There were extraordinary scenes last weekend when fashion designer Peter O'Brien unveiled his final collection for Irish chain a|wear. Branches were quickly stripped of chunky knits, pencil skirts, frill edged coats and that Grecian style dress.
Take a look at photos of the collection here.
Fashion students and teenagers came out in force for the launch of the collection in Grafton Street but joining them, to elbow, kick and shove, were women in their 30s, 40s and 50s with highlights and heels. Worlds had collided in search of couture cool. The buzz was palpable and the queue for the checkout snaked around the shop floor.
So what has made this man so popular? The key is his emphasis on subtle sexiness. All of Peter’s designs have a classic and timeless quality to them, making them wonderful investment pieces, which will last for years to come.
O'Brien graduated in Paris and designed for Givenchy, Christian Dior, ChloÈ and fashion house Rochas, where he was head designer for 12 years. However, Rochas dropped him in 2003, prompting him to set up his own label.’ I think that designing this collection was a learning process for me,' he said. 'I'd worked in the ivory tower of very high level, expensive Paris clothes but, at the end of the day, designing things is really about solving problems.'
Peter creates elegant clothes that work well on most women and, for that reason alone, his collection had become one of the most popular on the Irish highstreet. Although his wonderful range for a|wear will be sorely missed, the good news is that the Dublin-born designer has slashed the prices, so it costs as little as €60 to have his designer pieces in your wardrobe.
Peter fans will be happy to hear that the collection has been further developed for the season with some beautiful new additions to this years range including big chunky grey knits & skinny style cropped pants. “For winter we have pushed the collection on & developed several areas we haven’t touched before. Big chunky knits sit alongside our usual 100% cashmeres which have pretty chiffon trims this season” he said.
The colour palette is a classic and sophisticated mix of mink, ivory, taupe and rich berry. World renowned for his heavenly gowns, O'Brien has also included two evening dresses and a luxurious silk faille skirt in the 22-piece limited edition collection, which is quite simply ‘to die for’.
Speaking about the range, Annemarie Flood, CEO A|wear said, “This season’s collection has a wonderfully classic winter feeling with a sophisticated colour palette of mink, ivory, taupe & a surprise deep berry shade.
Once again, Peter’s keen eye for attention to detail is seen across the entire collection from the bias frill detailing of the coat to the ruffle front detailing on the silk blouses. The pieces to watch out for this season are definitely the tailored pieces in charcoal grey which include a skinny cropped pant, hip hugging wide leg trousers, a pencil skirt and a beautiful fitted jacket.”
“We have also focused our efforts on keeping the collection affordable for the customer this year,” continued Annemarie. “The entry price starts at €60 and peaks at just €200 for the winter coat. The cashmere collection also retains the quality but the price point has been reduced from €120 to €100. Peter has really excelled himself this year in what I feel is his strongest collection to date.
As it’s sadly his last range for A|wear, I’d like to take this opportunity to thank Peter for all his support and beautiful designs over the last four years. I’d advise all Peter fans to make sure they pick their favorite item from this year’s collection to ensure you’ll always have a little piece of Peter in your wardrobe”.
The collection is available from selected stores nationwide and www.awear.ie
