PHOTOS: Skip The St. Paddy’s Cliches With These 7 Irish Designers

by Hilary George-Parkin | 5:04 pm, March 15th, 2013

The luck of the Irish is legendary, but luck alone can’t get you to the top of the fashion industry. Good thing these seven designers have the vision and talent to back up their good fortune — not to mention some pretty sweet wares that are making waves all the way from Limerick to London to the Lower East Side.

Get to know the country’s new creative class just in time to celebrate St. Patrick’s Day — although, we warn you, the green, shamrock-covered getups you’ll be seeing around this weekend won’t hold a candle to these badass duds:

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1.Simone Rocha

Rocha is quite the It girl across the pond, and not just because she pals around with Alexa Chung and Pixie Geldof. The Dublin-born 25-year-old has creativity in her blood (her dad is designer John Rocha). For her fall collection, she looked to her Irish granny for inspiration, who, from the looks of things, is a very stylish woman indeed.

http://simonerocha.com/

2.Danielle Romeril

We were getting some serious Proenza Schouler vibes from this Limerick-educated designer's sophomore collection even before we read that she used Samurai-inspired lacing techniques to stitch together leather cut in the shape of skateboard decks. How cool is that?!

http://www.danielleromeril.com/

3.Merle O'Grady

With a sharp selection of edgy baubles and a fanbase that includes Rihanna, Florence Welch, Ellie Goulding, and Queen Bey herself, this accessories maven proves that there is far more than Claddagh rings coming out of Ireland's jewelry scene.

www.merleogrady.com

4.Natalie B. Coleman

After busting on to the scene in 2010 with her NATALIEBCOLEMAN brand, this Limerick and Central St. Martins-educated designer has made a name for herself with her witty, whimsical designs and celebrity admirers like Marina and the Diamonds. Another fun fact? She used to run a reconstructed vintage label called Lucky Bitches in Cork (as in the city, of course).

http://www.nataliebcoleman.com/

5.J.W. Anderson

You don't get much buzzier than this Northern Ireland native. After taking home the Emerging Talent Award at the BFAs, renewing his popular collaboration with Topshop for a second season, and earning rave reviews from pretty much every outlet there is, the question on everyone's minds is 'where will he go next?'

http://j-w-anderson.co.uk/

6.Tim Ryan

Hailing from Tipperary, Ireland, this self-taught designer specializes in an array of Technicolor dreamcoats and knits dripping in fringe. Don't you just want to put one on and twirl around in circles?

https://www.facebook.com/Tim-Ryan-Knitwear

7.Electronic Sheep

Dynamic duo Brenda Aherne and Helen Delany have been crafting eye-catching knitwear for over a decade. We don't know about you, but these look like exactly the kind of cozy, mood-lifting pieces we've been missing all winter.

http://www.electronicsheep.com/