Irene Gilbert (fashion designer) facts for kids
Irene Gilbert (born around 1910 – died August 7, 1985) was a famous Irish fashion designer from Thurles, County Tipperary. She was known as Ireland's first couturier, which means a designer who creates custom-made high-fashion clothes. Irene was one of the "Big Three" Irish fashion designers, along with Sybil Connolly and Raymond Kenna/Kay Peterson. She designed clothes for royalty and important people, and was good friends with Grace Kelly, who was a famous actress and later a princess. Irene Gilbert was the first woman to successfully run her own fashion business in Ireland. Her shop was located on St Stephen's Green in Dublin.
Becoming a Fashion Designer
Irene Gilbert was born in Thurles, County Tipperary, around 1908. She went to Alexandra College and then studied for a short time in Belgium.
Irene started her career in fashion by running a dress shop on Wicklow Street in Dublin. To learn more, she went to London and trained with a special dressmaker who designed for the royal court. After her training, she came back to Dublin and opened a hat shop on North Frederick Street in the late 1940s.
Her Famous Fashion Work
In 1947, Irene Gilbert moved her shop to St Stephen's Green. By 1950, she started selling clothes under her own fashion label. Her very first fashion show was held at Restaurant Jammet.
Irene was famous for using beautiful materials like silk, tweed, linen, and special Carrickmacross lace. Another well-known designer, Pat Crowley, worked for Irene Gilbert for seven years starting in 1960. He helped her with designs, sales, and marketing.
The amazing quality of Irene's work helped make Dublin a popular place for international fashion journalists to visit. In 1962, she helped start the Irish Haute Couture Group with other designers like Ib Jorgensen and Nelli Mulcahy.
Irene also designed one of the ten different uniforms for Aer Lingus, the Irish airline.
She closed her business in 1969 and moved to Malta. Later, she moved to Cheltenham in England, where she passed away in 1985.
Her Lasting Legacy
Irene Gilbert's beautiful clothes are still highly valued today. Many of her creations are kept in important collections, like those of Anne, Countess of Rosse, which are now at Birr Castle. The National Museum of Ireland also has some of her letters, drawings, and clothes. In January 2018, Irene Gilbert's life and work were featured in an exhibition at the Little Museum of Dublin.
