MY FASHIONABLE LIFE: SIMONE ROCHA

THE IRISH FASHION DESIGNER, 34, RECOUNTS A LOVE AFFAIR WITH PEARLS, SENSIBLE SHOES AND A PARTICULAR PAIR OF BOOTCUT LYCRA TROUSERS

The designer opens up about the most stylish person she knows, collecting fashion history and why her collections will always feature pearls

BOTH OF MY GRANNIES INFLUENCED MY STYLE.

My headstrong Irish grandmother wore tailored trousers; my Chinese granny wore ladylike twinsets in floral prints. But both wore practical shoes, which resonates with me – grounding femininity in practicality.

I WAS A WAITRESS FOR THREE YEARS AT WAGAMAMA IN DUBLIN.

I loved it, and I bought a pair of black Lycra, semi-flared trousers with my first paycheck. I wore them so much, they turned grey.

THE MOST AMAZING PIECE I OWN? A COMME DES GARÇONS LEATHER JACKET

by Rei Kawakubo, although it is difficult to manoeuvre in if I’m being honest. I can’t hug people when I’m wearing it. I found it at a Dover Street Market sale and nearly died. I adored the collection when I was a student, so to find a piece that I could buy, I was like: Oh my god, that’s a piece of fashion history.

THE COLLECTION I’M MOST ENAMOURED BY IS SSO8 BALENCIAGA,

which features sculpted neoprene floral dresses. I think Nicolas Ghesquière was the most pioneering designer of that time – he used a technical fabric and translated it into luxury fashion by the way he manipulated it. The way the fabric mirrored the body but created almost like a new body – and the fact that he did it with flowery granny prints on top – I thought that mix was just amazing.

FASHION WRITER AND EDITOR LYNN YAEGER IS THE MOST STYLISH PERSON I’VE EVER MET.

Now we’re close friends, we have a joke between us: we met in a flea market and she said I was stalking her, which I wasn’t! I love the historical elements of her style, and the authenticity of her look. Some people hop around trends, and that’s absolutely fine, but authentic style like Lynn’s is rare.

PEARLS ARE ICONIC, from girls wanting to look like their mums by wearing pearl earrings with rugby jerseys, to women I respect like Mary Robinson, Ireland’s first female president, who wears pearls over a rollneck. I introduced pearls into my collections nearly 1O years ago, and now they almost feel like a logo.

I HAVE A HORRIFIC RELATIONSHIP WITH MY BEAUTIFUL RINGS,

as I take them off for my work and lose them, but they always find me again. It’s an ongoing saga. I was just reunited with three of my favourites: one is a cameo ring from my partner, a vintage Cartier panther ring from my parents, and my grandmother’s sovereign ring. Things will come and go; that’s true in life and in fashion.

THE FIRST THING I EVER MADE WAS IN HOME ECONOMICS:

a red taffeta, three-tiered miniskirt with black lace trim. We had to make a skirt from a movie and everyone made a Grease circle skirt. I was like, ‘No, I’m doing Moulin Rouge.’ My teacher was furious.

I WEAR A HUGE AMOUNT OF WHITE COTTON, BUT I LIVE IN BLACK DRESSES FROM MY COLLECTIONS.

They’re so light against the skin, and they’re sculptural, which I love – the cloqué fabric almost dances on the body. I’d like to be buried in the last dress of my AW2O collection – with an ivory veil and white socks.