Ice-cream colours and flower prints: that's what Penneys, the chain store, is doing for spring and summer. The ranges, shown in the Four Seasons Hotel, in Ballsbridge, however, seems particularly angled at high-summer thrills. Penneys clothes are good holiday material: cheap, flirty and fun, they can be cheerfully disposed of on the return home.
White linen, long a seasonal favourite with top designers, turns up here in over-shirts and trousers (£12 and £18 respectively), but it can look very different when a white tunic (£8) is put with pure-silk, purple -trousers (£30 - the most expensive item in the ranges).
Or there is the prettiest group in sugar almond pastels, again in a linen type of fabric, for charming bias-cut dresses ( £12), cropped trousers (£10), or skirts with frilled or scalloped hems (£14). These soft colours look even prettier in a lightweight cotton organza.
But these are the more formal offerings. There is plenty that is young and casual, including "granny" prints and lightly flower-patterned separates which get teamed up with T-shirts, now looking more raunchy in off-the-shoulder, tight-fitting styles.
Given the range of bright colours, it all pans out rather well, and with a halter-neck vest at £4, and flower printed trousers at £12 can be bought in quantity. Accessories are particularly good this season: high-heeled or flat sandals come in a host of colours (£10). Straw baskets and shiny patent bags also add a splash of frivolity.
The clothes are very simple, and it is up to the individual to make the most of this low-key style, which relies so much on the use of colour.