eBay OFW - The Style Talk
Styling Talk w/ Angela Scanlon & Corina Gaffey
As part of eBay Online Fashion week, (see Feature) held last week in TempleBar I took part in an inspiring Styling talk with key speakers Angela Scanlon (stylist, presenter, Grazia, eBay, Awear, Xpose) and Corina Gaffey (in house fashion editor/stylist for Irish Publications Kiss & Stellar). These two women have been my style and career crushes in recent years and I have enjoyed following their work as it grew and prospered within the Irish fashion world.
Angela is a familiar face both here and across the pond, writing for esteemed fashion mag Grazia, styling the stars, working for companies such as eBay and Awear, a regular columnist for U! , maintaining a noted blog/site. I first clocked Angela around four years ago while I was working in a shop in the seaside village of Downings where I’m from to fund college, I used to read the glossies on my break, and I think it was Image where there was a piece on inside the stylists home. It showed Angela’s immaculate home interior, gave info on her career, and showed these beautiful leopard print wedge boots (which are huge now, (waaay ahead of the trends she was!) as an ornament on the mantel which I LOVED. I really identified with her outlook and envied her thrown together yet groomed style which was sort of Sienna meets Nicole Ritchie meets Woodstock with added thrift and originality and the gorgeous Irish appearance. This article made me want seriously consider a career in fashion, be it the marketing end or the imagery, it suddenly seemed viable for an Irish girl to do so. I blog, write, studied PR, take photographs, am concise of marketing, I raid thrift, vintage, charity, hightstreet and online like a trooper and keep myself on top of new and evolving fashion and my own personal style as a result.
Corina was someone who gave me and hundreds of other Irish girls major career envy, as a fashion Ed for two of the most relatable and breakthrough Irish fashion mags for young women, she has what many would deem, the perfect job. I grew up with Kiss, and when I devastatingly became to old for it, Stellar was launched. The mags are great for Irish girls who before hand had to relate to English issues and equate sterling to euros in their head whilst scanning the clothes and features within. Stellar broached Irish issues, and in terms of fashion, displays reasonable and sometimes slightly higher end pieces that we can go out and buy. Corina has been part of Team Stellar and Kiss, and this is a covetable team to be involved with as the magazines have so many fans, and I know that she plays a big part in this and has inspired manys an outfit choice. Corina also organised the Closet Clearouts in Dublin, which was an idea that much like a high end car boot sale for fashion heads, like minded women could buy and sell clothing from rails within ALT. During a recession, this was an incredible idea, allowing us all to make a penny, or pick up something second hand and unique. I took part once and loved it, Corina was a great host, and one of my friends, pre-emigration made some much needed funds and literally cleared out her wardrobe.
Although both women have what I would determine as dream jobs, they worked hard to get there, and weren’t just graced with contacts and luck. Angela began by doing industry jobs that weren’t overly glam, for example taking on one small brand to promote, as a result got a referral from them to another and although she didn’t make her millions that way, she got her foot in the door and worked her way up. Fail to prepare, prepare to fail was the mantra of the night as the women spoke of diva clients, size mishaps, expensive tops ripping, unpredictable Irish weather and keeping up a good relationship with everyone on shoot/set. Corina suggested teaming up with a friend in photography, if you are interested in styling, and this alliance could work for you both, doing test shoots and referring each other, much like Corina did with pal Lili Forberg. I will continue to follow these women’s careers, and really respect them, and hopefully our paths will cross in future. Was lovely meeting them both, Thursday was my first time meeting Angela who I found to be very ladylike and warm, she also complimented my Asos wedges which was a great style credential! My favourite night of Ebay OFW undoubtedly.
Marie xx
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