Metropolis: School for fashion

The National Tailoring Academy at Louis Copeland aims to halt the steady decline of Irish tailoring by upskilling a new generation of graduates, writes Ruth O'Connor.

Students Yusuka Inaba, Josette Kuipers and Michaela Kennedy watch Sándor Enyedi, master tailor at the National Tailoring Academy. Picture: Ken Walsh

Time was when Ireland was a hive of stitching and sewing activity. Yet, today, anyone in the trade will tell you that, even with a vibrant fashion design college scene, Irish tailoring is a dying art.

According to master tailor Louis Copeland, his workshop is "pretty much the only working bespoke tailoring workroom" left in the country: "It's not like England's Savile Row, where fashion design graduates can get placements to complement their ...