You get a fabulous painting of yourself and you're helping a great cause.

Sounds like a win-win to us. Yesterday, artist Karen Hickey announced her new portrait series - 'All Dressed Up and Nowhere to Go'. The series is being run in support of charity Dress for Success Dublin. Karen Hickey will be accepting portrait commissions throughout the month of June and donating 20 percent of all commissions directly to DfSD. Of course, with the current restrictions in place, everything is going to be organised a bit differently. Anyone who wishes to have their portrait drawn will be asked to send in three or four photographs of themselves and the portraits will be drawn based on those. (Meaning we get to choose whichever photos of us are showing our best side - ideal.) The artist is also encouraging everyone to go 'all out' with their outfit and get dressed up in something really fancy:

"Find a costume. Put on your finery. Maybe you were planning to attend the Bloomsday Festival - find your cravat or wear flowers in your hair. Whether it is big jewellery or your fanciest hat, or most wildly patterned waistcoat, these portraits will be about having fun."

Maybe you've always dreamed of getting a portrait dressed as a queen or you have a fantastic costume that you've never managed to find the right occasion for - now's your chance. Throw it on, get yourself looking fab (not that you don't always) and snap some shots. Then be rewarded with a stunning painting. [caption id="attachment_505637" align="alignnone" width="550"] A portrait of Sonya Lennon by artist Karen Hickey[/caption] Commenting on the launch, artist Karen Hickey said:

"With the current social distancing measures and restrictions on gatherings in place, we don't have much of an opportunity to get dressed up for any occasions. I wanted to create an opportunity for people to do just that - to dress up, to have their portrait created and capture a moment in time, all while supporting a vital charity and the women that they serve."

Dress for Success Dublin, the charity this series will be supporting, helps women across Ireland to enter or reenter employment and it campaigns for gender equality in the workplace. If you want to support this wonderful artist and this amazing charity, you can commission a portrait by emailing artistkarenhickey@gmail.com with three or four photos of yourself, taken from head to waist. There are three portrait packages to choose from, which are available for booking until June 30:

• 21cm x 29.7cm (A4) on paper (unframed) costing €100
• 60cm x 80cm on paper (unframed) costing €230
• 2ft x 4ft on board (framed) costing €800

Sonya Lennon, broadcaster, designer, entrepreneur, and founder of Dress for Success Dublin also commented on the announcement, saying:

"I'm very excited about this initiative from such a talented artist. Everyone at Dress for Success is hugely grateful for Karen's support and we are all very much looking forward to seeing the work that she produces. Karen has painted my portrait and I'm thrilled with the outcome. Her style is just so fun and colourful - exactly what we need right now. "It's no secret that I'm a huge fan of getting 'all dressed up' and jump on any opportunity to do so! This initiative is a brilliant reason to throw on your glitziest pieces and buy a unique piece of art that you'll always have, while also supporting the work of DfSD in helping women to secure employment - work that is now more important than ever before. "On behalf of everyone at DfSD, thank you, Karen, for your support."