Twenty-two year old Loughrea native Mark Burke won this year’s Accessory Designer Of The Year award to much acclaim by the judges and all in attendance. The popular designer is currently in his final year of a BA (Hons) in Textile Design in GMIT. His inspiration for the winning collection oozes 1950/1960’s Hollywood movies. “At the moment I seem to be going through a ‘retro’ stage. I love the pillboxes and berets of 1950/60’s, this is basically where the designs started. 50/60’s Hollywood movie was the inspiration for the colour palette; black and white, sepia tones, with splashes of bling. I love using ostrich spines in my pieces as they always offer beautiful lines.”