Collection 05, O lovely one, girl that fell from a star, is a tale of a celestial descent performed in cloth and thread. A bearer of hope, our girl falls from a star and sweetens the Earth as her feet meet the ground. Her message is spelt out in the stitches of this collection, each one a love note to the dear divine.

“O lovely one, girl that fell from a star
Sent by celestial worlds of hope”

Delicate ivory crochet stars are plucked from the night sky and set to rest upon bouncy smocked flowers, while a quatrefoil motif – which returns with each collection – is overlaid with organza, forming little bubbles which fizz and pop upon the surface and leave wisping floral trails in their wake. Flower chains of Irish hand crochet couple bud with petal, and white lace clouds find peace among swirling florets.

“Sorrow is the sparrow perched upon her ivory silk and pearl,
Of whom she carries in order to triumph against pain.
Watch the sparrow take flight
As our angel, girl that fell from a star, hands over bouquets of myrtles and roses,
And conveys to us bright love and golden intentions.”

As her divine presence adorns the terrestrial plane with the grace of healing, so too our angel is adorned: in milky white ribbons which hang in ringlets, clusters of lustrous cotton stars, and smocked rosettes nestled against snow stars. Embroidery floats like air upon gauze, encasing the body like a sweet wrapper, while fine crochet lattices form tender kisses across the bodice. Where there are X’s, there are O’s, and in a dress of smocked embraces, crochet and undulating lace, she emerges from the sea foam as Aphrodite. Each piece is an ode to an instrument of order in a chaotic world, myriad textures meeting in hymn-like crescendo: translucent organza hovers over floating floral diamonds, hand crocheted scallops burst from swirling floral vines, cupped rose petals tessellate as one, and lace whorls sit atop soft halos of sugar frost organza.

“Our angel of hope has come, milk of paradise,
Encompassed in puckered florals
And lace of shimmering light
To translate to us the language of the stars.”

The poem which accompanies – and inspires – the collection is an original work. It was conceived by Pierce and written in collaboration with young writer Michelle Freya. Each stanza further propels Roisin Pierce’s ongoing exploration of the magnitude of craft. In O lovely one, girl that fell from a star, new 3d structures are found within the fusion of smocking and crochet, and the evolution of Irish hand crochet. Every crochet over-throw, posy holder, lattice bodice, and sweet wrapper dress is a step into new territory in the Róisín Pierce universe, which is characterised by an organic and deep-seated dedication to craft.

“She herself is joy, sister to necessary sadness, the essence in which she is seen
Sweet like rose cups; her a message softly spoke
To the ear of heart
And the individual spark found in self”

For the first time, a palette of pure white is punctuated with garments of inky blue. This opens the door to duality: a pristine dove plunges into the midnight depths of the sea, drawing elements and heavens together. Light and dark, sun and moon, air and water, peace and anger.