Fash Mob »

• Toms branches out into eyewear

  April 4, 2012 @ 10:30 am | by Rosemary Mac Cabe

  

  If you have been paying attention to fashion, media, popular culture and philanthropy (or any of the four) over the past five years or so, you will have heard of Toms, the charitable company set up by (major lasher) Blake Mycoskie with the motto of “one for one” – for every pair of simple shoes sold, a pair of shoes would be donated to a child in the developing world.

  Now the company is branching out into eyewear and extending the one-for-one promise – for every pair of sunglasses sold, one person in the developing world will regain their sight, either by means of eye-saving surgery, prescription glasses or medical treatment. I think what you mean to say is: amazing. I know that I won’t be buying my sunglasses from anyone else from now on – it helps, obviously, that Toms’ range includes a variety of really cool styles, but the knowledge that my purchase is helping make a difference … well.

  Prices start at £110 and glasses are available online.

  Blake has also written a book, Start Something that Matters, which is on my list – once I get through the seriously brilliant The Sisters Brothers. (And I also wrote about Toms here.)

• Off the Rails: off the hook, yo’

  October 19, 2011 @ 8:30 am | by Rosemary Mac Cabe

  I don’t care what anyone else says, Sonya Lennon was the only well dressed woman at the photocall for the new RTÉ schedule. She wore an amazing slash-necked dress from Bastyan that didn’t make her look sexy, or (particularly) young, or “skinny”, but then, that’s really not the point, kids. Anyway, the point that I am now trying to make is that, wow, don’t Sonya and Brendan look slick?

  

  I love Sonya’s off-the-shoulder jacket wearing (so London Fashion Week), and the snakeskin pumps – just gorgeous! I’d love to say they’re Prada, but they could be Marni or even Kurt Geiger, so I’ll stop wittering on about them now. Also love Brendan’s rolled-up slacks: why can’t more men do this? Feel the fear and do it anyway, fellas!

  

  Also love the colour combos here and the draping – a draped dress is a woman’s best friend, didn’t you get the memo?! Just beautiful.

  Sonya’s also currently involved in a really amazing initiative, Dress for Success, which is up and running at the moment. What it does is collects work-appropriate clothing, “loved” but not secondhand in the way we know it, for women who may not be able to afford the clothes they may need to wear in a job. Fashion is serious, is the message; sometimes, not having the right garb can be severely limiting, and not just in terms of fitting into a social clique.

  Watch this space for more on the initiative, and Arnotts in Dublin is currently accepting donations on the first floor.

• Curves launches Action Breast Cancer fundraiser

  August 2, 2011 @ 10:30 am | by Rosemary Mac Cabe

  Last month, Curves launched its Action Breast Cancer fundraiser for 2011. Basically, if you drop in any old or unwanted bras to any Curves centre in Ireland, and for every kilo of bras (roughly 17), €1.10 will be donated to charity. That may seem a bit paltry (initially), but I’d say between three Irish women you’d easily make up three old, greying, or just ill-fitting bras that you could donate!

  

  Here’s the lovely Sybil Mulcahy at the launch of the initiative, probably marvelling at the things we’ll do for charity . . .

  Anyway, start gathering your bras now – the initiative goes on for the whole of October (Breast Cancer Awareness Month). While we’re on the topic, do you check your breasts regularly? And do you get your breasts measured? Both important, although the latter probably less so than the former . . .