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Artisans of Ireland - Maureen McKervey
by Bridget Haggerty

Maureen McKervey designed and crafted her first tiara in 1989, for her sister Colleen's wedding. Colleen had gone from shop to shop and was unhappy with the selection of headpieces available. It was then that she called upon Maureen's creative talents.
From that point on, Maureen was asked by family, friends, friends of friends, and neighbours to create both Wedding and First Communion tiaras. Eventually Colleen Collections was established and was named for Maureen's first customer - her sister.

"I was influenced by my mother's creative skills at an early age. She is an avid painter in both oil and watercolour, with a keen interest and talent at sewing and crafting just about anything. I use one of her paintings on the Colleen Collections label.

Interested in fashion as a young teenager, I was one of seven children and the only affordable option was to make my own clothes and jewellery. Resorting to 'make it yourself' turned out to be a blessing in disguise; I discovered the colour and style options provided by creative design and craft as opposed to shopping 'off the shelf'. Years later, I resorted by choice to creating my own home furnishings and, of course, my own jewellery."

With the encouragement and support of the Galway Rural Development Company, Maureen was awarded marketing assistance under the European Leader II Programme for innovative enterprise, and brought her designs to a global audience with the establishment of the Colleen Collections website in early 1998. Today, the company is the Republic of Ireland's first on-line provider of handcrafted tiaras and wedding accessories, and, as of this writing, it is still the only Irish establishment to offer this service.

Colleen Collections is located in the rural village of Ballymoe, Co. Galway. The village is famous for being the birthplace of Father Edward Flanagan, founder of Boystown, Nebraska, USA. After winning the Best Actor Oscar for his role as Father Flanagan in the 1938 film, Spencer Tracy gave the Oscar to the real Father Flanagan in tribute to his work. Of additional historical interest is the fact that Maureen works out of the cottage that was once owned by Father Flanagan's sister. It's where he stayed when he came home on holidays and on his last visit in 1946, he said Mass there.

It's in this setting that Maureen creates her heirloom quality products, and, with thanks to government support and assistance as well as the technology behind e-commerce, Colleen Collections Wedding and Communion accessories are now worn on very special days all around the world.

"I can't think of any better satisfaction than knowing that the customer chose one of my designs to wear on the most important day of her life! I truly love my work and enjoy taking a small part in the customer's big day. As skeptical as anyone about the internet, I have found that the relationship with the customer is even better than face to face, as all contact is in writing and there is little to no room for confusion or error in understanding exactly what the bride wants. I give great attention to detail which is a must in this business. And the internet is so important to me, being able to reach a global market.

Besides meticulous attention to every detail, Maureen's timing in starting her business is also a significant factor in her success. The tiara has made a big comeback in recent years and remains the most popular headpiece choice for customers in Ireland and abroad. Today's brides are also more inclined than ever before to use colour in their headpieces, which, for Maureen, is a most welcome trend indeed; as she puts it, "colour adds dimension and interest to my designs."

Maureen is registered by the Crafts Council of Ireland as a full time Artist in the discipline of jewellery design and craft. To see more examples of her beautiful work, she invites you to browse through her website: Colleen Collections

Images: All images are from the Colleen Collections website. ©Maureen McKervey 2002, 2003