POTRERO HILLDUBLIN got its own concept boutique in September, in theform of Potrero Hill, just off shopping hub Grafton Street. Thestore was founded by Canadian architect Robynn Clarke. ‘We tried to create a welcoming, edgy space that aspires to acreative, but sophisticated look, as though you got to shop ina very cool girl’s apartment,’ says Clarke. ‘It’s not only greatproducts, but the ideology: we naturally gravitate to thingswe are inspired by, or enjoy. It’s about the experience ofshopping.’

THE VIBE: Girly, but with cutting-edge cool.

THE PRODUCTS: International stationary, clothing, furnitureand accessories brands. ‘We source design-inspired itemsfrom Sweden, Italy, Japan, France, New York, Brussels andSydney,’ says Clarke. ‘Beautiful, modern, classic items that youcan have in your closet or on your shelf for ever.’

MUST BUYS: Les Prairies de Paris, Travota, Ba&sh, AlexanderWang, American Vintage.

IMAGINE your perfect store — thequirkiest threads, the bestaccessories, the coolest café with thekind of eats that won’t leave youfeeling guilty. Then take a trip to Sarah Gill’sSeagreen in Monkstown and see ifthey match. Bet they do.This wonderful store takes up twofloors on picturesque MonkstownCrescent. Based in a formercoachhouse still bearing the originalstonework, the entire store has agallery feel.Downstairs houses the café, clothingstore, accessories, cosmetics and gifts.Upstairs is now given over entirely tointeriors, which is kitted out in style. The store was launched by one-timecommunications executive Sarah,who hails from Ennis, Co. Clare, inNovember 2006. Although Monkstown

MICROZINEMICROZINE started life fiveyears ago as the brainchild offounder Chris Lee. The formercreative director at Reebokwanted to create a storewhich had everything from thebest designer chair to thehottest limited editiontrainers, denim and even toys.‘I loved lads’ magazines in the1990s. They introduced men tothe hottest products, fromfashion to gadgets and music. Iwanted to create a storewhich did the same thing,’says Lee.Two years later, he moved toLiverpool and createdMicrozine, an 8,000 sq ft store

in a stunning Art Deco building.In April it gained a Londonsister store off Carnaby Street.VIBE: Streetwise cool with agreat cafe.THE CLOTHES: Hard-to-findstreetwear, limited editionsportswear.WHAT’S HOT: Stella McCartneyfor Adidas, Hudson Jeans.MUST BUYS: Canada Gooseparkas.

■ MICROZINE, 65-67 BoldSt, Liverpool, 0044 151 709 7282; 2 Kingly Court,Carnaby St, London W1,www.microzine.co.uk

A NEW CONCE

SEAGREEN

Page 32 Irish Daily Mail, Monday, March 17, 2008

FLIPPERSNO, not anything to do with aquatics,‘flipper’ is a clever amalgamation ofslipper and flip-flop — a ‘slip-slop’ if youprefer. Whatever you call it, glamourpuss Eva Longoria was slouchingaround in the Ugg version the otherday, so expect sales to rocket.

WINGING ITAVIAN print attire is, itappears, all the rage.Just this week we’vespotted pretty bird-print dresses inTopshop and New Look.Perfectly in tune withthe spring vibe, flit inand take a look beforethey all fly off the rails — they’re going cheep.

SPARKLING VODKAFORGET your Cristal, the latest must-have tipple among the drinkingcognoscenti is sparkling vodka. VodkaO2 was the first one on the scene, butnow hip-hop king Dr Dre is teaming upwith a U.S. drinks company to make hisown version. Could the champagnebubble be about to pop?

BRIGHT YOUNGTHINGSSUDDENLY Britney,Christina and J-Lo have allstarted to seem very earlynoughties as a new breedof female star who’syounger, less image-obsessed and moreintelligent emerges. Thecombined forces of Duffy,Amy Macdonald, KateNash (right) and Adelegive us hope for the futureof music.

AGEING ACTIONHEROES SYLVESTER STALLONE (left)back as Rambo, HarrisonFord reprising IndianaJones — come in, guys,your time is up. Our actionheroes just aren’t meantto be withered by age.

BLOOMERSWHEN it comes to taking inspiration fromVictoriana, fashion has not been shy. Butcorsets are one thing; billowingbloomers are quite another. Spotted onthe Miu Miu catwalk, they’re beingtouted as the key to keeping yourmodesty with spring/summer’s super-short dresses. Hmm, we’re not so sure —the ultimate pants that make our bumslook big.

MINOR FASHION WEEKSBELFAST Fashion Week? LiverpoolFashion Week? Los Angeles FashionWeek? With the likes of Nicky Hilton andLaguna Beach star Lauren Conradshowcasing lines, it looks like an egotrip to us. Undoubtedly, there are greatdesigners out there, but if it ain’t Paris,Milan or New York, does anyone reallycare?

MULTI-PURPOSEBRAS WHEN we saw a brathat doubled as ahip flask, wethought we’d seenit all. Now theJapanese have come up with a bra thatcontains extra padding which can beconverted into a shopping bag. We’reall for banning the plastic bag, but thisis ridiculous.

HOT ITEM: ‘We just started selling Danish carpets from acompany called hay. They are the most amazing colours andtextures — heavenly.’■ POTRERO HILL, Royal Hibernian Way, Dawson Street, Dublin 2, www.potrerohill-shop.com

Forget sprawling department storespacked with endless brands,conceptstores — ruthlessly focused on one keystyle —are what’s hot,says JO BLYTHE

may not seem like the first choice forsuch a store, Sarah says it wasintentional. ‘For me, Monkstown was ideal because

it was that bit out of town. It wasby the sea and people could getparking —it’s not about a fastpurchase.’VIBE: Edgy urbanite with a smartfashion sense.THE CLOTHES: The clothingincludes accessible pieces by Paul& Joe and J Brand jeans, with keydirectional items by Anna Sui, YeoJin Bae and accessories by PauricSweeney and Lara Bohinc.WHAT’S HOT: The café menu —worth the trip in itself. MUST BUYS: Catherine Malandrino’scollection or any of the unique piecesby Yeo Jin Bae.■ SEAGREEN, 11a-12a The Crescent,Monkstown, Co. Dublin, 01 202 0130,www.seagreen.ie

LIFEstyleDaily Mail, Monday, March 17, 2008 Page 53

PETIT AIMÉ

DOVER STREET

AUGUSTINA

TEN years ago, sisters Val andVanda Heng-Vong (half-French, half-Cambodian) found themselves inLondon with none of their favouriteFrench labels available.Their solution? Cult Notting Hillconcept store Aimé, a Parisian-styleWest London destination boutiquepacked with hard-to-find Frenchlabels, furniture and homewares.A decade later the store is still goingstrong, but the sisters — now parents— found it difficult to track downthe children’s wear they liked. Stepforward Petit Aimé, which launchedlast week.The boutique is set over two floorsselling children’s toys, furnishings,fashion and accessories. It caters tochildren up to ten years old and isdrawing a huge fan base, includingNotting Hill local Claudia Schiffer.

VIBE: Parisian chic, in an easy-goinghip way. ‘It’s smart, but relaxed. Wewanted to create somewhere childrenfelt comfortable,’ says Val Heng-Vongof the store which has grey woodfloors and vintage furniture.

THE CLOTHES: Bon-Ton, Oona l’Ourse,

THE Dover Street Market inLondon was launched in 2004 byRei Kawakubo (of Japanesefashion label Comme desGarcons) and her husband AdrianJoffe. The market, a five-storeycentre for art, jewellery, fashionand design, has become adestination for hip fashion lovers,and is a rugged loft-style fixtureamid Mayfair’s fusty galleries.‘I wanted to come up with a kindof market where creators fromvarious fields gather togetherand encounter each other in anongoing atmosphere of beautifulchaos,’ says Kawakubo, who isalso creative director.

VIBE: Car park chic, literally.Unfinished sparse concreteinteriors, blinding industriallighting, angular chipboardbenches and stainless steel lifts.

CANADIAN-BORN Cristina Burgesshas an international vision for hercult concept boutique Augustina.London’s Knightsbridge storeopened a year ago, as the sister tothe Augustina flagship in Toronto.It houses up-and-coming designers,hip accessories brands, small-runperfumes and jewellery boxes, withan emphasis on U.S.-based labelsnot available in Britain.Augustina Toronto was launched in2002, and today the store countsKate Hudson, the Olsen twins andLiv Tyler among its fans.‘It’s for women who know their ownstyle, have a knowledge of trendsand luxury, but don’t need to have awell-known label. The design andquality speaks for itself,’ saysBurgess, who ensures Augustina isan It-bag-free zone.THE VIBE: Polished A-list style fromup-and-coming labels.THE CLOTHES: Accessories byGryson (former Marc Jacobsaccessories designer Joy Gryson), B. Romanek (Demi Moore and

THE CLOTHES: Pared down, quirky.Independent designers, mixedwith major labels.

WHAT’S HOT: Comme des Garconsalong with exclusive pieces by RafSimons, Jan de Cock, Judy Blame,Hiroshi Fujiwara and Undercover.The store is home to LA vintageconcession Decades, selling key

archive pieces by Herve Leger,Chanel and Ossie Clark. (ReneeZellweger is a fan ofDecades’ LA flagship.)

MUST BUYS: Jewellery byJudy Blame. ■ DOVER Street Market, 17-18Dover Street, London W1,www.doverstreetmarket.com.

Courteney Cox are fans) and hotlytipped Devi Kroell. Jewellery ranges include Me&Roand Becky Kelso. Burgess has alsocreated a line of jewellery boxes,scents and candles. ‘It’s much morefun to shop in concept stores,’ shesays. ‘You have a certain freedombuying for a concept store, too. Ifound these awesome over-sized

towels which I bought because theytotally spoke to our consumer.’WHAT’S HOT: Soon-to-land DeviKroell python bags.MUST BUYS: Augustina is expandingits fragrance range to body oil,shower gel and perfume oil rollers.■ AUGUSTINA, 11 West HalkinStreet, London SW1,www.augustinaboutiques.com.

EPT IN SHOPPING

Picture: SCOPE FEATURES

Luco, Isabel Marant and Noroamong many others. The store alsostocks a complete lifestyle rangefrom toys to furniture.

WHAT’S HOT: Accessories and dolls byartist Apolline.

MUST BUYS: Left-bank inspired hippychic from French label Luco, andexclusive pieces by Isabel Marant.

■ PETIT Aimé, 34 Ledbury Road,London W11, 020 7221 7070.