A local fashion designer is weaving her Catholic faith into every aspect of her life, including her clothing label.
Holly Guertin, a textile designer who has worked with brands such as Lilly Pulitzer and Marie Oliver, launched a new line of women’s dresses July 27, with prints inspired by Scripture, stained glass windows and even holy Communion.
A member of Our Lady of Lourdes Parish in Philadelphia’s Overbrook section, Guertin said her “Ernie and Irene” collection’s premiere dress, the Zelie, is named for a French saint known for her fine stitching — St. Marie-Azelie (“Zelie”) Martin, the mother of St. Therese of Lisieux.
“I’ve always felt close to Zelie, since she was also a creative entrepreneur with a family,” said Guertin, who lives outside of the city with her husband and three sons. “Not only that, but her business was in creating lace textiles in a technique called Point d’Alencon for both civil and religious uses.”
Guertin said the “painstaking and beautiful process” of such lacemaking, along with Martin’s devotion to both her craft and her family, was “aesthetically and spiritually” moving.
