By Amy Pollock
A KNITWEAR designer from Bangor was recently given the exclusive honour of showcasing her talents at Ireland’s first ever Fashion Week.
Twenty one year-old Tess Carter, a Textile Art, Design and Fashion student at Ulster University, was one of 40 young designers from across the island of Ireland to be specially selected to exhibit at the inaugural show earlier this month.
Between October 6 to 10, 54 designers participated across seven shows and five complementary events, blending both established and emerging designers in an ultimate showcase of Irish creativity.
Speaking of being given the opportunity to take part in the Irish Sea Graduate Show in Dublin, a themed showcase which represented the next generation of Irish design, Tess said: “I think 260 people applied, so it was definitely quite a shock to even get an interview for it… and because I haven’t graduated yet, being part of the show feels like even more of an achievement.”
For up-and-coming designers like Tess to share the same lineup as famous names like Paul Costelloe, who headlined the week, she described seeing her work on the runway as ‘a surreal experience’.
“Being from somewhere small like Bangor, it’s something you never expect will come your way. So to take my work wider than here, it was just such an honour to be able to represent Bangor,” she said.
Tess’s look, which she created specifically for Ireland Fashion Week, featured on the catwalk twice.
“I actually did two shows – there was one for the general public and another one for VIPs which had influencers and press in the audience – it was amazing,” she said.
Tess said her runway look draws inspiration from the raw beauty of Ireland’s northern coast, including the textures of tide pools, the colour shifts of deep water and the rhythm of the sea.
“My look was inspired by Rathlin Island, where I sourced local wool from the island’s sheep and hand-dyed the yarn to reflect the natural tones and textures of the Irish coastline,” said Tess.
Sustainability also played a key role in Tess’s design through the help of Future Island-Island, a consortium project that brings together community members, academics and practitioners to co-create design-led research for a greener Northern Ireland economy.
“The sheep on Rathlin Island are called blackface sheep, and originally their coats are very coarse and oily and it was actually classed as category three waste product, so the farmers weren’t getting anything out of it,” she explained.
“Then the Future Island- Island Project was able to turn this into something that can be used.
“So I think it’s great that obviously it was a waste product, and now it’s completely sustainable, and I also used rope in the design which was actually used for kelp farming, so it was really fascinating to put together,” Tess said.
She added that the reactions she has received since the show have been ‘incredible’.
“Everybody loved it. It was just amazing and my tutors from uni came down as well and they hadn’t seen the look yet, so I got a really good response in person and online as well, like I’ve seen a lot of people posting it and I’m getting a lot of praise for it, so it feels incredible.”
