ON THE TOWN: If you had an urge to rub shoulders with the well-dressed and the exceptionally well-heeled, the Design Centre fashion show was the place to be this week, writes Olivia Kelly.
Fashion aficionados wait for no season, and while outside the night was cloaked in a wet and gloomy grey, inside Powerscourt Townhouse all was pink, flowery and floaty; or, as the Design Centre prefers to phrase it, "a wash of fresh summer chiffon and silk breezes mingled with red strawberries" - tasty.
The beautiful people eschewed a night of gripping Coronation Street monologues (it was the night where super sleuth Gail finally unmasked the dastardly Richard), not only for the pleasure of stocking their spring/summer wardrobes, but to celebrate the 20th anniversary of the Design Centre.
"It's wonderful to be celebrating 20 years of Irish fashion, we go back a long way," said John Rocha, one of the founding members of the Design Centre. "Lots of young designers started there, Lainey Keogh, Mariad Whisker, Louise Kennedy - not many countries give young designers such a good opportunity at the start of their careers."
Robin O'Reilly was looking for something to put a spring in her step. "I've always been a big supporter of Irish design and right now I desperately need spring/summer clothing to get away from all this dark and wintery stuff."
Liz O'Donnell took what she said was a rare night off from the Dáil to accompany her college friend, solicitor Ann O'Neill, to the show. "There's no vote tonight, so I've been let out," she said. "I would buy clothes from the Design Centre from time to time, the designs are really interesting and it's clothes you can afford."
Ann O'Neill praised the thoughtfulness of Irish designers. "If you go up and down on the scales you'll always get something you like here. Even when I've gained weight, I've always found something."
Designer Patrick Casey, originally from Ballymahon, Co Longford but now working in Italy, flew in specially to show four pieces from his latest collection. "The Design Centre is fantastic. No establishment promotes Irish design as much, so lets hope it has 20 more successful years."
TV3's Alan Hughes said he's been encouraging people to come to the Design Centre for ages. "People should just come in and have a look even if they can't afford to buy. For that one-off special occasion, it's the place to go, or what I always say is: 'Get the jeans in Dunnes and dress it up with a Design Centre top, and no one will ever know'."