Deirdre McQuillan's style file
GAA STYLE Simon Roche remembers as a child being "dragged" down for GAA matches from Dublin to Wexford, where his grandfather Nick Roche was park-keeper. Tired of wearing what he describes as the "particularly bad" Wexford official jersey, this ardent GAA fan and graphic designer has created his own line of T-shirts in the county's signature gold and purple colours. The three T-shirts, one with the slogan "On the Loch", the other with a "woggle" print and the third, a skinny one for girls emblazoned with the words "Model County", are on sale in Hore Stores in Wexford (053-42200), from €20-25, or from his website, www.breadortart.com. At today's match in Clones, Wexford will be playing Monaghan in the All-Ireland Football qualifiers and many of the Wexford footballers' wives and as well as the fans will be sporting the new T-shirts. The trend could spread.
CINDERELLA SHOES Giuliana Venerosi Pesciolini is an Italian shoe designer based in Madrid, and the creator of Les Chaussons de la Belle, a romantic footwear collection based on 18th-century slippers. These low-heeled confections embellished with flamboyant bows come in 33 different fabrics and colours, including cotton jacquards, Toile de Jouy, moirés in jewel colours, damasks and animal prints with bows in lace, satin, tulle or matching materials. The shoes, which are made in Italy, have names such as A Deux or Passion, and are aimed, according to the designer, at the "modern femme fatale". You can find them in Paris in Siki in the Palais Royal, in Barcelona and Madrid in Rafols and in London in Fortnum & Mason. Sadly, they are not stocked in Ireland yet.
SASHAY ON Fans of the perfect white shirt will find a good example in Sasha's current summer collection, photographed in Capetown in South Africa last month. It's a white cotton wraparound style with long cuffs, worn here with a black skirt. The shirt, originally €29, is now €20 in the sale. The skirt is €15 and both can be found in 36 Sasha outlets nationwide, along with the earrings and necklace.
THE GRADUATES In the past, Bray Institute of Further Education fielded two award-winning graduates, Rosie O'Reilly and Olivia Hegarty (who worked with Padraic Sweeney in London and is now working with with a British tailor) in one year, a major coup. This season, BIFE students displayed their talents in their first static exhibition at the college. A lot of handwork such as felting and crochet was evident, thanks to the textile workshops introduced by tutor Sinead Kane four years ago. Head of fashion, June Verdon's commercial background means that the course emphasises technical exactness as well as creativity. A dress by Aishling Kelly was selected by retailer Susan Mullane for her new shop, Milan & Co in Bray, an encouraging start for this young designer.
GALLIANO'S GIRLS Design duo Julie Peelo and Beatrice McCabe, who featured recently in the Irish Times Magazine have won a contract to design accessories for John Galliano. It is a big step in their careers and they will soon move to Paris from Milan, where they have designed accessories for Marni for the past couple of years. "It is a huge challenge for both of us, and best of all we are still a team." The pair, who are both graduates of NCAD, recently launched Jule, their own range of jewellery, which is stocked exclusively in Smock in Temple Bar. They are also designing a jewellery range for Top Shop which will be stocked in the new store in St Stephen's Green when it opens later this year.
Kink Bijoux, whose jewelled key rings and charm necklaces featured in our Getaway Gear fashion feature on June 25th, is at JK Retail Studio, 6 Crow Street, Dublin, 01-6753029.