Jet-set de Vincenzo rewards Irish talent

THE SOCIAL NETWORK: The Italian designer Marco de Vincenzo flew into town to announce the winner of the Peroni Moda Awards at Powerscourt Townhouse Centre on Wednesday evening. He was staying in the Westbury but didn't get to see much of the city. "Dublin could be very interesting, but I fly out tomorrow."

Aisling Kilduff, of Powerscourt Design Centre, said his designs are well liked and she had a great reaction to 10 of his pieces she was selling this year.

Kilduff is busy preparing for a fashion show in the Shelbourne next month, showcasing Irish designers, but was tight-lipped about further details.

More than 100 designs were submitted for the awards and 10 finalists were chosen by judges, including de Vincenzo and Irish-Italian stylist Aisling Farinella.

Mary Callan won the opportunity to work with de Vincenzo in Milan as he prepares his autumn/winter 2013 collection for Milan Fashion Week.

Callan’s winning design was a translation of Peroni’s blue ribbon into bold intarsia knitwear. Passers-by can see highlights from the show at the Powerscourt Townhouse for the next two weeks.

Who we spotted

Niamh Bradley, the producer of Operation Transformation; Liv Morgan of WMB (Women Mean Business) magazine