It’s not about trends; it’s about who she is and what she feels, and that’s why her work is so consistent. That’s also why I don’t think it will go out of date,” Nothdruft suggests. “It’s a look that can keep going because it will keep on adapting.” The ubiquitous graphic, of course is just one strand of Kiely's textile design. But it is far from her only familiar print: cars, apples and pears, martians, glass tumblers, acorn cups – without even looking, you've almost certainly seen them all, whether printed on furniture in Heals, bedding at John Lewis or toiletries bags in giftshops nationwide – not forgetting fashion, which Kiely is still passionate about (she has just opened a dedicated new shop in the King's Road). The business empire, which Kiely runs with her husband, Dermott Rowan, from a small office and two boutiques in London, has not only earned the designer export awards and industry accolades, but she has even been immortalised on an Irish 82-cent stamp, the type most often used for first-class overseas mail. A Life in Pattern by Orla Kiely

The Afternoon Show, RTÉ One". RTÉ News. 10 November 2008. Archived from the original on 18 September 2009 . Retrieved 30 November 2009. Orla Kiely products were sold in over 33 countries. Her clothing, handbags, accessories and homewares have been featured in films, TV shows and even a novel, ‘Girl on a train’. Covered in magazines and newspapers, she appeared in Vogue, Harper’s Bazaar, Sunday time and Grazia magazine. Perhaps it should be no surprise that when Kiely has spoken about her musical preferences in the past, she’s listed contemporary artists such as Feist and Joanna Newsom, as well as classic acts such as Minnie Riperton and Van Morrison. Patterned prints from Orla Kiely Kiely’s visually crisp and geometrically disciplined patterns work across clothes, accessories and homeware. This is combined with a particularly broad appeal, zeroing in on that difficult-to-hit sweet spot of delight, commercial success and aesthetic rigour that’s normally the reserve of articulate, perfectly pitched pop music.a b De Rosa, Sophie (27 September 2010). "World of: Orla Kiely, designer". The Daily Telegraph . Retrieved 7 February 2022. Mid 1990’s when Orla showcased hats at London Fashion Week, her father noticed that very few women wore them, but all carried a bag. Which started the key offering, made originally of wool, cottons and mesh, she then started making them in leather and bright colours. The Orla Kiely archive of bags consists of bags showcasing two principal characteristics. The ‘Stem’ range is generally produced in classic shapes and in shoulder and cross body versions. The main line has always been reflective of the designer’s latest concept, exploring different techniques and applied with finishes in prints and embroidery.

Hart, Carolyn (25 October 2010). "Food news: Hallowe'en cupcake decorations, Orla Kiely's kitchenware, and more..." The Daily Telegraph . Retrieved 7 February 2022. Only after the concept was been approved did selected manufacturers get instructed to produce first prototypes or samples – and the arrival of these in the studio was always seen as ‘the moment of truth’. Looking to see whether the design on the product matched that of the design on the paper. Each design is developed carefully by drawing and refining the essential organic elements that are the foundations of her instinctively satisfying repeating patterns. Nature – rendered more abstract and graphic – is always a core source of pattern ideas.You might also want to let children have an opportunity to develop their observational and sketching skills while taking inspiration from plants and animals in preparation for this activity. On Monday 17 th September, Orla Kiely ceased trading. Meaning that online business and retail stores in both London and Kildare closed. After seeing this news, I wanted to celebrate the designers fantastic work and patterns from over the years by visiting the Fashion and Textile museum’s exhibition dedicated to her life’s work. Orla often recalled her vivid memories of her family kitchen with its olive-green Formica cupboards and worktops, entire walls with coordinating green and white patterned tiles, and a striking orange gloss ceiling and her Irish environment has informed her creative work since she was a student of textile design in Dublin.

W e are told that our desire to look for and recognise patterns is hardwired, one of the things that distinguishes us as human. So perhaps this is why the optimistic and ever-so-slightly nostalgic patterns employed by Orla Kiely have become so instantly recognisable over the past 25 years, earning the Irish designer the accolade "queen of print". a b c Burt, Kate (22 October 2010). "Cutting-edge patterns: Kiely's unique designs have made her interiors label a massive global brand". The Independent. Archived from the original on 24 May 2022 . Retrieved 7 February 2022. Created especially for the exhibition, are 9 giant dresses based on previous ready-to-wear collections in iconic prints. Each Is accompanied by a miniature doll created by artist Sarah Strachan and dressed in especially miniaturised iconic prints.

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Orla Kiely OBE is an Irish designer who is famous for her fabric and pattern designs. Her brand is recognisable by bright colours and the pattern of a stem with leaves. She was born in 1963 in Shankill, County Dublin in Ireland. For Dennis Nothdruft, curator at the Fashion and Textile Museum, Kiely’s success stems in part from the clarity of her work, the consistency of her approach and the flexibility of her business model, which relies on a series of trusted licensees for all of its manufacturing. “There’s a very strong DNA that runs through everything she produces. She has a process. She absorbs things and then she filters them so that they come out in a very Orla Kiely way that’s all about her vision,” Nothdruft explains. Foam Board Printing Step-by-Step Instructions - Another resource that will help your children understand printing. This one is a set of KS1 friendly instructions which will help children to produce a print using a foam board. The exhibition charts the growth and success of Orla Kiely from her first collection of hats at London Fashion Week in 1994, through the advent of the iconic Orla Kiely bag in the mid-nineties to her freelance work for department stores executed from her kitchen table in 1998. Chapman, Matthew (14 January 2011). "Citroën brings in Orla Kiely for limited edition DS3 model". mad.co.uk. Archived from the original on 19 January 2011.