Celia Holman Lee Archives - Page 2 of 2

Jun 12

Richard Lynch honoured with Mayoral Reception at City Hall

by richanthon in I Love Limerick, News 0 comments 3036 0

Last Thursday Mayor Kieran O’Hanlon honoured me with a Mayoral Reception at City Hall with friends and family present as recognition for my work with I Love Limerick. In attendance, Limerick Person of the Year Luke Culhane, style queen Celia Holman Lee, fitness guru Leanne Moore, Senator Maria Byrne, singer Emma Langford, actor Myles Breen, blogger Sharon Tucker, community activist Helen O’Donnell and representatives from various charities and communities.

I was very honoured to be recognised by the city as this city is not only my birthplace, but I could never ever imagine living anywhere else. It’s my home and my life. I have been doing I Love Limerick for 9 years and I can’t believe it will be a decade next summer!

I have been involved every year in the Limerick Pride Festival since 2008. In 2008, I produced Limerick Pride and made the event a weeklong festival. I wanted it to be integrative and inclusive so I called it I Love Limerick. The theme of that year’s Pride was of Limerick people loving one another and loving our city. When you logged onto ilovelimerick.com it actually took you to LimerickPride.ie. That was the birth of I Love Limerick.

Pictured here with Limerick Person of the Year Luke Culhane who made the Cyberbullying video ‘Create No Hate’ which went viral worldwide. Picture: Dermot Culhane.

It developed into a community website dedicated to reporting and promoting positive news about Limerick people, communities, charities and events. I Love Limerick was set up to help people, to give people a platform that normally wouldn’t have one. I started the project in an effort to counteract the negative press Limerick was getting in the national media at the time; little did I know the adventure I was undertaking. I have been so blessed to meet so many incredible people, to work with so much talent and to given the chance to make a difference and do something positive.

Highlights of the last nine years include interviewing my idol Terry Wogan, doing the last interview ever with the last living Knight of Glin, winning Limerick Person of the Year in 2011 and being part of the success of the many charities and community groups that I do voluntary PR for.

Money and fame don’t motivate me. If they did I would be living in Dublin or I would be still in New York where I lived for over 15 years. The most important thing for me is my family and I could not imagine being apart from them. My parents passed away in the last years and I used to care for them full time. Now I live in a house with my partner Hugo, between my brother and sister homes and all their children and it’s heaven! It’s just what my parents wanted, for us to all be together. The highlight for the Mayoral Reception was that my eight year old niece Lucy and my six year old nephew Ryan were there as it’s something they will remember always.

My thanks to Mayor Kieran O’Hanlon who is so very kind to me and who said, “When I first spoke to Richard, I knew what he was doing for Limerick and that made me happy as Richard does a lot of work for a lot of communities in Limerick and he only puts out positive news because he love’s Limerick and we all love Limerick.”

Picture: Cian Reinhardt/ilovelimerick

I intend to keep working hard. The emotional payback from the work is immeasurable. I don’t care about money. I know I need it to survive so I am doing my best to make a living and also continue volunteering with I Love Limerick. Fortunately, loyal fantastic talent surrounds me since the beginning such as Dolf Patijn, Orla Clancy and Jonathan Baynes. My right arm for the last 4 years has been my videographer, Aisling O’Connor. I am so grateful to everyone who works with us, as you are only as good as the people you work with.

I do love Limerick. It’s been so good to me and the people inspire me every day. All the hard work has been worth it and I would do it all over again. Limerick is really about the people who make up this great city and county. I am Limerick, You are Limerick, We are Limerick. Thank you Limerick, I Love you. Richard x

May 19

#LIMERICKTAGGED LSAD360 a huge success as Limerick trends nationally

by richanthon in News 0 comments 4931 0

For #LimerickTagged LSAD360 over 20 leading Irish and international fashion media and influencers came to Limerick for a showcase of Limerick’s fashion industry. The event was organized by Asta, Cecile and Celia from The Holman Lee Agency in association with Laura Ryan from Limerick City and County Council’s Office of Communications & Marketing. Picture: Brian Arthur.

#LimerickTagged 2017 was trending as number one in Ireland on Twitter on Thursday, May 11^thbeating the Eurovision and the visit of Prince Charles and the Duchess of Cornwall to Ireland.

The aim of #LimerickTagged was to promote Limerick as a fashion, food and lifestyle destination.

Over 20 leading Irish and international fashion media and influencers converged on Limerick for 24 hours for a showcase of Limerick’s fashion industry, highlighting independent boutiques, designers, and young fashion design talent. Limerick City collaborated with LSAD to plan the day, the first time an Irish city has hosted such a happening.

Richard Lynch, I Love Limerick, James Kavanagh, Social Influencer and Snapcat star, Sharon Tucker, Sharon’s Secrets and Sinead O’Brien, Sinead’s Curvy Style pictured at House Limerick for the #LimerickTagged event. Picture: Cathal Frawley

The event organised to raise Limerick’s fashion profile by the Holman Lee Agency in association with Limerick City and County Council’s Office of Communications & Marketing welcomed Michelle Newman, staff editor of Women’s Way; Aisling O’Loughlin from Exquisite.ie; Sybil Mulcahy from Evoke.ie; Aine O’Donnell from Goss.ie; Brendan Courtney & Sonya Lennon design duo, Paula Lenihan, editor of RSVP Magazine; Jennifer Stevens, editor of Irish Country Magazine; Roxanne Parker, fashion stylist; Louise Cooney, fashion, lifestyle & travel blogger; James Kavanagh, snapchat influencer and entrepreneur; Lauren Arthurs, fashion, lifestyle & travel blogger; Maria Walsh, former Rose of Tralee and events manager for Workbench; Zoe O’Connor, fashion blogger; Sinead O’Brien, fashion blogger; Sharon Tucker, fashion blogger; Richard Lynch, founder of I Love Limerick and Gemma Williams from Vogue Italia.

The day’s proceedings started with brunch at HOUSE Limerick showcasing Limerick boutiques/ fashion stores, jewellery and accessories on models from the Holman Lee Agency. The guests of #LimerickTagged were treated to amazing goodie bags sponsored by Limerick.ie, Skechers Ireland, Newbridge Silverware, Keanes Jewellers, Brown Thomas Limerick, Matthew Stephens, Ryan’s Jewellery, Limerick Strand Hotel, Tadhg Kearney, Adare Manor, Shannon Heritage, Serendipity Shoe Boutique, The Lily Store, O’Donnell’s Boutique and Shannon Airport which offered return flights from Shannon to Stockholm as a prize for the best tweet.

Following on from Brunch, the day continued with High Fashion Afternoon Tea and a Munster Designer showcase in The Savoy Hotel, where guests sampled magnificent creations from Chef De Partie Graeme Campbell accompanied by a glass of prosecco. Laura Ryan, Head of Communications/Marketing, Limerick City and County Council explained to guests about Limerick’s long history as a fashion hub, the legacy of Limerick Lace and fashion manufacturing in the city.

Next stop was TED’s Bar &Venue for nibbles and cocktails and a mini display of Holman Lee Agency models wearing award-winning Avant Garde hair pieces from Hugh Campbell Hair Group.

Laura Ryan pictured with Cecile, Celia and Asta from the Holman Lee Agency.

The day culminated with Limerick School of Art & Design, LIT, presenting the LSAD 360 Fashion Show at The LSAD Gallery. Recently named in the top 100 fashion schools in the world, the LSAD fashion department, and the graduate degree is the largest fashion degree programme in Ireland and has launched the careers of some of Ireland’s top designers like Joanne Hynes. Twenty of this year’s talented graduates showcased their unique creations at the LSAD360 Fashion Show, which had an international twist, as a number of the graduates had returned from exciting intercontinental work placements with Marc Jacobs, New York, Manish Arora, India and Lever Couture, Berlin.

Ms Williams, who hopes to feature some of Limerick’s rising talent in an upcoming issue of Vogue Italia, has attended the LSAD360 fashion show for the past three years.

She said she has been “very impressed” with the talent emerging from the school. “There have been some really interesting talents and I think it’s really putting Limerick on the map, so it’s very exciting. I think Limerick has a really interesting niche in the market at the moment,” she told the Limerick Leader.

“What really comes through is the sense of community in the best possible way,” enthused Ms Lennon. “The whole fashion industry in Limerick has really pulled together to create a really extraordinary event.”

Mr Courtney added: “Limerick really has it. The love affair begins. LSAD has really clawed its way to the top of the ladder, and I think that it’s generally conceded that it is the most innovative fashion college in Ireland.”

Mike Fitzpatrick, Head of Faculty at Limerick School of Art and Design: “The LSAD Graduate Fashion Show 2017 is a wonderful opportunity to witness the outstanding talent that is synonymous with Limerick School of Art and Design. The award winning designs showcased in our wonderful church gallery will offer a unique insight into the high standards of their work over the past four years as they embark on their exciting careers on the International Fashion stage.”

2016 was another hugely successful year for LSAD students who won; The Student Designer of the Year Award at The Fashion Innovation Awards, The Future Makers Student of the Year Award, IDI Graduate Designer Award (fashion category), People To Watch, Irish Times, (Michael Stewart) and the AIB/IFIL Work Bursary Award, (three month full time work placement with London-based Irish designer Richard Malone.)

Laura Ryan, Head of Marketing/Communications, Limerick City and County Council said, “Limerick’s love affair with fashion is internationally recognised. We’re delighted to feature the work of locally based designers, independent retailers based in the city and the young designers emerging from LSAD many of whom go on to work in fashion houses around the world. It’s a unique collaboration between a local authority and LSAD to market Limerick as a fashion destination and we’re delighted to have so much interest already in the day. We’re blessed to have such a fantastic Ambassador like Celia Holman Lee and her agency coordinating the day’s activities for us and we’re sure that our visitors will have a fantastic experience of what promises to be a really fun and entertaining visit to Limerick.”

Model agent Celia Holman Lee said the logistics of putting the event together took months, and the organisers hope to hold a second event in county Limerick later this year.

For more fashion stories go HERE.

Mar 31

Sparkle and Shine Ball in association with Keith Duffy Foundation

by richanthon in Awareness, Business, Charity, Community, Events, Fundraiser, Inspirational, News, Old Posts, People 0 comments 3466 0

Sparkle and Shine Ball in association with Keith Duffy Foundation

Sparkle and Shine Ball in association with Keith Duffy Foundation – Pictured left to right – Keith Duffy, Leanne Moore, Celia Holman Lee, Lisa Duffy, Miriam O’Callaghan, Terry Ring, Jessica Mc Gurk, Richard Lynch, Brendan Ring. Picture: Dolf Patijn/ilovelimerick.

Sparkle and Shine ball in association with Keith Duffy Foundation had to be one of the most glamorous events to take place in Limerick this year and was a successful night. The ball was a star studded event with well known faces such as Miriam O’Callaghan, the patron of Clionas Foundation, Keith Duffy representing the Keith Duffy Foundation, Celia Holman Lee and Leanne Moore, one of the ambassadors of the Cliona Foundation.

The night began in the main lobby of the Limerick Strand Hotel where the elegant and extremely well dressed guests were greeted with prosecco and a tiered Ferrero Roche pyramid. The Unity Gospel Choir Limerick sang their hearts out and really set the tone for the evening, which was just spectacular.Sparkle and Shine Ball in association with the Keith Duffy

The guests gasped as they entered the main reception area as the room was completely transformed into a wonderland. This year the Sparkle and Shine initiative and the Keith Duffy Foundation, founded by Keith Duffy, decided to join forces to raise funds for their respective chosen charities and to give the Midwest region a night that has become one of the most high-profile events of this year.

The entertainment was never ending with Cole Page flying in from England for the night to perform. The guest were on their feet and then on their chairs very literally as Cold Page created an incredible atmosphere in the room.

In addition to Cole Page phenomenal performance, the Multi Award Winning Classical Singer, Amanda Neri will also be performing. Amanda has captivated audiences in such venues in Ireland as The Helix, Cork Opera House, Fota House, Bantry House, Longueville House, Siamsa Tire Theatre, Cork City Hall. Sparkle and Shine Ball in association with the Keith Duffy

The giving never ended on the night as the tombola raffle rose a whopping €4,000 alone. Then Keith Duffy took to the stage along with his trusty assistant Richard Lynch to start the auction! Members of the audience really dug deep for the charities as there was more than €35,000 for Clionas Foundation, Symptomatic Breast Unit and Mid Western Cancer Foundation.

Some of the auction prizes included his and hers Calvin Klein watches from Keanes Jeweler’s in Limerick and Bruce Springsteen tickets, afternoon tea in the Westbury hotel and a stay in the five star Conrad Hotel, Framed drawing by Martin Finnin with signed book of his works and concert tickets to concerts such as Macklemore and Ryan Lewis and Little Mix.

The Keith Duffy Foundation has chosen Cliona’s Foundation to be their chosen charity for its inaugural event in Limerick. The aim of Cliona’s Foundation is to give financial support to families of children with life limiting illnesses, to help them pay for the vast amount of non-medical costs associated with caring for a seriously ill child, “I’m delighted to help raise funds for Cliona’s Foundation for the work they do, it is something that’s close to my heart as I have seen the financial burden on families caring for a critically ill child and as part of my work with the Keith Duffy Foundation which aims to provide support and financial assistance to a number of chosen children’s charities throughout the country. I am also thrilled that Miriam O Callaghan, a much respected broadcaster and the official patron of my chosen charity Cliona’s Foundation, is coming to show her support on the night.” Sparkle and Shine Ball in association with the Keith Duffy

The night was a complete success and the guest who attended partied on into the late hours having given back to these well-deserved charities. We cannot wait to see what next years event will be like and wish all the charities the best of luck!

You can follow Clionas foundation on twitter and facebook
You can also check out the Keith Duffy Foundation website, here
You can follow Keith on Twitter
For more related articles by I Love Limerick, click here

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Feb 24

Celia Holman Lee exhibition at Hunt Museum

by richanthon in Beauty, Business, Culture, Entertainment, Events, Fashion, I Love Limerick, Inspirational, News, Old Posts, Press, Pride, Promo, Video 0 comments 5505 0

Celia Featured image

On Wednesday 4th March, the launch of Celia Holman Lee exhibition ‘Celia Holman Lee: Limerick’s Style Icon’ took place in The Hunt Museum.

Mary Kennedy, from RTE’s Nationwide and Celia’s close friend, was there on the night to help launch the exhibition. In her speech, Mary mentioned ‘Celia is a champion of Limerick and Irish design, and it’s lovely that The Hunt Museum is putting on this exhibition in this, the year of Irish design. She is a great person for supporting the Limerick boutiques. It is a wonderful asset to the city of Limerick.”

On the night, Celia said ‘I’m overwhelmed, I’m honoured. I’m so proud of Limerick design because 99% of the clothes that are on show are manufactured here in the area of Limerick over the past 30 years that I have been wearing them. There is a story from every single one of them and it makes me think back on many wonderful memories. She joked about her husband complaining about all her clothes in the loft, saying ‘at long last I’ve cleaned out the loft Ger!”

Mary Kennedy, Celia Holman Lee and Richard Lynch at the launch of Celia Holman Lee’s exhibition in The Hunt Museum.

Celia Holman Lee is a well known fashion commentator and television presenter along with being a respected model and agent. Both nationally and internationally-recognised, she has been active in the fashion industry for five decades. During this time she has received a myriad of awards and plaudits. She was voted by the public as the winner of the first ever VIP Style Awards in 2002 and has not been off the country’s Best Dressed lists since. Throughout her career she has continually promoted Irish designers, gathering an extensive collection of their work which the Hunt Museum is delighted to showcase in Celia Holman-Lee: Limerick’s Style Icon from March 5th to May 3rd.

Celia began modelling at the age of 15 while she was still at school after being approached while working as a shop assistant in a boutique in Limerick. Her early career as a model saw her featured in magazines, newspapers and fashion brochures and she subsequently started the Holman Lee Agency when she was 22 and it is now the longest established model agency in Ireland.

Over the years she has developed her signature style, appropriately glamorous on the “red carpet” and classically chic in her everyday life. She has always been a great supporter of Irish designers and has generally favoured them for some of the landmark occasions of her life, from choosing a figure hugging cerise dress by Limerick knitwear designer Caroline Mitchell for her only daughter Cecile’s wedding to a bronze sequinned strapless dress from designer John McNamara for her 60th birthday party. Amongst the renowned Irish designers’ clothes hanging in her wardrobe and due to be featured in the upcoming Celia Holman-Lee: Limerick’s Style Icon at the Hunt Museum are a selection from Michelina Stacpoole, Paul Costelloe, Miriam Mone, Patrick Casey, Joanne Hynes, Aideen Bodkin, Marian Murphy Cooney, Vonnie Reynolds, Peter O’Brien and Don O’Neill along with some custom made outfits from local designers Alison Cowpar, Fiona Whyte, Mariam O’Donovan, Linda Wall and Clair Costelloe.

Celia Holman Lee in her early modelling career in the 1970s.

Celia Holman Lee exhibition at Hunt Museum

Celia Holman Lee in her early modelling career in the 1970s.

Celia has also gathered an amazing archive of press clippings from magazines and newspapers spanning the many decades of her career including cover-shots from magazines along with lots of magazine photos features on Celia with many featuring some of the outfits that will feature in the Hunt Museum exhibition Celia Holman-Lee: Limerick’s Style Icon. She also has many photos from her early modelling career in the 1970s and some very interesting original brochures with her modelling for Shannon Airport Duty Free Mail Order and various other companies during that time period.

https://youtu.be/9ZNv7HUTjqk

For more information, check out Celia’s Facebook here
and her Twitter here.
For more information about Hunt Museum, click here.
Check out the Hunt Museum’s Twitter here and their Facebook here.
For more stories about Celia, click here.

Richard Lynch honoured with Mayoral Reception at City Hall

Richard Lynch honoured with Mayoral Reception at City Hall

#LIMERICKTAGGED LSAD360 a huge success as Limerick trends nationally

Sparkle and Shine Ball in association with Keith Duffy Foundation

Celia Holman Lee exhibition at Hunt Museum

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