Fashion tends to entice all sorts of people into its embrace: women from the worlds of architecture, science and banking have forsaken lucrative careers in Ireland to start fashion businesses. Not many, however, are quite like Sheila Considine.
She's a qualified doctor (and mother) who spends weekends in Mount Carmel hospital on call and the rest of the week designing and making clothes for her boutique in Dún Laoghaire. Considine has always loved making clothes, but medical training demanded full-time attention and "you have to eliminate everything else", she says, so her passion went on hold.
Four years ago she opened her own boutique "because I always wanted to sell to the rock face - to have your own place is everybody's dream". Her "rock face" tends to be customers aged 25 to 65 who love her simple, elegant, unfussy styles in lovely fabrics that she sources herself.
Her latest collection is made from a soft mercerised Irish linen, and she washes and tumble dries the garment after it's finished. Her design-studio-cum-shop where she makes everything is at Lower George's Street, Dún Laoghaire, tel: 01-2311925 or e-mail: sheilaconsidine@Dublin.ie Prices are reasonable for the quality of material and finish - from around €125 for blouses and €185 for dresses.
Deirdre McQuillan