Fashion Design

Evelyn O’Regan

My Yesterday’s Walk with Me’

‘My Yesterday’s Walk with Me’ is all about the past and what once was. It explores the transience of memories. It’s about something that once was there but now is merely an echo. It can only be grasped in glimpses. It is impossible to fully hold on to the past but when we look back we may see it in a nostalgic and romantic light.

Inspired by a memoir written by my grandfather Daniel Joseph Cahill, this collection reconnects us with the unique childhood he had, growing up on the remote and very rural island of Bere Island in West Cork in the 1920s/30s. As the collection evolves, it weaves through elements of island life, such as owning the only pub and shop on the island, while living alongside a base for the British Military. Silhouette is inspired by physical fragments of daily life from that time, some of these which are still in my family’s possession. The fabrics of deadstock velvet, damask and antique, embroidered cotton lawn and lace represent those that would have been found in any Irish pub and typical household at the time while the silk draws in the beautiful drape of the statue of Our Lady – a centre piece of my grandfather’s Catholic upbringing in Cahill’s pub and shop. My grandad has helped to shape me into who I am today and this collection is a tribute to him.

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