Showgirls
Press Association
Best Dressed Lady Award winner Emir Irwin O'Shea (left) and Lisa Murphy pictured at the Dublin Horse Show.
A Mongolian head-dress, a millinery tribute to Galway, and a pop star’s bespoke hat grabbed the spotlight at the RDS yesterday in a shift from horses to haute couture.
Around 1,300 thoroughbreds and ponies are competing at the Dublin Horse Show, now in its 136th year, but turning heads were the hundreds of well-turned-out contestants battling for best in show.
Queuing up for the hat contest was Sheelagh Holland from Galway city in a vast, pink feathered creation she brought to Dublin in the boot of her car.
“We’ve a mixture of sunshine and rain, so we have sunglasses and also a watering can on it. There’s also a lot of exotic nightlife and fun in Galway, so we have the bird on top as well.”
And it would even make a fitting tribute to today's centrepiece, the Nations Cup - created by Ms Holland’s Dutch boyfriend, florist Henk van Enk, whose Chinese-inspired design won the prize in 2006.
The Blossom Hill Best Dressed Lady Award went to Emir Irwin O'Shea from Killarney, Co Kerry, who wore a cream oversized hat and linen jump-suit made by her sisters Niamh and Clodagh.
The 33-year-old, whose prize included a trip to South Africa and a shopping weekend in Milan, said: “I'm absolutely thrilled.”
