Sorcha O’Raghallaigh from Co Offaly talks finding herself through fashion, features in Vogue and being scouted by Lady Gaga’s stylistZara Larsson's 2025 VMAs dress, designed by Sorcha O'Raghallaigh. Photograph: Mike Coppola via Getty Images Mon Jun 22 2026 - 06:00 • 4 MIN READWhen Irish fashion designer Sorcha O’Raghallaigh presented her graduate collection at Central Saint Martins in London in 2010, she did not expect to be quickly featured in Vogue and inundated with custom requests from the likes of Lady Gaga.Now, more than 15 years and several celebrity clients later, O’Raghallaigh says she is just “starting to get confident that I do know what I’m doing”. “It has taken that long to say that, to be honest; I don’t know if it’s an Irish thing or what.”O’Raghallaigh has masterminded Swedish pop singer Zara Larsson’s latest visual rebrand through the sequin-clad costuming for her current Midnight Sun tour. Earning her first Grammy nomination for the album, Larsson made a return to the charts in 2025 with the strongest year of her career yet. Powerful vocals aside, it is Larsson’s distinctive new look – tropical colours, intricate beading, dolphins and hibiscus motifs – that has the internet talking.O’Raghallaigh’s own love of fashion began with playing dress up as a child at home in Birr, Co Offaly. “I was really lucky. We grew up in a Georgian house, and my mum would have these trunks filled with dress-up clothes,” she says, on a video call from London, joined by her dog Alfie.“Some were her maternity dresses, but they were so beautiful. My mum was an artist and she always had an amazing eye, so I was always fascinated watching her get ready to go out.'I was terrible at school, super dyslexic and had so many learning difficulties, so I really struggled with that,' says Sorcha O'Raghallaigh “I just loved glamour. I loved art, and it was the only thing I think I was any good at. The art room was definitely my sanctuary.”School was a challenging environment for O’Raghallaigh, and fashion provided a window into another world where she felt she could belong.“I was terrible at school, super dyslexic and had so many learning difficulties, so I really struggled with that,” she says. “When I look back on it as an adult, I think [fashion] was almost a way to escape. I wasn’t really sporty either, I was just obsessed with escapism and fantasy through clothes.”Floral designs featured in Sorcha O'Raghallaigh's Jewelled Moon collection. Photograph: Teddy Iborra Embroidered and fringe details in Sorcha O'Raghallaigh's Jewelled Moon collection. Photograph: Teddy Iborra Growing up in the Irish midlands before the dawn of Instagram, the concept of building a career in the fashion industry was completely foreign to O’Raghallaigh. “I don’t even think I knew you could be a fashion designer as a job until my late teens, but as soon as I knew it existed, I wanted that job.”From that point on, she never looked back. After interning with Heather Finn Knitwear and working in the costume department at the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin, O’Raghallaigh decided to make the move to London where she studied textiles at Central Saint Martins. “I always felt like I didn’t fit in. But there, I found my tribe,” she says. “The only boundary was your own mind.”Her final collection was inspired by the themes of scale and memory in Michel Gondry’s 2004 film Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind. Her surreal 10ft dresses modelled by stilt walkers resulted in O’Raghallaigh being scouted by Lady Gaga’s assistant stylist at the time, Anna Trevelyan.“Everyone went crazy for it,” she recalls. She went on to dress Gaga for her first appearance on The Graham Norton Show in 2011, and create a look that appeared in the singer’s Born This Way music video.Beyoncé, Kylie Minogue and Kate Moss are among the stars O’Raghallaigh has styled since then, successfully carving out a niche in the world of celebrity custom pieces for both red carpet events and the stage.[ Designing modern costumes for an Oscar Wilde play: ‘It all has to feel a bit extra’Opens in new window ]O’Raghallaigh interned for John Galliano in Paris and headed the embroidery department of La Perla in Italy, and it was her signature floral beading and fantastical designs that captured the attention of Larsson’s stylist Caterina Ospina last year.O’Raghallaigh first sketched up some ideas for Larsson’s outfit for the MTV Video Music Awards, the VMAs. Rejection is part and parcel of working in celebrity custom wear; over the years O’Raghallaigh has “learned not to get too attached to the outcome” of requests on behalf of famous clients. “So when she [Ospina] approached I thought nothing of it.”Zara Larsson's 2025 VMAs dress designed by Sorcha O'Raghallaigh Photograph: Catherine Powell via Getty Images Close-up of embellished skirt for Zara Larsson's Midnight Sun EU tour. Photograph: Sorcha O'Raghallaigh Her design made the final cut and the outfit was featured in Vogue Scandinavia last September. The team was given 5½ days to work on the sheer dress – the beginning of a long-term collaboration with Larsson that has defined the visuals for her new musical era.“Straight off the bat, they asked me to do some sketches for the Midnight Sun tour, and we did five custom skirts for that in two weeks, fully embellished with additional accessories.” O’Raghallaigh has had a busy start to 2026, working to create a new set of looks for the artist’s US tour and her Stateside music video. “It has been back to back,” says O’Raghallaigh. The brand has become a family affair, with her sister helping out. “She’s mostly like the business side, the analytical mind. I’m more the head in the sky.” There has been some trial and error with the designs, especially where there are 3D elements involved. “When she’s performing and dancing it’s a different scope of work because she has to be able to move in it.” Making last-minute alterations for shows and adapting to challenges presented by Larsson’s high-energy dance routines is an important part of the work, too.Larsson has recently launched a range of swimwear under her own lingerie brand Main Rose, which she founded last year. “It just made 100 per cent sense,” Larsson told Vogue in April.“Summer at this point is a part of my personality and my brand – and swimwear is the ultimate summer staple.”IN THIS SECTION