co.uk - Collections related enquiries Phone - 01258 453 006 Post - Lime Tree House, The Plocks, Blandford Forum, Dorset, DT11 7AA Getting Here - Our opening days are Monday, Thursday, Friday and Saturday 10.00 am to 4.30 pm (last entry 4pm) . We are closed December- Mid-February each year for the change of exhibitions. Entrance: Adults - £6.00 Seniors (60+) - £5.00 Students (16+) - £4.00 Children under 16 - Free Friends of the Museum - Free Essential Carer - Free Please note that under 16s must be accompanied by a fee paying adult. On Foot Lime Tree house is on The Plocks, opposite the Royal British Legion in the centre of Blandford Forum. From the Market Place, follow the lane at the front of the Church (Church Lane) up past the small Short Stay car park. The museum is on your left. By Car The museum is in the centre of town, in the middle of Blandford’s one way system. From the Market Place, follow the system around to Salisbury Street, and then bear right at the fork. Turn immediately right into The Plocks and you will see the museum on your right. There is some on-street parking opposite the museum, and a short stay car park on Church Lane. Further parking (including Long Stay) can be found at Eagle House Gardens or at the Stour Meadows Car Park (free of charge). Both of which are only a short walk away. By Train Blandford Forum does not have a train station, but our nearest stations are Salisbury, Sherborne, Poole and Bournemouth (all around 40 mins by car). By Bus Y4 – Yeovil7 – Blandford St MaryX8 – PooleX12 – Weymouth20 – Blandford187 – Dorchester Advertising Partners If you are visiting Dorset on holiday, visit Cottage Holidays for places to stay: https://www.cottageholidays.com/blandford-forum/ Contact Us

Become a Member For information about becoming a Member of the Museum, which includes free access and discounts to our events, please email fashionmuseumblandford@gmail.com

Donations / Acquisitions Due to storage issues, we have to be very strict on accepting donations and making acquisitions. If you would like to donate items to the Blandford Fashion Museum please email photographs and any relevant information to collections@blandfordfashionmuseum.co.uk The donations will then be considered by our display team, before going through the acquisition panel, where the collections' manager and a group of trustees will decide if we accept the item. This process can take a few months. We are lucky that we receive a lot of offers of donations, but to process them takes time. If your item is accepted, we will arrange the relevant paperwork and set a date to deposit the item.Please note, as we are a fashion museum we only take items relating to costume and fashionable dress. We do not currently accept other textiles (such as quilts, tapestries etc) or social history items (such as dolls). We currently do not have the budget to purchase any items for the collection. Items accepted may be taken into our main collection, our education collection or be used for set dressing, but we will discuss these options with you more thoroughly depending on what we think is best for the item. Please do not deposit or post any donations to the museum without prior confirmation that we will accept the item. Doing this may result in disposal. Thank you for considering donating to us.