Ireland’s much-anticipated Inaugural Fashion Week took over the capital last week to showcase the best of the country’s culture and heritage on the catwalk.
The event was organised by business executive, Ashley McDonnell and kicked off on Monday, October 6, with Bold Golf’s streetwear-inspired golf collection being flaunted around the Teeling Whiskey Distillery. Limerick-based designer, Aoife McNamara, known for being the first B-Corp certified fashion house in Ireland, stunned onlookers at the beautiful Ballynahinch Castle, with her brand new What the World Wears collection.
The ever-popular Paul Costello closed the landmark week with the Heritage Show at Dublin City Hall on Friday night.
Many other designers and brands showcased their craftsmanship throughout the week, including Sasha Donnellan, RASHIIID by Rachel Maguire, and Ireland’s fashion graduates in the Irish Sea Graduate Show, which took place on Friday, October 10.
The Irish Sea Graduate show took place at the Marker Hotel in Dublin and featured 40 designers from fashion institutions in Ireland and overseas. The show gave a platform to emerging designers, to showcase their work to the fashion world and gain invaluable firsthand experience in the industry.
Twelve graduates from the Limerick School of Art and Design (LSAD) featured in last Friday’s show, they included: Emma Carmody, Áine King, Aoibhe Humpherys, Bailey Ryan Casey, Emer Glendon-Burke, Niamh McGovern, Fiona Troy, Peter Ronan, Sarah Raleigh, Sorcha Clodagh Brennan, Roisin Heffernan and Paula Leona Antal.
One of the programme leaders at LSAD, Linda Quinn, spoke admirably of the graduates. She said: “We (LSAD) have a really lovely representation from this year’s graduates, which is fabulous.”
Seeing the influx of talent from one institution shows the dedication these emerging designers have to their craft. Quinn also mentioned how the showcase is a “fabulous opportunity” for the young designers to have “100 percent control and to show their voice completely.
“For us at LSAD, we’re just delighted for them to have the showcase, to be able to show off their work.”
Limerick Voice’s Olivia O’Dwyer chats to LSAD graduate Fiona Troy:
I was lucky enough to speak to one of the graduates, Fiona Troy, ahead of her showcase last Friday.
“I fear I have caught you at a bad time”, I say, as the recent fashion graduate explains that she is connecting her phone to Bluetooth to chat on her commute to work. I’m grateful to Troy for squeezing in an interview during her jam-packed week and a day before her big show.
When asked if she was nervous about the impending showcase, she explained that her long to do list is keeping the nerves at bay, “Oh, I have a million things to do.” She further explains that once she gets up and sees the venue, she will feel excited, it’s not this designer’s first stint on the runway.
After carefully honing her skill on a three-month placement in a small Antwerp atelier, she came back to her final year brimming with ideas. She featured her graduate collection at the LSAD Degree Show this year and received the ‘Most Creative Designer’ Award from Limerick.ie.
The emerging designer mentions how she is “happier with the decision that it is a joint graduate collection.” She mentions that it takes away some of the nerves of being a recent graduate and being featured in such a big event. Troy mentions the importance of “staying in the loop” post-graduation, and how putting yourself out there can open you to endless opportunities.
She gives the example of posting about the ‘brand-bootcamps’ the graduates attended in the weeks leading up to the show. And how it led her to being asked to show her design in the upcoming Cheshire Fashion Week this month. She emphasised, “even just showing you’re open to the idea, people want you there.
“When it comes to designing, I have a bit of a chaotic process.” She describes how she likes stories that spark interest, all her creations thus far have stemmed from something that matters to her. When it came to navigating the choppy waters of the Irish Sea theme, she wanted to approach it from a local angle. Troy says: “sustainability was huge and that is their push for Irish Fashion Week – to have a very future-thinking runway.”
Paying homage to her West Clare roots was vital in Troy’s design process; her look was inspired by the fisherwomen of Clare. “Fisherwomen would have been huge back in the day, not even in a feminist way,” she explains. Her grandmother from her father’s side, who she describes as a culture woman and storyteller, was the person who inspired her, from listening to her impressive stories about the fisherwomen carrying baskets of mussels.
She was also the person who taught her hand knitting. She describes how her grandmother used to knit jumpers for the tourists visiting the Aran Islands without any need for a pattern to refer to.
“It’s so traditional and chaotic, and kind of what I wanted to do. All these old-school ways of doing things are very creative, problem-solving mindsets,” she adds.
Troy keeps her carbon footprint at the forefront of her mind throughout her design process; she purchases fabric from a deadstock fabric warehouse in Kildare, and deadstock scuba gear from her local sub-aqua club for the infrastructure inside her garments. She also acquired some 100 percent Aran Irish wool from the Aran Islands, which she hand-knit alongside her grandmother for her look. Netting salvaged from her grandfather’s fishing boat in Kilrush can also be seen on the skirt of the look.
“A family of artists” is how Troy describes her creative and cultured family. From a classic seamstress grandmother who sewed the communion dresses for her family, to her grandfather, a struggling actor who appeared in tea commercials and lotto ads. Her father’s side also didn’t lack artistic flair with her grandmother, the avid knitter, and her grandfather, who excelled in stained glass artwork.
What lies ahead for Ireland’s Fashion Week?
This fashion week has demonstrated the immense talent woven into our little Island, from world-renowned designers like Paul Costello and Aoife McNamara, to bright young talents like the LSAD graduates. It is clear Ireland is a nation filled with creativity and talent.
Alas, just like any other new grad, Troy has always known at the back of her mind that Ireland may produce and nurture this talent, but giving them the opportunity to thrive can be as slim as the chances of putting a deposit down on a house.
“I would love to remain in Ireland for the rest of my life, but financially, job-wise, I would have to move abroad for a bit anyways,” Troy concedes.
The fashion and arts sectors are clearly bursting at the seams with new creative ideas, and the Inaugural Fashion Week is a prime example of this. When I asked Troy about her hopes for the future of Ireland Fashion Week, she says she believes that one day it could become as big as Miami Fashion Week.
Troy says: “I think it would be cool to see their niche, whether that’s craftmanship, Irish knitwear or something else entirely”.
It is obvious that Troy and her fellow graduates at LSAD have bright futures ahead of them. We will certainly be keeping our eyes peeled for these emerging designers on runways in Ireland and internationally in the years to come.