A new collection by Donegal millinery business, Hanna Hats, has been hailed as ‘another great success’ at Showcase Ireland 2019.

The team, who are famous for their Peaky Blinders style creations, unveiled their new collection in collaboration with InterTradeIreland Fusion graduate Rachel Blanckensee and North West Regional College at Ireland’s Creative Expo in the RDS.

Rachel Blanckensee, Eleanor Hanna and Amanda-Jane Hanna at Showcase Ireland

Eleanor Hanna of Hanna Hats said: ‘’This year’s Showcase Ireland event which took place on Sunday 20th to Wednesday 23rd was busy as usual and our long-time customers were delighted to see our latest ladies’ styles.

‘’But we found that we had new interest from new buyers who loved our new designs and the Slieve League was a great success at the show. Our new look book created by Rachel and Amanda-Jane went down really well at the show and the feedback was that our products looked fresh and trendy.’’

Hanna Hats new 2019 collection

Hanna Hats new 2019 collection

Rachel is a graduate of the National College of Art and Design in Dublin and was recruited by Hanna Rachel Hats in April last year to assist in process improvement and product innovation.

She explained: ‘’I began working for Hanna Hats in April 2018 as part of a Fusion project with InterTrade Ireland. From the very beginning Eleanor welcomed me and all of my ideas with open arms. 

‘’We began designing the new collection back in the summer with the idea of mixing the traditional with the contemporary. In order to achieve this, I suggested bringing in new fabrics such as denim, and we also introduced new tweeds with a more modern appeal.”

 

Rachel added: ‘’I sourced a more luxurious corduroy and some earthy tone Irish linen. The Hanna’s encouraged me to design some new styles of hats and caps for 2019. I stuck with the theme of contemporary meeting traditional and six new styles were conceived. 

‘’Some of these styles are more feminine, in order to expose ourselves to the female market but all of the Hanna Hats’ products are gender neutral. We are very excited to launch these new styles and fabrics at Showcase 2019 in the form of a brand new photo-shoot and look-book.”

The origins of Hanna Hats date back almost 100 years.

In 1924, David Hanna Snr established a tailoring company in Donegal. He began handcrafting bespoke headwear in 1964, and so Hanna Hats was born.

Hanna Hats new 2019 collection

David’s son John continued creating innovative tweed products using the age-old tradition of craftsmanship. John’s children Eleanor and Amanda-Jane now carry their father and grandfather’s vision as a third generation family business. Steeped in history and heritage, each creation is a little piece of luxury from Donegal.