From royal chef to City Hall fair for candle-maker Lucy Hagerty
A Cork-born former royal chef-turned perfumer and candle-maker to the stars will be among the exhibitors at a massive crafts showcase in City Hall this month.
Lucy Hagerty, who was a personal chef to Duchess of York Sarah Ferguson, and who has now been asked to create a bespoke fragrance for one of Hollywood’s top stars, will be selling her Crop Candles range at the City Hall Crafts and Design Fair in Cork from November 23 to 25.
Some 85 exhibitors are lined up for this year’s event — the largest contemporary crafts fair outside Dublin — where up to €150,000 will be spent per day on original Christmas gifts.
“I had always wanted to be a perfumer but I was told at school it wouldn’t be possible because my French was so appalling,” said Ms Hagerty, who is originally from Ballinspittle.
“So instead, I trained as a chef in London and became a personal chef to Sarah, Duchess of York, in the 1990s.
“I loved every minute of it. There was always someone calling, and I could be cooking anything from scrambled eggs to lobster on any one day.”
“Unfortunately, it was a live-in job, so when I got married and my bond-trader husband had to relocate to Switzerland, I had to leave. We are still in touch though.”
The move to Geneva allowed her to train with a perfumer. When Ms Hagerty’s husband changed his career for dairy farming, the couple moved back to Ireland, where Lucy launched La Bougie in 2012 with hand-poured artisan creations. She launched her perfume range in 2015.
The sales from her Crop Candles range last year helped fund the purchase of a new tractor for their farm.
Her candle scents include honeysuckle and sea salt, ginger and black pepper, and mission fig, while her perfumes encompass jasmine, bitter orange, and bourbon rose.
Other exhibitors will include the team from eco-friendly Baltimore Beacon t-shirts, who make products from recycled plastic bottles and organic cotton; and Clonakilty man Murray Heasman of Knotiverse, who was inspired by a call from Led Zeppelin to turn his hand to Celtic-driven board games and puzzles.
Among the pieces on show will be a jewellery range specially designed for the show by Oilean Jewellery, who have been previously commissioned to make pieces for the Williams Formula One team.
The fair will also feature a Christmas food emporium with more than 25 artisan food producers, including The Lismore Food Company’s biscuits, Burren Balsamics’ flavoured vinegars, and patisserie from Merci Beaucoup.
Organiser Patrick O’Sullivan said the fair gives people the ideal chance to secure original and unique Christmas gifts.
“Shoppers will find a wide range of crafts, artisan-made goods, food and drink, stunning handmade jewellery and accessories,” he added.
