Designer shows gowns of silk and satin

If you remember the 1960s films Breakfast at Tiffany's and Roman Holiday then you are on the same wavelength as Jen Kelly, the…

If you remember the 1960s films Breakfast at Tiffany's and Roman Holiday then you are on the same wavelength as Jen Kelly, the haute couturier.

He is a master of uncluttered and flowing lines, and creator of superbly glamorous clothes in amazingly beautiful fabrics.

Many are designed for great gala nights and extravagant high profile lives, but even at their more ordinary they are pure sophistication.

Nine models descended the grand marble staircase at the National Gallery of Ireland bringing the clothes close to the audience seated below in the Shaw Room.

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With these clothes it is important to see the detail of each unique, handsewn piece.

The finale was the enormous hand-dyed ostrich-feathered hats.

Silk and satin dresses, bias-cut and seamless, with deep cowls and flutted hems skimming the ground, came in a stream of delicate ice blues, milk whites and mint greens.

Unseen were the pure silk chiffon and organza linings, and unfelt were the heavy weight of the double silks - none touched by a machine.

And the interesting part is that it all looked effortlessly achieved. The fabrics are hugely important to Kelly, who chooses them from the collections of Versace, Chanel and Gai Mattiolo: everything is in pure silk. But there are black evening dresses in finest nappa leather and unlined chantilly lace, everything bias-cut.

Bias-cutting uses a lot of fabric, and a pair of trousers takes five metres. But they fit where they should.

It is all totally opulent, and at times a bit decadent.

Kelly designs for private clients, and for the stage and screen (he dressed the cast of Riverdance).

Theatre was his first love when he left NCAD with a first class degree.

But even when he is designing at a practical level there is a whiff of drama subtly conveyed, usually in darker colours.

His atelier in Molesworth Street is the centre of contemporary couture, and if anyone has a longing for a glass-beaded, chiffon number with a funky feel or a slither of ice blue satin for a whole lot of glamour, this is where to go.