TV presenter Grainne Seoige has always been renowned for her classic good looks, but since taking up the job as presenter of RTÉ's All Ireland Talent Show the star has come into her own as a glamorous fashion icon.
We caught up with Gráinne to talk about her style inspirations, favourite designers, beauty tips and past fashion mistakes...
Sarah McIntyre: You have a very glamorous on-screen look. Does this differ much from your daily attire?
Gráinne Seoige: Not at all! I always go down to the petrol station in satin knee length dresses and earrings that weigh a pound...Ah no it is very, very different, I mean at the moment I’m wearing a brown sheepskin coat, one of those furry coats, boot-cut jeans, high heel sneakers and a polo-neck. So yeah it’s very, very different. That gig, in its glamour, is a dream come true but nobody I think goes around dressed like that in their daily life.
SMI: So would you describe yourself as being fairly low-maintenance?
GS: I actually am, nobody ever believes that because they only ever see me on TV but I’m actually a jeans and t-shirt girl outside of work, I really am, so it is genuinely a treat for me to do a show like that.
SMI: I suppose when you spend so much time in hair and make-up, at the end of the day you want to get out of all that and be barefaced.
GS: Exactly, if I’m out in a pub, or if I go out to a nightclub or whatever I’m probably one of the most casually dressed people there. I mean I see girls there dressed up to the nines but I suppose when I do that for a living, when I’m out to relax and enjoy myself then I really do want to relax and enjoy myself. You’re right, I think because it comes with the territory for me I am very casual outside of that.
SMI: So, what’s the process like for choosing the gorgeous dresses you wear on the All Ireland Talent Show?
GS: There’s a brilliant lady in RTÉ in Wardrobe called Catherine Manning and we talked about it, and talked with the producers of the show at the start of the year about what kind of look they wanted. I suppose they had a few pointers but they did leave us to our own devices as well and after that I believe most people who are stylish dress for themselves, and dress for what suits them rather than following fashion. I mean I could have turned around and started doing bubble skirts like Cheryl Cole but that’s not me. I dress for me and I think that’s the best thing any woman can do for themselves. Look at your shape and go with that then.
SMI: Do you have any favourite fashion designers, Irish or international?
GS: I love Peter O’Brien, as much as a friend as a designer, in that he’s got a very strong aesthetic and very clear views on what suits and what doesn’t suit. I’ve learned a lot from him over the years. Joanne Hynes is amazing and I wish her continued success, I think she’s such a talent. I think there’s loads of talent coming through in the country, but I think if we’re honest, for most of us we don’t go around wearing designer gear, it’s high street stuff which is the watered down version of what the designers are creating.
SMI: So do you enjoy shopping on the high street as much as everyone else?
GS: I don’t enjoy shopping full stop! I’m not one of those women that loves to go for a day of shopping, that is not my idea of a good time. I suppose I adopt a more male approach, I go out when I need to get something. Having said that, if I spot a dress and I really love it I will grab it, because when you get invited to an event and have nothing to wear, that’s when that dress comes into its own. Because I hate impulse buying, I really really do!
SMI: How do you manage do balance such a busy career with your family life?
GS: I actually have more time this year that I’ve had probably in the last ten years because I’m not in a studio, 5,6,7 days a week, so balancing is much easier this year which has been a real blessing. Before I worked in RTÉ I had to read a news bulletin at 11 o’clock at night, you know I’ve worked hard over the years, but no more than any other person who works shift work. My father was a guard so I’m used to that, there are families like that all over the country who are used to having mammy and daddy go out the door from nine to five. You just make it work, because that’s your life.
SMI: Do you have any particular fashion icons that you look up to, or any influences in your style?
GS: I suppose it would be not secret that I love old glamour, I really admire that. What I like more than anything else is good grooming. I think if you’ve a good haircut and you keep your skin and teeth in good condition you’re away on a hack. I think if you’ve your hair done and you’ve a nice smile you can basically get away with wearing a pair of jeans and a t-shirt and you will look dressed. I think if you go on the continent, and this would be something Peter would say as well, you see the woman are dressed very, very simply, almost austerely most of the time. But they’re in good condition themselves, they’re fit, they’re healthy, they look after themselves. And I think that’s the biggest favour you can do style-wise for yourself.
SMI: So that would be your advice for the readers of the RTÉ Fashion site?
GS: That would be my advice, keep yourselves fit and healthy! Try and get out and walk the dogs, move more. Once you do that, the simplest of clothes will hang better on you.
SMI: Obviously fitness is very important to looking good, but some of us need a little extra help! So are there any beauty products that you particularly like?
GS: My number one advice is sunscreen, it really is. It’s something I wear every single day of my life whether it’s raining or hailstones or sunshine. I never go outside the door without at least factor 30 or 50 on my face. Whether you’re 20 reading this or 45, do it and start tomorrow if you don’t already do it because the sun is the number one damaging thing. Also I don’t smoke, and eat as much fresh stuff as you can. I really think more than trying to apply stuff, what you put into your body is much more important. I love chocolate and I love a glass of white wine but it’s moderation.
SMI: A lot of people in the public eye turn to cosmetic surgery, is that something that you would ever consider?
GS: I don’t have any big opinions on it. I think it’s each to their own. I have a very live and live philosophy about life in general anyway. I don’t like this tabloid thing of judging people all the time. You know, you’re judged if you have a C-section, you’re judged if you have a nose job...you know what I mean? You’re either good or you’re bad, and the next thing journalists are lining up to take sides on whether you’re a decent person or not. I don’t have that kind of outlook on life I think that every woman makes her own decisions and whatever makes them happy and feel good about themselves and helps them face the world, because it’s a tough world, go for it!
SMI: What’s the worst fashion mistake you have ever made?
GS: The perms I had when I was a teenager because I have the straightest hair in Ireland. To achieve the required look I had to set them on the tiniest of rollers which meant I came out looking like a poodle and I thought I was fabulous!
SMI: How many years did it take for that to grow out?
GS: Well, my hair grows very fast, so I had a curly bit and a straight bit, so what I did was chop it off and start again. I learnt my lesson, I don’t dye my hair, I suppose it’s the one thing that means my hair gets away with as much styling as it does. I think I get away with murder in that way.
SMI: What is your favourite item of clothing that you’ve ever purchased?
GS: I have a black Alexander McQueen dress, god rest him, and I absolutely love it. It’s got bracelet length sleeves, a very light cowl neckline, a brooch on the side, it’s one of those pieces I’ll have forever. It’s so beautifully made, the way it follows your body, it’s a classic.
SMI: I think classic is the word that would be used to describe your style overall.
GS: It probably is but like I said I think after a while you get to know your shape, my shape would be a classic shape, you couldn’t call me grungy, I’m not tall and rangy, I’m not athletic looking. I’m fairly petite and I go in and I go out, so if you wear clothes that follow that shape you are going to end up in pencil skirts, you are going to end up in clothes that flatter that figure and they do hark back to earlier times. But d’yu know what? When people are being hauled out of the annals and are being accused of being style mistakes, you rarely see an actress from the forties or fifties have that hurled at them, so do you know what, I’m grand in that company! I don’t mind that at all.
SMI: Finally Grainne, will you be sad to see the end of the All Ireland Talent Show?
GS: At the start of the live run we knew we had 13 weeks of live shows, we thought “God, we’ll never see the end of it!”, but it just hurtled along, it really has flown. I think we’re all going to be a little sorry when it’s over because we’ve all had a ball making the show, everybody has worked really hard, it’s a very technical show, it’s very highly produced and everybody has to pull their weight to make it.
You know what, we’re very proud of it this year in particular, and I will miss it because we’re kind of like a big family at this stage everybody gets on so well. We have a great time together so we will be sorry to see the end of it.
