On a dreary Dublin day when it truly already felt Autumnal it was great to view some pieces from collections at the Arnotts Press day. Stand outs for me come from Tara Jarmon in fabulous colour. Jaeger and Aquascutum. Heidi Higgins continues to grow as an emerging serious player on the Irish design front and I’m delighted that my introduction to Arnotts is proving to be such a good venue for the young designer who kicks off this season with a truly beautifully simple outlook. Shapes were slightly more A-line and sumptuous fabrics in stunning colours ensure this collection like last seasons will be a sell out one.
Accessories are a plenty with world leading brand Coach arriving to Ireland in a store within a store for the first time. Bags are stunning and the mens totes and shoulder bags are perfect for either sex. I adore the reversable Totes in particular. A fabulous bag by Radley caught my eye andVivienne Westwood doesn’t disappoint either.
23 YEAR OLD MONAGHAN FASHION STUDENT MARY LENNON SCOOPS €10,000 AT PERSIL IRISH FASHION AWARDS 2011 WITH MARKS & SPENCER!
The grand final of The Persil Irish Fashion Awards 2011 took place last night in The Marks & Spencer Grafton Street Rooftop Café.
25 year old fashion student – Mary Lennon from Castleblayney, Co Monaghan studying in NCAD, took first place with her red Persil dress.
Currently in its twelfth year, the hotly contested award is the largest fashion design competition in Ireland. It is a once in a lifetime
opportunity for young fashion design students hoping to make their mark in today’s competitive market, and with a first prize of €10,000
is a great boost to their budding fashion careers. Persil’s Red Alert brief required students to design in red machine washable fabric for
spring summer 2011. Students designed whatever they feel fashionable Irish women would like to wear, using a variety of shades of red
and textures of fabric.
Irish Fashion Designer Peter O’Brien commented that,
“Once again I am delighted to be involved in a fashion competition that challenges the next generation of Irish designers. In these very tough times for our economy, it is a great credit to Persil that they are investing in our fashion future with this incredible prize for students. This year we got some really, really smashing designs”.
The Winner Mary Lennon hails from Castleblayney in County Monaghan, she is studying at NCAD Dublin (my old alma mater). The winning design was inspired by garden umbrellas!. This is a dress that can be worn in ten different ways. With the clever use of bows and ribbons tucks or gathers the silhouette of the dress can be completely changed.
I first came across Joyce some time ago but had forgotten what a truly cutting edge Design Emporium it is. They have just celebrated their 40th Anniversary at Paris Fashion Week and by all accounts it was the event everyone wanted to go to. To describe Joyce best it’s probably true to say they carefully edit the very best creative brands from around the world and set them in a unique environment across Asia, Hong Kong is where their flagship store is. Their unique artistic presentation of their chosen collections is delightfully and carefully presented in an almost Art Gallery setting. To have two relatively young Irish designers represented there once again outlines the creative talent that comes from this little Island of ours. Joyce have recently placed an order with Electronic Sheep (who I represent here in Ireland) whose fabulous scarves and hats will be displayed in Hong Kong this coming Fall/Autumn.
Sculptural Accessories Designer Una Burke who works with leather is in situ in Joyce this Spring/Summer with her beautifully constructed pieces of wearable art. Una Burke is a 2010 MA graduate of the London College of Fashion having spent time working with (probably the best Miliner in the world), Philip Treacy .
I mentioned in an earlier post about quality and statement dressing and how these were on the up as smart thinking women are cleverly buying pieces that will last and give great value per wear. I’m fed up with the race to the bottom with some buyers struggling to pass this key message onto their customers. One boutique owner told me today that once a dress goes over €200 it gets much harder to sell it. How can we address this sad state of affairs. We know that money is tight and the whole country is overwhelmed by depressing stories of doom and gloom. We know that there is a lot of truth in that and that we could all just stay in bed for a year or two until it all passes. I prefer a more pro active approach where we talk about how important it is to look good, not just for our self esteem (and god knows that’s important enough) but for our whole presentation. The fact of standing up and walking tall in good quality clothes cleverly put together is vital to our recovery as a vibrant successful people. Rant over…
As if to agree with me these images from the Louise Kennedy photo shoot at Dublin Airports T2 arrived into my in- box this afternoon. Louise Kennedy has been doing fabulous statement dressing for yonks. She knows how to cleverly use key pieces and this season is no exception. Colour blocking and more than a passing reference to the 70′s and Louise Kennedy has come up with exactly the sort of clothes that sharpen my appetite.
I’m mad busy in work at the moment and have hardly stepped out of the showroom for days but when I bumped into Ruth ni Loinsigh yesterday I promised I would pop around the corner to her new space on Drury Street, Dublin. Om Diva is by Ruth’s own admission styled in homage to her own bedroom (age 15) It has that carnival appeal that puts you instantly into a good mood. The old space around the corner in the Georges Arcade was a very special one but wasn’t big enough to house everything Ruth has planned. This is not just a retail space though, Atelier 27 is a truly fantastic business model where everything works in complete harmony. There is an Incubation space and retail design studio in the process of being set up over three floors where young fashion graduates will be able to manufacture and then sell their designs. The very popular Sip and Stitch classes are being expanded into a fully blown sewing school and will offer a variety of courses which will be taught by some of the in- house designers and will go from beginner level to advanced highly technical tailoring and dressmaking skills.
Of course the shop is as delectable as ever with it’s mix of colourful, quirky and vintage clothes along with accessories with that ‘must have’ appeal and all at very reasonable prices.
I’m often confused working in the world of Fashion as I live both in the present and future at the same time. Yesterday was a good example when I was working at dealing with orders for delivery now, and previewing Arnotts Spring Summer Ladies Fashion at their Press Day. I love looking at the next seasons offerings and Arnotts certainly had plenty to ooh and aah over. Gone are the heady Celtic Tiger days of bling bling and fast fashion, we are now well on the way to clean lines, minimal silhouettes and sheer simplicity. The 70′s are definitely a key factor in the inspiration stakes. I particularly like the cool safari dress from Gerard Darel, the trench coats which were in lots of the collections and the trousers in different shapes, high waisted, kick flares and cargo contours being prominent. Biker Chic features and the 50′s and 60′s are still headlining continuing the mad men fascination. Maxi dresses are soft and romantic and strong again.
The edited collections on show yesterday included Ghost (which seems to be cheaper than the last time I looked at this label), Heather which is laid back LA and for the first time one of my favorites Irish Designer Heidi Higgins with beautifully simple timeless classics and London label Lungta De Fancy loved by the celebs and great for artfully draped pieces combined with elegant layers. Hobbs was looking stronger than last season and Jaeger is going from strength to strength and completely gets the whole good value simple and elegent theme with the main Jaeger and Boutique By Jaeger collections. Strong colours feature with a palette of orange red and pink with purples and blues in contrast with the neutrals making a return for next Summer with lots of white underpinning the entire season.
So here are some of the pieces that I picked as my favorites
Gerard Darel €215
Gerard Darel €225
Heather Cardigan €130
Heather Tunic €80
My Summer Shoe Choice €95+Peep toe €85
Hobbs Dress €265
Ghost Dress €125
Ghost Maxi €255
Blue Hobbs dress with Jaeger Silk print shift
Arnotts Spring Summer was strong on great value and I was really impressed by the price points through all the collections. Bags and shoes are as strong as ever with great lingerie which includes the fabulous Pleasure State, Princess Tam Tam and Yummie Tummie. Lots of carefully bought collections across all areas which is what a great store should offer. Arnotts has it all in spades… I’m baking ny Christmas Pudding and thinking of Christmas day and Summer all in one……moment!
Irish designers ‘Kate&Ava’ will open a Christmas ‘pop-up’ shop in The Powerscourt Townhouse shopping centre in Dublin on Wednesday 1st December. Open throughout December, the shop will stock a wide range of pieces from the Kate&Ava Autumn Winter 2010 collection, an exclusive selection of the duo’s much loved party dresses, as well as occasion wear from Tyrrell and Brennan, great knitwear from Heather Finn and Gertrude Sampson, and tops from Helen James. Prices will range from €150-€320. With silk scarves and accessories from €30 there will also be an exciting selection of gift ideas.
One of Kate and Ava's gorgeous dresses on sale
What could be better than buying beautiful Christmas Cards and giving to the ISPCC at the same time. Head into Brown Thomas where they have some stunningly beautiful designer cards by some of the top designers.
Brown Thomas has worked closely with its top designer brands to produce a range of world exclusive designer Christmas cards featuring drawings from Victoria Beckham, Roberto Cavalli, Manolo Blahnik and Lulu Guinness, alongside images from Lanvin and Tiffany & Co. Purchase a set of three cards for €10 in Brown Thomas Dublin, Cork, Limerick and Galway and all proceeds will go to the Irish Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children (ISPCC).
One of the must see movies of 2011 is going to be Black Swan and it’s set to be one of the most stylish movies of the year by all reports. Clothes were designed by the Mulleavy sisters better known as Rodarte. Rodarte is one of the most popular of all the catwalk shows at New York Fashion week and has a huge star studded following which includes Natalie Portman one of the main stars of the movie.
‘It was Portman, who stars as prima ballerina Nina Sayers in the film, that introduced the Mulleavy sisters to Aronofsky, a meeting which led to a commission to create 40 theatrical costumes. Most appear onstage in performances of Swan Lake, but the duo also went on to design much of the knitwear worn throughout the film, from leg and arm-warmers, to wrap-over cardigans and leotards’ (The Telegraph).
This evening The Westbury Hotel was the venue for the presentation of Nina Divito’s Autumn Winter collection of ten new watercolours and limited edition prints. Nina’s art is a beautifully seductive presentation of her love affair with beautiful shoes. This latest offering is the natural progression of her evolution as a shoe designer as well as an artist. Her signature is unmistakable and her shoes are as beautiful as her art is an expression of her confidence as a young woman. I would happily love one of her pieces of art either on my wall or adorning my feet. Nina Divito opens her first boutique in the Westbury Mall tomorrow where both her shoes and her art are available to peruse, fall in love with and buy.
Nina Divito with Boyfriend Brian, this evening in The Westbury Hotel
Toni & Guy are hosting a Charity Day in all salons in aid of Barretstown on Sunday 7th November, all staff are working for free on the day and 100% of the proceeds from appointments on the day will go towards Barretstown, to help rebuild the lives of those affected by childhood cancer.
All Toni & Guy salons and the Metro Spa will be open from 11am to 6pm for appointments as normal on the day, and all customers will receive a €20 giftcard to use towards their next appointment.
There are eight Toni & Guy salons across Dublin as well as in Cork, Galway, Kilkenny, Waterford, Kildare and Belfast.
Temple Gate Hotel Ennis, is celebrating Irish Shoe designer Nina Divito’s success and the hotel’s success of being awarded “Best Place to Eat in Clare” by giving away a pair of Nina’s shoes, “The Eddie”, during November. The attention to detail is amazing especially in “The Eddie” shoe which has a has a rose vine detail on the heel that is very simple yet eye-catching
To be in with a chance to win these shoes, worth nearly €1,000 and just in time for Christmas (!), dine in Legends Restaurant in November and enjoy a Nina Divito inspired 3 course dinner for a mere €28.50. In keeping with the Italian theme, dinner enjoy a glass of Prosecco with our compliments! To book contact the Temple Gate Hotel on 065 682 3300
Women go on sale at Tel Aviv shopping center
Window display at Dizengoff Center shows real women with price tags in provocative installation aiming to battle sex trafficking.
Shoppers strolling through Dizengoff Center mall in Tel Aviv on Tuesday were confronted with a shocking widow display of women for sale, with price tags attached to them.
Upon closer inspection, it became obvious that the display was part of an installation by the Working Group Against the Trafficking of Women, part of a widespread campaign.
Women in a mall window display as part of an installation to provoke passersby to realize the tragedy of trafficking of women.
Photo by: Eyal Nebo
Seven unkempt young women stood in front of shoppers passing back and forth under a sign that read “Women for sale according to personal taste.” Some of the women were made up to appear as if they had been beaten, and all had price tags that listed details such as age, weight, dimensions, and country of birth.
The stated purpose of the installation is to solicit a large amount of signatures to submit to the Minister of Justice, in order to put forth a private member’s bill by Kadima MK Orit Zuaretz to criminalize johns who solicit sexual services. Members of the Working Group believe that a law like this could eradicate the phenomenon of trafficking in women.
“The victims of trafficking don’t get to rest during the day, so we don’t either,” explained lawyer Uri Keidar, one of the organization’s founders. “Actually, what we see here happens all the time all over the country, and here in the mall you simply cannot ignore the reality in front of your face.”
(This Article was taken from H’aretz Daily newspaper Israel)
I bumped into Nina Divito’s Mum a couple of weeks ago and as I love great young Irish designers I asked after her. I was delighted to hear how well she is doing and the other day when I was in Brown Thomas I stopped at the shoe department to admire Nina’s truly beautiful shoes. They are works of art and that’s no surprise as Nina was a paint and paper artist,drawing and painting fabulous pictures of wonderful shoes before she started to construct the real thing. They say things come in threes so I wasn’t surprised to find an invitation to her latest collections of paintings in my inbox today.
Nina Divito was very recently involved with Arthritis Ireland helping to get the message across that 1 in 5 people in Ireland are affected at some stage by Arthritis and it’s not just the elderly that are affected. As someone who has problems with my hands and feet, I think this is a really worthy cause, especially since there is an organisation that offers so much help and support to Arthritis sufferers.
I first came across 
