SHOES WITH SOULSalvaged car leather, bags that in a former life transported coffee beans to Shanghai, old jeans and military jackets are just some of the unlikely materials that go into Worn Again runners.
It's hardly surprising that each pair is unique, but this year's spring-summer collection is designed in part by Ajoy Sahu, formerly of Prada, so 99 per cent recycled doesn't mean 99 per cent unfashionable. Saving textiles from the dreaded landfill, the four new unisex styles will make your ecological footprint on the world that bit smaller. The £65 (about €100) price includes postage and packing to Ireland. See www.wornagain.co.uk. The Amnesty shop in Temple Bar, Dublin, also sells ethically made No Sweat runners. Nicoline Greer
Goal is taking bookings for its annual Venetian Masked Ball, on April 21st at Jurys Ballsbridge Hotel, in Dublin 4. The charity hopes to raise more than €100,000 to fight drought inAfrica, where up to 20 million people face starvation. Tickets are €100 (€1,500 for corporate tables). 01-2809779 or www.goal.ie
BADGE OF HONOUR
We hear of women spending €5,000 a year on handbags. Now up for auction is the ultimate piece of costume jewellery: a 1916-21 Cuman na mBan badge in nine-carat gold (above), possibly made for the commander-in-chief and founder of the organisation, Constance Markievicz. No plain white metal for her. Ian Whyte has assembled a trove of similar items for his firm's Irish History Sale, at the RDS, in Dublin, on Sunday, April 9th, when the Markievicz badge is estimated to go for €3,000-€4,000.
There is many an intriguing tale behind the lots. An early Irish bowl "was purchased by a scrap-metal dealer in the 1970s, in a job lot of silver sold off by a church in Co Cavan. It then passed to a collector in Co Derry, who cleaned it and uncovered the inscription 'Coneps. na Cabanill.s', which is 'Con, Bishop of Cavan' ". There were just two bishops of Cavan called Con: in 1290 and 1320. (The estimate is €20,00-€30,000). A 16th-century Spanish bronze bell was found in about 1800 when sand was being removed from Kinnego Bay, in Co Donegal (€1,000-€1,500). And a pair of medieval leather riding boots, complete with spurs, were found in a hole in a castle wall in Co Roscommon in the 1860s (€1,000-€1,500).
The sale also includes the official archive of Peadar The Soldier's Song Kearney; medals won by men fighting in the GPO, Boland's Mill and the Four Courts in 1916; items signed by O'Connell, Parnell, Connolly, Collins, Ceannt and Pearse, in both Pearse and Mac Piarais modes; and the War of Independence ceasefire order of July 9th, 1921 (€30,000-€50,000).
Closer to home for Whyte's is an Abbey poster for Easter Week 1916, featuring WB Yeats's Kathleen ni Houlihan (€8,000- €10,000). Whyte says: "Needless to say, the performance advertised was cancelled due to the Rising, but the Marlborough Street theatre, together with its neighbouring building, then occupied by Whyte's as a showroom and warehouse, survived the Rising and the War of Independence, only to be destroyed by fire in 1950." - Andy Barclay
BUNNY BONANZA
If you'd like an enormous chocolate rabbit for Easter - it makes a change from an egg - e-mail info@presence.ie as soon as you can. The senders of the first 20 that arrive (maximum one per household) will each receive a 1kg Lindt Gold Bunny, worth €49.99.
SOFA SO GOOD
Our small sofa - comfortable, smart and cherry red - had been doing fine until two gun dogs, complete with their owners, trespassed on our land. No, the gun dogs did not walk on the sofa. But they did incite our smallest - and, unfortunately, bravest - pet, Holly Hobbit, a territorial miniature wire Dachshund that is smaller than our cats, to an outraged act of heroism that almost cost her life.
Common sense suggests that attempting to break up a dog fight is dangerous, but, as our dog had no hope, I came to the rescue, lifting her free of the attackers. I suffered only a few minor bites and a torn jacket. She was badly mauled and in shock. I thought she would die in my arms. She slept on the sofa for almost two weeks. She also ate all her meals on it and, let's be honest, ruined it.
The sofa was put into an old outhouse and forgotten about. About three months later we remembered it, but by then the farmyard rats and mice, not to mention some visiting birds, had all enjoyed its mouldy, smelly comforts. Could the sofa be salvaged? The quotes ranged from €200 to €300 and came with warnings that "it could take several visits, all of which would have to be paid for, and there are no guarantees".
Finally, a phone number for Dial-A-Clean. Alf Higgins listened to the story - and was the only person to ask how the wounded dog was doing. He agreed to have a look. When he arrived - at the agreed time, never mind the day - he looked at the sofa as it festered and stank. I was very embarrassed. But Alf, without a trace of bravado or theatre, merely said: "We should get most of the mess off."
He got out a large, vacuum-cleaner-like thing. Suds and hot water gushed and slurped. It took all of 10 minutes; no mess, no big deal. Alf and his assistant, Dominic, then packed up their machine and plugged in their heater, to help dry the sofa, which had been restored to its almost-new self. My embarrassment had given way to joy. The entire operation cost €60. Alf also shampooed two rugs. "You can pay me when I come back for the heater," he said, and he was gone - off to solve some other cleaning crisis. Dial-A-Clean: 01-4265855, 085-2890288, www.dial-a-clean.com. - Eileen Battersby
MUSIC ON LEGS
Last week we featured a speaker for your iPod on these pages. This time we have another option: the Tripod. This dinky portable speaker plugs into the headphone socket of any digital music player, whether you're part of the iPod mafia or have gone for another make. When you're using it you can perch your music player on top; when you're done, the lightweight device folds up to almost nothing. The sound's not bad, either, given its size. The Tripod could be right if you're dying to prove to friends how cool and extensive your music collection is. From SWALK (Royal Hibernian Way, Dublin 2; Rathmines; Dún Laoghaire; and Kilkenny), €41.50. Call 01-6711155. - Eimear McKeith
GO TO GROUND
The Fatboy, the latest incarnation of the beanbag, is infinitely more comfortable than a floppy sack of polystyrene balls - and sturdy enough not to sag under your head as you're watching TV. Designed in Finland, Fatboys are made from a tough nylon fabric and come in a range of eye-catching colours, from shocking pink and lime green to silver and camouflage. The Island model is child-sized, the Point is a version of a footstool and the Original can be shaped into 10 positions, including an impromptu bed for unexpected visitors. The Original starts at €199 (€269 for the Marimekko version, above). Phone 094-9541691 or 087-631 7670 for stockists nationwide or direct delivery. www.fatboy.ie. - Nicoline Greer