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It was not so long ago that Paul Costelloe made his flippant remark about Irish women's fashion sense. Enraging the young and old of our country's female race, he criticised our style and dress.

However, the majority of Irish men and women have since agreed that this designer had no call to comment so disparagingly, as this country's female population have a wonderful style of their own. The Irish have a tendency to create their own fashion code lending an air of individuality and flair where other countries have a habit of following whatever the rules dictate.

Irish women have an abundance of international and indigenous designers to choose from, ranging from Lainey Keogh and Marc O'Neill to Karen Millen and Jesiree. Walking into Brown Thomas, a customer is inundated with the various designers and labels on show. However, many shoppers can be put off by the price tags attached.

What a lot of people do not realise is that Brown Thomas is not the only port of call when looking for a designer label. Se Si at Temple Bar is one of many shops in Dublin allowing people the individuality of designer garments at very affordable prices.

For those who see no difference between designer and high-street labels except for the price, stores such as River Island, Next, Oasis, Jigsaw and Warehouse offer customers a vast array of clothes, both smart and casual.

Arnotts is also becoming increasingly popular with women shoppers as a result of its recent overhaul, which saw the introduction of a number of new lines; Mango, French Connection and Stefanel to name but a few. Whether young or old, Arnotts has an impressive array of shops to browse through.

What many women tend to forget is that there are a large number of stores outside of the Dublin 2, Dublin 1 zone. Once the centre of the city is left behind the prices on the rails lowered considerably. The shop's overheads are lessened and therefore the clothes tend to be slightly more affordable.

Ladies' Fashion Shops such as Bibas Boutique in Malahide and Havana in Donnybrook offer customers beautiful, high-quality clothes at a reasonable cost. Suburban shops are becoming more and more popular with shoppers, not only because of their impressive collection of clothes, but also because of their location.

Situated outside of the city centre, parking for shoppers suddenly becomes a pleasure. Cost free, customers can shop with ease, leaving behind the dreaded fear of clampers.

As we enter the colder months of the year, many people tend to throw fashion aside and rely on layers of clothing to hide last year's fashion faux pas. This year, however, every woman is intent on looking her best. Once a lady dons her finest underwear and puts on her latest buys, there is little chance anything will stand in her way.

There is no greater feeling for any woman than knowing she stands out from the crowd. A new coat, bag, shoes or dress can do more for your average female than any good therapist can in a year. This is why we call shopping retail therapy!