Irish designers set for fashion week

A total of 23 Irish designers will be taking part in Dublin Fashion Week, which takes place over three days from February 6th…

A total of 23 Irish designers will be taking part in Dublin Fashion Week, which takes place over three days from February 6th to February 8th.

The event, which will show collections for autumn/winter 06 in the Morrison Hotel, will feature 30 brand labels.

Participants include Joanne Hynes, Leigh Tucker, Lucy Downes, Deborah Veale, Vivien Walsh and N & C Kilkenny.

Two of the participants will represent Ireland in high-profile trade events in Europe in coming months supported by Enterprise Ireland.

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Newcomers include Dublin based-jeweller Jennifer Kinnear, lingerie designer Caoimhe O'Dwyer who now works with La Perla in Milan, and Elva Robins, who is launching a new collection called Gossamer with her mother, Glynis Robins.

The event, which brings Irish buyers and designers together under one roof, was inaugurated last October by promoter Sonia Reynolds and resulted in €1 million worth of sales.

Brown Thomas are to sponsor an award for the Irish designer of the season in either fashion or accessories. The winner will be announced by the store's head of fashion, Shelly Corkery.

"We recognise the growth of emerging young Irish fashion talent which needs to be nurtured and we search each season internationally for the best fashion collections for our customers," Ms Corkery said.