Helen Hayes, a prolific fashion designer, veered into the world of fashion after over two decades functioning as a graphic designer. Hayes’s foray into fashion was triggered by her return to college to study fashion design. Within a year of her graduation, she made her mark in the fashion industry by launching her own label, gaining recognition for blending simple silhouettes with intricate details. The production of a single piece could take nearly 70 hours due to the level of detailing involved.
Amidst the serene meadows of her upbringing on a farm in Tipperary, Hayes was introduced to traditional handcrafts at an impressionable age. This set her on the path of graphic design as a career, but it wasn’t long before she chose to pursue her true calling in fashion design. After graduating from the Grafton Academy of Fashion Design in 2015, Hayes set out to establish her own label the following year.
Hayes initiated her label leisurely, driven by the motive of discovering her niche. In every collection Hayes premiered, the clothes showcased the handcrafted techniques learned during her childhood. Her handcrafted garments won the hearts of women who found solace in the unique textures and how the deliberately curated details enhanced their self-confidence when worn. Hayes’s ambition is to develop her label around these traditional techniques while inspiring innovative approaches. She aspires to subtly transform these approaches with an unwavering focus on the impeccable artistry of couture.
Hayes’s interest in art and design further navigated her studies to the Limerick School of Art & Design, where she first delved into graphic design. She admits that her studies and subsequent professional experience at that institute to some degree shaped her perspective towards fashion.
Hayes admits that she quickly realized her offerings were uniquely different from the mainstream labels. Therefore, she decided to pay attention to meticulous craftsmanship and cater to the couture end of the market by producing made-to-order pieces. She received her initiation in ready-to-wear collections at the Create pop-up in Brown Thomas, where she introduced her white shirts, black waistcoats, and square bags. These debut designs have now blossomed into her trademark pieces that mirror her commitment to the cause of introducing handcrafted techniques in innovative ways.
As a member of the Council of Irish Fashion Designers, Hayes is astonished by the diversity of the group. Each micro-label is striving to create a mark within a demanding industry under the prudent chairmanship of Eddie Shanahan.
Even though finances were a constraint in the beginning, Hayes started slowly, endeavouring to strike a perfect balance between unbounded creativity and practical monetary considerations. Like several other industries, fashion too requires an initial investment towards materials, setting up a website, marketing, and more.
Hayes boasts of a vintage handcrafted dresscoat recognized as her best fashion purchase till date. The unidentified label dresscoat is a stunning work of art rendered by hand. Since the inception of her business, Hayes has learned the pivotal role a plan plays in managing a business and the importance of sticking to it.
Hayes’s chartbuster moments include a mix of “firsts”, enlisting her participation in the ARC Cancer Support fashion show, her acclaimed feature in this year’s Anthology Magazine, her inclusion in a section dealing with Irish fashion in the Financial Times Magazine, and her work being included in a fashion photoshoot. Hayes expressed her difficulty in choosing a single proudest moment as she finds all of them equally significant.
As a designer, Hayes’s ambition is to be remembered for creating timeless clothes in simple silhouettes. She desires that her designs instill a sense of confidence and comfort in the wearer. The satisfaction and excitement exhibited by a client when trying on a newly commissioned piece is priceless to her.
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