Sanguine Style Issue #6: Dior, Saint Francis Provisions
In this week’s issue: an insight into Dior’s latest Dioriviera capsule collection; Saint Francis Provisions’ Barbara Nealon shares her food favourites; plus news from IMMA, Balenciaga and Lorde.
Dioriviera
Next week, Dior will present its Cruise 2026 show in Rome, Italy. The show will take place on May 27 at Villa Albani Torlonia, an 18th-century property on the outskirts of the city. It will mark a homecoming for the Italian artistic director Maria Grazia Chiuri.
Next month, Jonathan Anderson will debut his vision for Dior Men at a highly anticipated show during Paris Fashion Week. The Northern Irish designer is one of fashion’s foremost creatives.
But before all that, there’s Dublin. Yes—you read that correctly—Dublin! Since opening their boutique in Brown Thomas a few years ago, on the corner of Grafton Street and Wicklow Street, the French luxury brand’s efforts in courting the Irish market have been fruitful and engaging.
The Dior team invited me to Dublin last week to view the latest Dioriviera collection, a seasonal capsule by Maria Grazia built around the jet-set fantasy. If you want to know what the super-rich will be wearing on their yachts at the Monaco Grand Prix this weekend, or anywhere from the Hamptons to the Seychelles, you can look no further than the capsule, which spans ready-to-wear, accessories, and homewares.
From the lush jungle scenes depicted by the Toile de Jouy Palms print in silk dresses, shorts, sarongs and ponchos, with their graphic charm, to light-wash double-denim, with its casual insouciance, and Lady D-Lite bags in raffia, one was transported to the a beach club in Marbella or the salubrious eateries of St. Tropez, from the cushy enclaves of a Brown Thomas personal shopping suite.
Looking for a raffia visor with a logoed headband? Say less, Dior’s got you covered.
There were some darling crocheted looks, embroidered with butterfly motifs, too.
The highlight for me was a boxy short-sleeved shirt in beige. It was unassuming save for a small logo in place of a breast pocket, and it possessed the androgynous appeal of Maria Grazia’s work to date.
Pack your bags, it’s off to Rome.
The Dioriviera capsule collection is available at the Dior boutique in Brown Thomas Dublin.
Barbara Nealon owns Saint Francis Provisions, an intimate restaurant and natural wine bar in Kinsale, Co. Cork. The space is small with only 15 seats, but the food packs a punch. When you can snag a table at Saint Francis, which was awarded a Michelin Bib Gourmand in 2023, you can expect to be tantalised by a curious exploration of Mediterranean flavours. With sustainability in mind, Nealon focuses on locally-sourced, seasonal ingredients. Here, Barbara shares her food favourites.
Favourite restaurant in Ireland
Favourite restaurant internationally
A restaurant you haven’t been to yet but want to try
Restaurant Chestnut, Ballydehob.
Top 3 titles in food literature
How to Soften Corners by Jennie Moran
Fantastic Mr. Fox by Roald Dahl
Ultimate comfort food
Cheese toastie.
Kitchen utensil(s) you cannot live without
A small, sharp knife.
What is always in your fridge?
Milk.
Dream dinner guest, past or present
My late parents, Liam and Kathleen Nealon (RIP).
Best piece of career advice you have ever received
"Do the work" and "don’t force- if it’s not working, it's not in alignment, let it go. (This is advice from myself to myself.)
Tonight, I’m attending a talk between Simone Rocha and Perry Ogden at the Irish Museum of Modern Art. As part of an IMMA Members talks series, the pair will discuss Rocha’s fashion oeuvre and its connections to the art world. Expect more on this in next week’s newsletter. There are some more events in the series later in the year.
Sofia Coppola is the coolest girl in the world. Or, according to i-D’s latest issue, she is ‘Forever That Girl.’ Since she first stepped onto the scene over two decades ago with The Virgin Suicides, Coppola’s filmmaking has captivated audiences with its distinct aesthetic and storytelling. In i-D, she looks effortless in Ralph Lauren, blue jeans, and Chanel slingbacks. From her Charvet shirts to Augustinus Bader lip balms, the American filmmaker achieves an effortless elegance that we could all aspire to.
After much speculation, Balenciaga announced Pierpaolo Piccioli as creative director. With his approach to commerciality, sleight of hand in haute couture, and deft use of colour, Piccioli sounds like the perfect fit for the next phase of Balenciaga. In a statement, the Italian designer said, “what I am receiving is a brand full of possibilities that is incredibly fascinating… This gives me the chance to shape a new version of the Maison, adding another chapter with a new story.” Piccioli officially starts on July 10, and his vision will unfold later this year.
If you haven’t guessed from the almost weekly updates, I love Lorde! Her next single, ‘Man of the Year’, is expected next week and, naturally, I’m excited. I got some presale tickets to see her perform in Dublin later this year, which undoubtedly means there will be more dispatches about the artist in the future.