BAG A PEELO
After more than 20 years in the international fashion industry, creative director Julie Peelo, having set up a design studio in Dublin this year, has just launched a new collection of bags and accessories. There are six styles – totes, cross-bodys, clutches and wallets – each in two or three colour ways. The bags, in Italian leather using a mix of "soft chrome tumbled finish" cow leather (which gives a very soft handle) and nappa, are made in small quantities in Portugal. "I wanted to create simple but beautiful bags that really function for everyday life," she says. The tote can be hand-held or worn under the shoulder while the Peelo mini zip tote is hand-held. Both have adjustable leather cross-body straps to keep hands free. As an accessory designer, Peelo has worked all over the world – in Marni Milan, John Galliano Paris and DVF New York – and bags designed by her have been worn by Beyoncé, Jennifer Lopez and Jessica Biel. Find her new collection on her website, peelo.ie, at prices from €165 upwards.
THE MIDAS TOUCH
As gold is reaching record high prices, is it time to have gold jewellery revalued? Yes, says diamond expert and gemmologist Carol Clarke of Hibernian Way jewellers, a business she founded more than 30 years ago. According to her, many Irish people do not get their jewellery valued regularly or until they have been robbed, when it is too late". Gold has increased in value by 40 per cent in three years, she says. Clarke is a jewellery valuer and the only Irish fellow of the Institute of Registered Jewellery Valuers in London. She will value jewellery in front of you, "so you don't have to leave it for weeks on end", she says. Visit her website, dublinjewelleryvaluations.ie or phone 01-6777161 to make an appointment. Prices for valuations start at €75, and for a number of items from €150.
HOMME DIVA
Ruth Ní Loinsigh of Om Diva never lets adversity dampen her enthusiasm and optimism. Setting her sights on male customers, her latest project is a new menswear collection called Homme Diva, with a dedicated space in her Drury Street landmark filled with hand-picked collections of original vintage and contemporary menswear. These range from Breton T-shirts to original cowboy shirts, Panama hats and vintage linen as well as classic Japanese Haori (kimono-style jackets for those in the know). She is also including selected pieces from some of her favourite Irish designers, Orla Langan and David O Malley.
"It has been born out of a desire to bring together things we are passionate about – vintage, fashion, colour and Irish design and always with an underlying sense of fun and creativity," she says. omdivaboutique. com
LOOKS THAT LAST
Given that sustainability and longevity are the most talked about aspects of fashion, the collaboration between H&M and Italian brand Giuliva Heritage should be an irresistible one for women who enjoy the security of classic tailoring. Husband-and-wife team Margharita and Gerardo Cardelli founded Giuliva Heritage (giuliva means "joyful, lighthearted" in Italian) four years ago and quickly established a reputation for desirable, though expensive, modern pieces with the unmistakable signature of authentic artisanal Italian tailoring. With the might of the Swedish multinational behind them, and designed to last, this collaboration, an affordable collection of handsome separates, languid yet sharp, is made of recycled materials, with the exception of two pieces in organic cotton. Colours are muted – cream, black, taupe – while fabrics look luxurious. On sale from this week in selected shops and online at hm.com.
LAND LOVERS
With their commitment to slow, considered fashion, The Tweed Project's new collection, Land Lovers, consists of a Jacobean-inspired black dress, a thick wool shirt and herringbone wool track pants for men and women. These complement their familiar scarves, shawls and mustard blanket coats in Magee Donegal dead stock tweed. The inspiration for these new pieces is a couple and their child, who model the new pieces – designer Erin McClure, sustainable builder Harrison Gardner and their daughter, Inari, born in lockdown. The collection was shot on an iPhone in the Burren. "Their commitment to living a pared-back, sustainable life acts as a positive example in these challenging times," say Tweed Project founders Triona Lillis and Aoibheann MacNamara. thetweedproject.com
