Darcybow is a brand built on fairy tales. Our own story has a fair share of magic in it, too.
Once upon a time: where it all began
It all began when founder Triona Spellman was still flying the skies, working as cabin crew. On one of her many adventures, with free time on her hands in between trips, she found herself wandering through markets filled with the most enchanting colour, sumptuous fabrics, and delightful trims.
Inspired, she suddenly imagined a whole new story for herself.
In 2016, her head dancing with ideas, she began to design and create a small collection of very special little dresses.
In a bland world of cookie-cutter chain stores, she dreamed up a business built on sourcing and creating unique, authentic and quirky pieces bursting with individuality. Self-taught, with a growing love for textiles and design, she began to build relationships with international fashion houses and craftspeople. She learned as she went, dreaming and doing in equal measure, and Darcybow quickly grew from a passion project into real business.
More magic: the meeting of the two Darcys
At a Dublin networking event, Triona and Darcybow crossed paths with another business called Darcy & Grey, run by Edelle Mellett.
It was a magical meeting. They started chatting about the coincidence of the two Darcys, and quickly discovered that they shared the same passion for design, creativity and business.
Over many coffees and a lot of conversation, a business relationship was formed. Edelle joined Darcybow, and the rest was happily ever after. She brought with her a wealth of experience learned in marketing and the bridal industry, as the founder and owner of Bridal Wraptures, St Stephen's Green, Dublin. After a decade of styling beautiful brides, she now delights in styling littler people for their own special days.
The moral of the story: what we’re all about
Darcybow is dedicated to the joyous creativity and enduring enchantment of childhood.
Our work is informed by the simplicity and quality of classic Irish design and the irrepressible whims of little ones everywhere. Our inspiration comes from childhood storybooks...and being children of the seventies. Both of us had mums who dressed us in smart dresses and coats with knee-high socks and a good pair of Mary-Jane shoes.
Back then, clothes were made to last, and we always remembered the clothing we wore on our special days out.
Now, we pour all those influences into special pieces for today’s children, designed to be cherished long after they’ve been outgrown. Nostalgia is sewn into every piece we create and produce, and we like it that way.
We all eventually leave the kingdom of childhood, but even after we’re all grown up, we can visit whenever we want, travelling through time in our memories, recapturing the magic of make-believe, and reliving all the best moments with our own children.
We believe that every minute of childhood is precious, and our collections are designed for living in the moment and making memories.
Handmade with love, in Ireland
We are very proud to say our special occasion dresses are handmade right here in Ireland. We partner with independent, women-owned ateliers to produce all of our clothing fairly and sustainably, using time-honoured heritage sewing and construction techniques so that every finished piece is easy to care for and made to last.
We sometimes collaborate with other European and UK brands to bring you a complete range of accessories, and we always make sure that their standards of quality, craftsmanship and fairness live up to our own.
Our pinky-promise to you
Darcybow brings you back to a time when time didn’t matter.