Innovative young designer Aoife Nolan is rethinking workwear:

Aoife Nolan, a second year student of the Bachelor of Arts in Fashion with Promotion at LYIT, has been named as the only Irish student to be shortlisted in the final of the international Professional Clothing Awards (PCA) Vision competition.

Aoife, who is from Drimnagh, Co Dublin, was inspired by shapes and forms found in engines.  She researched hardwearing fabrics that were functional for mechanics including chemical resistance and flameproof finishes. Her innovative design works with colour blocking and remains highly functional without compromising on good design.  

In her entry, Aoife was required to share her vision of stylish, functional professional clothing that can be worn for a specific job role in a sector of their choice. The goal is for the students to deliver innovative designs that truly meet the needs of the worker (man or woman) to help them to perform their job to the best of their ability in their standard job environment.

Aoife Nolan, a second year student of the Bachelor of Arts in Fashion with Promotion at LYIT, has been shortlisted to the final of the Professional Clothing Awards (PCA) Vision competition which will be held in London in June 2018.

Speaking about her experience, Aoife commented, “I’m delighted to get the opportunity to show my work on such an international stage. I have learned so much about fabrics and designing workwear, it has been a great project”.

It is great exposure for Aoife to be competing at such a high level within her industry and the experience of this and other competitions will prove invaluable to her on her portfolio.

It is a huge honour for Aoife to be shortlisted to the final ten entries, as her submission was chosen from over 300 entries. Further re-enforcing her achievement is the fact that the competition was opened up to a number of participating schools, colleges or universities across Europe including London College of Fashion, Manchester Metropolitan and ESMOD International, France. This year the awards will be held at the Park Plaza London Riverbank hotel on 20 June 2018.

Speaking about Aoife’s achievement, Sharon Maxwell, LYIT Fashion Lecturer, acknowledges, “It’s fantastic that Aoife’s talent and hard work has been recognised and will be showcased at one of the most important events in the professional clothing calendar.  She is a really innovative designer and this will hopefully prove to be a great springboard opportunity for her”.

The Bachelor of Arts (BA) in Fashion with Promotion is currently in its third year of being taught at LYIT but already they are seeing the fruits of how valuable the skills and expertise of its future graduates will be.  The intention of the course is to prepare students for employment or to exist as a designer.

Best of luck Aoife in the final!

For those considering a career in fashion, why not check out the BA in Fashion with Promotion (LY447) online at www.lyit.ie.