One to watch: Irish designer Cleo Prickett launches first collection

A name to watch is Cleo Prickett, an Irish designer based in Co Meath who launched her first collection this winter. With her strong focus on tailoring using heritage fabrics like Savile Row wools and Scottish tartans, she describes her approach as functional, transformative and trans seasonal.

Her sharp suits and use of clever details, like a long wide leg trouser that can be instantly transformed into a cropped one or a fine wool jacket into a bolero with strategic use of buttons, show her ingenuity in making pieces do double duty.

Since her graduation from the London College of Fashion, Prickett has honed her tailoring and design skills working for, among others, designers Mary Katrantzou and Roland Mouret, assisting him and his head of womenswear. Based in the family home in Durhamstown Castle, she is currently working on her next collection; in the meantime, find her pieces in Atrium in Powerscourt Townhouse, Bloss in Dundrum and online at cleoprickett.com

Thinking fashion

Frida Kahlo has become something for everyone, a symbol of feminism, of enduring pain and a woman who redefined beauty – as well as now being a fridge magnet, a tote bag and a beer bottle, argues Holly Connolly in a fascinating essay on the artist in the current issue of Vestoj, a journal of critical thinking on fashion with essays, interviews, opinions, fiction and non-fiction and a magazine deliberately not burdened with heavy luxury advertisements.

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The theme of its current issue is authenticity, a popular buzz word in contemporary fashion, with a short story by Jean Rhys on the trials of a French mannequin, a long conversation on what artists wear, an opinion piece on retail therapy and a feature on Chinese life and fashions. A worthwhile Christmas gift for those interested in the wider issues of fashion – its annual subscription is €25 – allow 10 days for shipping. Vestoj.com