Simply Irish Knitwear
desingned and made in Ireland since 1982
East Cork Knitwear designer with designs on future
Like other house bound, cash-strapped young mothers of 21 years ago, Ros Ledingham cast about for work she could do from home. With a Dipolma in fashion design from the Dorothy Rispin school, in Cork, she decided on designing.
Thus Shanagarry Knitwear was born and is now a successful small business, specialising in classic styles in nautral fibres, but with a strong Celtic infulence.
Shanagarry Knitwear is best known for simple elegant knits - the sort that never date, that everyone needs in their wardrobe.
Shanagarry Knitwear is no longer based in the East Cork village. Five years ago Ros and her family moved to a farmhouse four miles outside Youghal, on the Dungarvan road and are located off the N25, next door to the Blackwater garden centre.
"We moved here where there was plenty of room to expand but refurbishing the house took a long time. There was no bathroom, for example, when we came here, so the place needed top -to-toe treatment" Ms Ledingham says.
The family are in the midst of restoring the cow byre beside the house into a spacious workshop and showroom, and hope to have it ready for the coming season. Ros and her co-worker, Ellen Miles, use a small workshop which is full with materials, knitting machines, finished clothes, brochures, and paperwork. "We are very cramped, and, if we have more than a few customers at a time, it is impossible for them to see things properly. There is also knowhere for them to try on clothes, so we are looking forward to expanding into the new place", Ms Ledingham says.
"It has beautiful views over the coast and sea. We have a big square corner window, to take advantage of the view, and there'll be toilets and changing rooms and facilities to offer customers a cup of tea while they browse", she says.
Ms Ledingham works mostly with a cotton / linen blends, but also with wool and this season's wool and silks. "Wool is a good seller, but is doesn's compare with the cotton/linen mix, which is far and away our best seller. It's a beautiful fabric, which drapes wonderfully well, and never dates. The most popular colour is natural, but we have other colours, and it can be embellished with coloured trim, " she says. The classic sweaters, cardigans, jackets, and skirts/suits are often finished with crochet, and the black evening tops feature crochet in the yokes. Ros also makes children's clothes, up to size 32. "After that they have very definite notions of what they want to wear," she says.
A best seller is the little sun-dress with matching top, which costs a reasonable €54.
Adult prices range from €65 for a sweater to €150 for a two-piece. A cardigan with a detachable hood in a wool/alpaca mix costs €87, and men's knitwear is similarly priced.
All finishes and trims are made to customer specifications. Her knitwear is stocked in shops nationwide, in the Kilkenny and Blarney woollen mills shops.
Jean Kelly
09.06.03
Knitwear Studio
Simply Irish Fashion Show '07
Following a successful season. Simply Irish Knitwear was pleased to take part in a fashion show organised by a Kinsalebeg parents group to raise funds for a badly needed childrens playground in the area, hosted in the Dungarvan Park Hotel in March '07.
Amoung other companies Simply Irish presented some of its most popular items.