From whom I take inspiration There are all kinds of different challenges to being a designer: communicating with clients to extract the perfect brief to suit their needs; or refining a collection so that it carries a strong single theme all the way through; or even directing an art department to find the perfect print campaign to sell a collection. However, recently I had a short break from all those stressful challenges when a client, Maria Osborne, asked me to design a winning dress for the Punchestown Races Best Dressed Award. Maria had already won the award in 2012, but she had no idea what theme she ought to go for this year. When I was thinking about it I decided to do something which would celebrate a true inspirational design for me: Karl Lagerfeld ––who had only recently passed away, but his legacy at Chanel, for over the almost forty years of his tenure there, can never fade. Karl’s penchant for Post-Modernism ––which values an ironical use of pastiche–– h
Production Diary I have been thinking for a while now about what I can write about design. This process has intrigued me for over 35 years now. To think up an idea and then bring it into existence is a magical thing . I am a designer for individual clients and work also on my own label. The process differs for my clients because they bring with them their limitations, requirements and style. When designing my own clothes it's only limited by my own imagination. It’s freedom without restriction and it is very exciting. This idea might come from a mood, a song, a film or a painting. Over the years I have developed an aesthetic, which gives your own work a particular look. The next step from the idea is fabric choice. This will depend on the cut and the fall you want to create. The whole way through the process there is a freedom to change, develop and adapt the design. Once I’m happy with my creation, after the fittings have been do
