Local female entrepreneurs who have created and developed exclusive styles in fashion and accessories showcased their bespoke designs to a nation-wide audience when they featured on RTE’s popular daytime television show ‘Today with Maura and Daithi’ on Friday last.
In a fashion segment of the programme, designer Lisa Carragher was commissioned to showcase a collection of her self-designed range of special-occasion maternity wear, available to hire from her studio Beauty and the Bump in Crossmaglen.
Bespoke accessories to compliment the stylish outfits were provided by Mairead Traynor (Millinery by Mairead, Silverbridge) and Jemma Murphy (Jack Murphy Jewellers, Newry), while Armagh ladies hair stylist Lillian Taggert and Deborah McCall make up artist ensured the glamorous finishing touches on the elegant models.
Beauty and the Bump’s distinct service, offering hand-made and exclusive maternity wear for hire, caught the attention of a stylist at RTE who contacted Lisa and invited her to feature her new dress collection on the show.
Inspired by the lack of maternity wear choices for expectant mothers, both online and in high street stores, five years ago Lisa took the decision to exploit the niche in the market and established Beauty and the Bump maternity dress hire. Since then, she has never looked back, and last year added her own exclusive designs to the collection. All of the pieces are hand made in Ireland, promoting Irish design and available for hire from her Crossmaglen studio. The range has attracted many high profile clients from across Ireland and the UK, including a well-known radio show producer, celebrity make up artists, bloggers and wives of champion jockeys, seeking to hire her designer wear for their special events. An additional service to the business is the recently launched collection for expectant bridesmaids and maternity wear catering for black tie events.
Promoting their unique and individual fashion and accessories on Friday’s edition of RTÉ’s daytime lifestyle show ‘Today with Maura and Dáithí’ are local female entrepreneurs Jemma Murphy (Jack Murphy Jewellers, Newry), Lisa Carragher (Beauty and the Bump, Crossmaglen), Mairead Traynor (Millinery by Mairead, Silverbridge), Lillian Taggert (hair stylist and proprietor of Lush Locks Freelance, Armagh) and make up artist Deborah McCall (Deborah McCall Make Up, Armagh) with models Sharon, Edelle and Niki.
Alongside Lisa on Friday’s show, were local milliner Mairead Traynor and Jemma Murphy from Jack Murphy Jewellers in Newry.
Mairead’s millinery and accessory business is located in Silverbridge where she specializes in bespoke headpieces to hire or buy; and her custom-made creations produced the perfect collaboration with Lisa’s designs for the show’s race day theme slot. Indeed Edelle Russel, wife of champion jockey Davey Russel, and a previous customer at Millinery by Mairead, was one of the models featured on the show, alongside Niki McCarthy, wife of jockey Sean McCarthy. Both ladies modelled the dresses teamed with the Race Day-inspired fascinators to perfection.
And providing the finishing touches with their exquisite diamond and costume jewellery were Gemma Murphy and her father Jack, proprietor of Jack Murphy Jewellers in Newry. The long established firm’s Southern Ireland customer base is continually growing, attracting many customers with their competitively priced jewellery and helping place their family business firmly on the map as one of the biggest diamond specialists in Ireland.
Local business women Mairead Traynor (Millinery by Mairead), Lisa Carragher (Beauty and the Bump) and Jemma Murphy (Jack Murphy Jewellers) who showcased their exclusive style on last Fridays’s edition of RTE’s daytime show ‘Today with Maura and Daithi’.
Hair stylist Lillian Taggert of Lush Locks Freelance and make up artist Deborah McCall, both based in Armagh, completed the team of inspirational female entrepreneurs from this area – all five of whom are mothers of young children – whose motivation and business success yielded a live television appearance and the exceptional opportunity of showcasing their unique individual talents to a nation wide audience.
Sharon (Love for Fashion blogger) modelling bespoke maternity wear exclusively available from Crossmaglen-based fashion specialist Beauty and the Bump.