21. Oran O'Reilly, Fashion Designer | Dublin

Featured in British Vogue, designing for drag influencers, Bailey J Mills and Bimini as well as pop stars CMAT and The Dinner Party, Oran O'Reilly is creating a bit of a sensation in Ireland. His bespoke knitwear sells out. His inventive corsets feature faces of anyone from Kate Bush to Princess Diana. He is just 21 years old - and does his knitting on the bus to college - where he is studying costume design with the illustrious Peter O'Brien at IADT.

(Peter O'Brien is an earlier Carton d'invitation Podcast guest - scroll to find that)!

I met Oran when I went to Dublin to screen my documentary. Of course, his teacher brought some of his students along!

But before I even got to Dublin, I had heard the buzz about Oran - he's been making appearances on Irish national radio and television - and basically charming audiences with his inventive clothes and disarming candour. Among other things, he is honest about how new this career is for him. By the way, since the start, Oran's mother, Orla has been his model for publicity shots - and that launched an unplanned modeling career! As Oran says, Mum taught me to knit and I got her a modeling contract!

You can listen to the podcast here - or watch the full episode on Youtube.

To learn more about Oran: @oranjaurelio on Instagram

And more about my documentary project @cartondinvitation

Music for this podcast: @leonthesinger