Glitter jitterbug: Meet the Irish designer behind Julian Benson’s spectacular jackets
meets designer Claire Garvey, whose chic outfits are regularly donned by a host of famous faces, including Nile Rogers
THIS coming Sunday, the latest installment of Dancing with the Stars will waltz its way into our living rooms and tempt our toes to tango with all its glamour, glitz, and rhythmic glory. While we can expect some dancers to shine there is little doubt there will be plenty of sparkle on judge Julian Benson’s jacket.
The dancer’s unabashed bent for bling is one of the cornerstones of the series; a classic Sunday night family show which last year boasted a staggering 518,000 average weekly viewers.
While most are tuning in to watch the competitors get their groove on, many are just as interested to see what Julian has on.
The person behind these spectacular creations is designer Claire Garvey who has been creating and stitching the dancer’s jackets since the beginning of the show.
“I won the young designer of the year back in college,” says Claire. “And he was modelling stuff in that. So we met there and he did a show about 15 years ago called Celtic Rising which I produced all the female costumes for. So the relationship developed and as I got into menswear he obviously liked what he saw and figured it would be perfect on Dancing with the Stars.”
Claire describes Julian as “very easy to deal with” and such is the pair’s confidence in each other that they rarely need to discuss the weekly attire. It’s an understanding that Claire seems to have with many of her clients.
The Dubliner’s career in fashion started early. Her mother, Joyce, is a painter and art teacher. On occasion, she would bring home some of her pupils’ assignments only to find that on Monday morning, they had been tampered with or adjusted by her creative daughter.
This early foray into design was encouraged at home and resulted in Claire attending a five-year fashion degree course at NCAD in Dublin. This was followed by a two-year master’s degree at the Vgik University in Moscow — an eye-opening experience that exposed Claire to colour and creativity across a wide range of visual, musical, and performing arts.
Claire now plies her trade in Cow’s Lane, Temple Bar, in a studio that could be described as looking like something straight out of Tim Burton’s brain. Only it’s not his, it’s Claire’s and it is beautiful in its chaos. A mix of art nouveau and 1970’s glam, it’s as if Ziggy Stardust met Sarah Bernhardt and decided to throw a small party in this small corner of Dublin.
“The first year I opened here, which was 20 years ago, I remember someone came into me and said they wanted to be a tree,” recalls Claire.
They were going to a 21st and it was fancy-dress. It suddenly dawned on me that you wouldn’t get that in a regular shop. I was still doing some repeat items, small repeat items.
“I always did my own thing but more people started coming to me looking for one-offs and that gave me more confidence.”
Since that venture into arboreal-chic, Claire has fashioned numerous themed costumes, dresses, and jackets.
She has designed and created music-box dolls replete with keys in the back, a wedding dress decorated with chilli-peppers, and a bodice made out of cocktail stirrers.
“That one with the cocktail stirrers was for an awards ceremony for a comedy series called Cuckoo,” says Claire.
“They won the award they were nominated for and so the producer was able to go up on stage and drink from the dress.”
Many of Claire’s pieces have appeared at awards ceremonies. In fact just last week, her work made an appearance at the Oscars when conductor Eimear Noone took the stage in Los Angeles.
This was not the first time clothes by Claire have made their way onto that famous red carpet. Some five years ago, Nile Rogers, aka the Godfather of Funk, wore not one but two of Claire’s jackets for the ceremony. Claire and Nile go way back.
“I hated menswear in college and I really tried to stay away from it,” says Claire. “A few years ago, two friends of mine who know the girls from Chic sent them pictures of my work and they loved it.
“So they asked to wear some designs at a gig in Belfast. Nile Rogers saw them and they made an impression I think.”
Two days later, Claire received an email from the Chic musician requesting a design for an upcoming performance on The X Factor. The turnaround was quick.
“I had a two-day deadline to come up with something that I had never really done before,” recalls the Dubliner.
I remember the jacket was blue. He always wore white and I wanted to get away from that. I was working on his jacket and I wasn’t really happy with it because it was quite conservative. It just needed something. So just before I had to go over to London and deliver it, I got this dye and sprayed it all over the jacket. It was quite a risk to be honest but he loved it.
Their relationship has gone from strength to strength. Nile flew in to Dublin to the official opening of Claire’s shop last year.
“I bought the studio last year,” says Claire. “It’s like a home to me really. Things have changed quite a lot around here but I still love what I do. I spend everyday thinking of ideas. We got a lovely conservatory in our house and of course that’s now full of legs and arms and mannequins.
“My poor husband says he can’t come near me for three months of the year because I’m covered in glitter when I’m designing Julian’s jackets. I’m obsessed with my work to be honest.”
Thankfully for those of us who like colour in our lives, it’s an obsession that shows no sign of abating anytime soon.
clairegarvey.com
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