Irish designers Simone Rocha and Róisín Pierce earned some spectacular exposure after dressing Billie Eilish and Alexa Chung at last night's 2023 Met Gala in New York City.
Billie Eilish - who has considerable Irish roots (her full name is Billie Eilish Pirate Baird O'Connell) - wore a custom gown by Irish designer Simone Rocha at Monday night's glamfest under the theme “Karl Lagerfeld: A Line of Beauty."
Dublin native Rocha said she "created a custom look in celebration of Eilish's talent and powerful femininity.
"Reflecting emotion, fragility, strength, and femininity, the design evolved into a layered piece, revealing what lies beneath.
"Working in fragile tulle, edged with lace, and interpreting embellishment as armour, the design features existing signature Simone Rocha fabrics that were repurposed and patchworked.
"Featuring hand-appliqued found lace, tinsel cotton tweed, patchworked into a tapestry of memories, tied with black ribbons, and hand-embellished jet drips suspended from the body."
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Another Dublin designer, Róisín Pierce, also made the cut at the Gala, having designed the outfit for fashion icon Alexa Chung.
“I discovered Róisín’s work quite recently on Vogue Runway, which I peruse now and then to see what’s going on," Chung told Vogue.
"I was immediately impressed by her frothy, intelligent designs and began to think of events I might be able to wear one to."
Pierce said: “The top is made up of multiples of satin crepe squares, patchworked together with overlaid delicate daisy-stitched organza. The squares are manipulated and pulled to create a highly textured centered flower throughout the piece.
"We appliquéd these larger organic smocked flowers that were joined together with bows that float on top, forming a collage of pretty details.
"The skirt is made up of strips of a delicate star-flower embroidery set on a gauzy organza that floats. High-shine satin crepe strips are [also] smocked to form these little swirling petals that hug the waist and legs.”
Pierce added that her all-white collections reference the ceremonial items that were made by unmarried mothers in Ireland's Magdalene Laundries.
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Designers weren't the only Irish talent gracing the exclusive Met Gala carpet on Monday.
Co Louth native Pierce Brosnan, wearing Tom Ford, looked sleek as always alongside his wife Keely Shaye Smith, wearing Monique Lhuillier, as the couple made their Met Gala debut:
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Oscar nominee and Dublin native Barry Keoghan also made his Met Gala debut, looking dapper in a blue Burberry ensemble:
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— Burberry (@Burberry) May 2, 2023
Meanwhile, Samantha Barry, the Cork native editor-in-chief at Glamour magazine in NYC, donned an Elizabeth Kennedy New York burgundy gown:
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