Charlotte

Design June 10, 2020

Colour Edit – Oatmeal

Oatmeal – perhaps not a traditional name for a colour but preferable to beige! I have recently started to love to wear this colour – a quiet, natural tone which can be beautiful on its own or great with sky blues and khaki greens. It comes in a variety of tones but generally pale with hints or yellow, cream, grey with soft green undertones. It is a perfect summer colour – best found in linens, wools and silks.

Oatmeal is a colour very much inspired by nature.

Natural oat Irish linen shirts and Donegal tweed suits – timeless!

The Eske Cape (lambswool) – a creamy oat works amazingly with blue – this season we have combined these natural colours to create a classic oat crossed with a contemporary sky blue stripe. These beautiful capes are designed, woven and made by us in Donegal. We love this Alicia patch pocket linen blazer featuring a golden oat and blue nautical stripe.

These neutral tones – oat, earthy brown, camel, cream & grey are great interior colours. Luxurious wool & alpaca blend throws in a bedroom or soft neutral herringbone tweeds for curtains in a living room. Hints of blue, orange and green are perfect complimentary colours.

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Design May 29, 2020

Colour Edit – Blue

Colour is at the heart of what we do at Magee 1866, in the 1960’s our mill started to focus on more colourful fabrics, moving away from the functional, hardwearing tweeds which sometimes lacked colour into more design lead cloths, inspired by our surrounding land and seascape. The ‘true Donegal tweed’ is a salt and pepper which is speckled with bright colours – gorse yellows, sea blues, sky greys, mossy greens, fuchsia pinks and leafy reds and oranges.

*Timeless salt & pepper and herringbone Donegal tweeds.*

Blue is one of my favourite colours and a seasonal classic – summer or winter and a colour that works across men’s, women’s and home accessories. We take much of our inspiration from nature and in Donegal we are surrounded by blues – the sea, the sky (albeit often grey!), flowers and our landscape. The mountains near Donegal town are aptly named the Bluestack mountains.

*Murvagh beach with the Bluestack mountains in the distance.*

We use blue across many pieces from the more formal to casual. It is an easy colour to wear and has such an amazing colour palette from classic navies to mid-denim to pale blues. I love this herringbone mid-blue Emma coat – with a soft creamy white contrast.

Blue is a beautiful colour to incorporate into your home, on its own in varying shades or mixed with oats, greys or creams.

*One of my favourite accessories – our Donegal tweed teddy bears* – this one is made in a beautiful blue salt & pepper tweed.

Explore our Collections

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Family May 13, 2020

What we are up to now!

As 2020 continues with all of its challenges, we’d thought we’d take a moment to share some of the ways we have been spending our time when not working at the kitchen table!

What are we reading right now?

Dad is an adventure fan and is enjoying Michael Palin’s Erebus which is about the story of the 19^th century ship which met a tragic and mysterious end on Captain Franklin’s fateful expedition to find the ‘North West Passage’ in the Artic. Palin charts the ship’s arduous journeys and the host of characters on board who braved un-chartered waters. Paddy, the history man, is reading an early account of the life of Michael Collins. The book was written in the 1930s by Frank O’Connor and has plenty of colourful anecdotes and memories from Collin’s contemporaries. Rosy was lucky enough to go an amazing trip to Colombia in February, cycling from Bogota to the coast. Everywhere she went, people recommended checking out the Colombian author, Gabriel Garcia Marquez. On returning to home, she has been immersed in Marquez’s One Hundred Years of Solitude. “It’s an intense read that brings you into a vividly imagined world filled with all manner of human vices and virtues.” Rosy has always been the more intellectual sibling and is also working through a copy of Kahil Gibran’s The Prophet and she has taken to looking at this thought provoking collection of poems and even writing a few of the lines down.

I am reading reading Dictatorland – the men who stole Africa by Paul Kenyon. A fascinating yet disturbing book about life after the colonies – the corruption, greed and global players mixed in with Africa. I have also started Time and how to spend it by James Wallman – in an attempt to get some guidance on how to capture that elusive work/life balance for evermore!

What have we been doing outside work?

Each of us have always loved the outdoors and now is a time more than ever, to take a few minutes every day in any of the green spaces around us. We count ourselves very fortunate to live in rural areas and have all been watching the arrival of spring with new beech leaves appearing and yellow gorse in full bloom. Mum and Dad go down to the local pier for a morning swim and are always joined by the aquatic Labrador, Riley! Paddy keeps some Aberdeen Angus cows and has spent a lot of weekends mending fences! Rosy has managed to avoid the fencing and on weekends takes to the side roads on her bike, with her sketchbook to hand for a real sense of escape. I have been going for long walks and enjoying the luxury of spending more time with my children and husband. (Although I sadly do not think I am cut out for homeschooling – apart from nature walks and the lifecycle of frogs – tadpoles are everywhere!)

What have we been cooking?

Rosy has very questionable cooking skills but has taken to foraging for wild garlic to make pesto which looks impressive…but is very straightforward! Paddy is probably an even more questionable cook than Rosy but does in fairness make a decent loaf of brown bread. Dad is most proud of his barbecuing efforts this spring and has been experimenting with everything from home-made pizza’s to lamb. I love to cook and have been trying different risotto’s recently from pea & parmesan with some bacon lardons or tomato and fresh prawns!

What is our favourite piece from Spring 2020?

As the old saying goes ‘never cast a clout till May be out’! With this in mind, Dad’s go to is of course the Cavan Gilet, a perfect source of warmth for the temperamental Donegal Spring! Paddy never feels the cold, so he is already pre-empting hot summer days in our Irish linen shirts. Like a lot of us, Rosy has been working from home and has been living in the comfy Willow linen trousers. I have a soft spot for the Emma coat – a summer or winter piece, oversized with patch pockets. We first launched it with a classic black & white herringbone, this Spring we have it in pale pink & cream cashmere blend and blue & white wool.

Explore our Spring 2020 collection for men and women.

*Riley – an* *enthusiastic* swimmer all year round!

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Design March 30, 2020

Sustainability and what we are doing….

Magee 1866 are proud to champion sustainability as a fundamental part of our ethos which has evolved over the last 150 years. Our Magee Weaving Mill pre-dominantly uses natural fibres like wool and linen, which are biodegradable, renewable and the high-quality fabric is then manufactured locally. Quality is our principle product value and is evident from our fabric to finished garment. Magee Clothing’s design philosophy promotes the sustainable concept of ‘slow fashion’ through timeless and classic collections. Sustainable fabric and high quality, long lasting products define our brand DNA. We are currently in the process of understanding which of the various environmental and sustainability certificates best align with this company ethos.

It is a 5^th generation family business and the Temple family behind Magee 1866 are committed to manufacturing in the most sustainable and environmentally friendly way possible. The Temple family have planted over 150 acres of forestry to off-set carbon emissions, grow their own organic vegetables & breed a small herd of their own organic grass-fed cattle.

Raw Materials

We focus on weaving and producing garments using ‘Noble Natural Fibres’:

Wool: biodegradable & renewable. It is sourced by our trusted spinning partners within the E.U. Countries of origin include: Ireland, Norway, Peru, Australia, New Zealand. We are working on specific projects with complete traceability of wool to the farm source. A collection using Irish Wool will launch in AW 2020.
Linen: biodegradable & renewable. Our Irish Linen is grown in Northern France, spun in Poland and designed, woven & finished in Donegal. Linen also uses considerably less water than cotton and grows on poor land.
We also work with alpaca, cashmere, mohair and silk. All are biodegradable & renewable.
We do on occasion use a small % of man-made fibres in our fabrics in order to enhance performance (e.g. stretch, added design).

Manufacturing

All fabric is tested by third parties ICQ and Intertech to industry standards.
Warping, weaving, and finishing of fabric is done in house, allowing for complete control and high standards ensured at all times.
Within Magee Weaving, synthetic dyes are used to cater for a large colour palette. Reactive and acid dyes used on our fibres comply with EU standards. Please note that natural dye alternatives require heavy metals to adhere to the fibre, which can be as harmful to the environment. We conclude that natural dyes are not necessarily a better alternative.
Mild detergents are used, similar to those of domestic washing machine concentrations.
Cardboard waste is re-cycled. We are researching recycled fibre merchants.

Spring summer 2020, a focus on natural linens, wool and cashmere.

Energy

Magee 1866 purchases electricity from a Green energy provider (i.e. Hydro or wind), currently coming from the mainstream grid.
Oil is used to generate heat in the absence of any other alternatives in our geographical region e.g. there is no natural gas pipe line Co. Donegal. Alternatives to fossil fuels are being urgently sought, costed and plans drawn to invest in solar power within the next 3 years.
Local water is used in our production of cloth. Due to the fact that Donegal has a high volume and frequency of rainfall, (1600mm p.a.), this resource is not under pressure from a shortage.

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Family March 18, 2020

Mother’s Day – a celebration!

With Mother’s Day (UK & Ireland) on Sunday we thought it would be a lovely opportunity to note how much our Mum means to us as a family. While Mum has never worked in our family business she is a solid sounding board for us all and has been for years – from business decisions, fielding heated family debates, (we try to keep emotion to a minimum with business but it creeps in on occasion!) to ideas on the seasonal collection of both fabrics and garments.

While not managing her expanding family with the three of us and grandchildren, (not to mention managing Dad!) Mum devotes much of her time to her garden – a walled-in acre of secret paths and little follies, vegetables, trees, shrubs and flowers.

It has been the backdrop to many of our summer photoshoots and it also provides inspiration behind specific design themes. As a child I have so many happy memories of playing for hours in this garden, catching bugs, hide & seek, creating obstacle courses with flower pots and canes and even attempts at my own horticultural creations – with mixed results. Today this garden is a playground for my own children when we visit the ‘Donegal grandparents’ and a calm space for me.

I never quite appreciated how much our mothers do for us, that is until I had my own children – life is now a juggling act and multitasking is to the extreme – but very rewarding!

Thank you Mum for everything – for the early years – life lessons and watching us grow and develop, the trying teenage years – for your calmness and patience and for now – for your listening ear and grand-mum duties!

Mums’ favourite pieces this Spring Summer 2020 – The Emma coat, in a soft cashmere/wool blend pink and white herringbone Donegal tweed and a bright pink, blue and white patchwork scarf, designed and made in our mill in Donegal.

Explore our gift guide for Mother’s Day – there is something for all the wonderful mums out there!

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Design October 3, 2019

Charlotte on Design

My early memories of Magee as a child were built around what Dad wore as he left for the office at exactly 0750 every morning – namely a navy suit with a brightly coloured tie. (While Dad has never worked directly in our design departments, he has always had a natural flare for colour and styling!) The upstairs wardrobe was full of soft earthy brown and green houndstooth jackets with the odd thornproof suit in a moss green with a fine red thread running through (great for dressing up in as a child!). My brother and I also acquired a bright green linen/silk bolt that we used for ‘tent’s and ‘hide-outs’ in the woods at home. Probably not the final end use desired by the Weaving designer at the time but perfect for us – 65m went a long way for these structures.

Our fabrics and garments have evolved over the years, but the core message of quality and producing a timeless product has always been at the heart of what we do. We focus on natural fibres – wool, alpaca, cashmere, linen and silk. Traditionally Magee 1866 concentrated on jacket and suits, I joined the business in 2012 and while I have no formal training in design, I have been steeped in our brand since a child and love and believe in the the idea of taking a clothing brand and building a lifestyle around it. This is what we are striving to do and use our amazing fabrics as much as possible in these collections.

The Magee 1866 fabrics would have been originally all handwoven and their function was not fashion but utility. In the 1960’s two leading Irish designers – Sybill Connelly and Irene Gilbert started to use our Donegal tweed in the women’s collection. We have always been renowned for our brightly coloured and intricately designed apparel fabrics. In 2018 we launched our first interiors collection.

While we do buy from other mills, particularly in suiting – the UK and Italy, this vertical approach from mill to finished garment allows us to develop truly unique fabrics for our product collections.

Each season we are working to subtly push the boundaries, combining the best of Donegal cloths with contemporary styling – AW19 the Duffle and Alexa coat, while still retaining our more classic pieces. A tricky balance! The Autumn Winter season is so strong for us, colours are rich with earthy tones and our natural cloths really come into their own.

Trends are evolving all the time and the casual direction the world is moving is very prevalent – I still believe there will always be room for a smartly tailored suit, so much so we have just launched an extensive made to measure service!

Spring Summer is a little more difficult, but we are looking to develop the Irish linen story across a number of products and use a more softer colour base across our lightweight wools. For us the ideal spring piece is something that can transcend seasons, particularly in Ireland where our weather is so unpredictable.

A sneak preview to SS20 and our Irish linen suit in an olive green Glencheck (also available in navy) is a wardrobe must – the great thing about this suit is how you can mix up the styling – the checked jacket with plain linen trousers and a t-shirt or the trousers with one of our Irish linen grandfather shirts (an exclusive made in Ireland product). Embracing the casual trends we are introducing a casual lux collection.

I have been working with our team to review how we can use our beautiful Donegal tweeds and linens in some timeless and the more quirky accessories, e.g. our Donegal tweed teddy bear (Made in the UK) and our throws – made in Donegal by us. This is an exciting area for development – watch this space!

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Style Tips August 10, 2019

The 9 – 5 week day edit (with a difference) – men

Magee 1866 have been specialising in tailoring and luxury fabrics for over 150 years. We have always been renowned for our durable, hard-wearing suits – namely the original thorn-proof. This heavy, worsted woollen suit, made in the Convoy woollen mills in Donegal, simply didn’t wear out – the story goes that you could push a pencil through the cloth and then give the cloth a quick rub and one would never have known a pencil or said pencil hole had been there.

Fast forward to today and we are still producing sophisticated and beautifully tailored suits. Fabrics have developed over the years and have become much more lightweight and functional for today’s needs. The world is becoming a more casual place, but we strongly believe there will always be a place for a well-cut suit.

Here are a few of my favourite looks and outfits for the 9 – 5 week day wardrobe that work within the hectic lifestyle we all juggle today.

The Donegal tweed suit – drawing on our heritage we have adapted the original, rustic, (and a little bit rough) Donegal tweed and developed a fine, lambswool quality with the distinctive salt & pepper fleck. This season you can purchase this unique suit as a Mix & Match – i.e the jacket, trouser and waistcoat separately – this works really well if you are a. not a standard 6-inch drop (all our ‘nested suits’ are designed with a 6-inch drop – i.e. the difference between the jacket and trousers, e.g. a size 40R jacket will carry a 34R trouser) and b. you might not want the waistcoat but it does make for a lovely option on it’s own without a jacket, in case you are tempted! Here are four ways to wear your Donegal suit.

The classic pure new wool ‘business’ suit – new for this season, a luxury fine worsted wool featuring a subtle check with blue and on-trend brown. This luxurious fabric is designed and woven in England by Alfred Brown. Style with one of our luxury cotton white twill shirts and knit tie.

The Travel suit – this lightweight, stretch suit does exactly what is says on the tin – a durable, functional and yet very smart wool blend suit is a must for your work wardrobe. The fabric is designed to wear exceptionally well; travel – cars, trains and planes, it withstands long days in the office and it looks pretty good out of a suitcase. The added stretch makes this a really comfy suit. We do offer a waistcoat in this style but we also recommend the Kilgole knit waistcoat – a slightly more casual alternative to the classic suit waistcoat. This suit is available in black, navy or grey – and in two fits – classic & tailored.

Dress down options – while there will always be a place for a beautiful suit, we know there is an increasing need for a casual office look. Think comfortable chinos, (ours have 2% stretch = added comfort), a casual check shirt and cotton knitwear. If you need to dress it up a little, try one of our lightweight wool jackets – a great early fall/mid-season jacket.

The City Coat – all our coats are designed to wear over a suit jacket or standard blazer. This Autumn Winter the collection includes functional, shower-proof, lightweight Macs, cashmere blend classic wool car coats and my favourite – the Erne, a Donegal tweed raglan sleeve mid-length overcoat. (Available end September)

Finishing touches –

We have a unique collection of luxury accessories – English bridle leather belts – made in the UK, tweed and leather bags – the tweed is designed and woven by us in Donegal, Ireland. We also have a beautiful collection of ties and pocket hankies.

The Magee Made to Measure service is also worth remembering if you are looking for a suit for the office that fits you perfectly and features design details that you have chosen from our extensive collection – e.g. buttons, linings, collar meltons, piping and perhaps you initials embroidered on the inside left or under the collar.

Find out more – Made to Measure – own stores and selected stockists in the UK and Ireland.

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Behind the scenes July 31, 2019

AW20 Milan

Planning for Autumn Winter 2020 started at the end of May, with an initial concept and style meeting. It is always a little hard thinking about a season a year away, before the current Fall season has even landed and while in the middle of finishing up for Spring Summer 2020!

I would describe our small luxury brand as ‘slow fashion’, a more sustainable approach to fashion, which we believe very strongly in. Our collections are designed to stand the test of time and while we are reactive and very receptive to trends we are not entirely driven by the latest ‘must-have’ fad. This is a relief when looking a year down the line as we know we have a great core range of products to work from and are not reinventing the wheel every season. We have classic blocks and styles that we run year on year, we tweak where required and develop some key new styles to enhance the collection.

Our fabric selection does change from season to season and we are looking to push the boundaries here, particularly in our women’s collection. Traditionally we would have played it quite safe with colourful, yet classic checks and herringbones. Now we are embracing what our own Weaving mill does best on the international market – bold, intricate and colourful fabrics. These stand-out pieces are really quite special and balanced with timeless designs – e.g. herringbones and plains.

While a large focus of the Magee 1866 collections is around our own fabrics – we work with a number of other mills namely in the UK, Italy and Portugal. These mills bring something different – a worsted suiting, a luxury silk print, cottons for trousers, shirting fabrics and an increasing number of technical fabrics for outerwear.

Liberty of London silk print and Italian silks.

Two days in Milan (where our own Weaving also showcase the next season) covers the majority of these mills. This time is spent going from mill to mill, viewing their collections and sampling. I love it – exhausting but exciting to see what other mills are working at and over the course of the show next Autumn’s collection really starts to take shape.

Luxury natural fibre yarns

There is an increasing drive across fashion for brands and consumers to adopt a more sustainable approach to fashion.

Trend inspiration for Autumn Winter 2020.

A snapshot of our own Weaving stand at Milan – showcasing what we do best – luxury and natural fabrics. Cashmeres, wools and alpacas.

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Family June 27, 2019

Welcome to 1866 Life!

So who are we? What do we do?

We are a 5th generation Irish family business and lifestyle brand, based in Donegal, Ireland. There are four family members working actively in Magee today, alongside a dedicated team, some of whom have over 40 years experience.

Donegal – home

The family – Lynn, chairman who started in 1974 – an avid cyclist who pedals in and out to work every day – rain, hail or shine! Paddy, CEO of the Weaving, an engineer by training and a lover of the sea. Paddy joined in 2012. Rosy, who started last year following a sabbatical for a few months in Chile, cycling north from the Cape for 2000km. Rosy manages marketing and wholesale sales. I (Charlotte) head up our design team and web sales. Following a short stint in the Irish army and two years in London, I joined the business in 2008.

Rosy, Paddy, Lynn & Charlotte

Weaving – designing and weaving are at the heart of what we do. We have a dedicated design team who create beautifully intricate and colourful fabrics, that are then woven and finished in our mill in Donegal. Originally in 1866 our great-grandfather’s cousin, John Magee, established his business buying and selling handwoven Donegal tweed. We still hand-weave today but 90% of the fabric is power woven.

Clothing – traditionally we focused on tailored men’s jackets and suits, (since the 1860’s) but as trends have evolved, so have we and our product range has expanded across both tailored and casual. We are also now focusing on creating a unique capsule collection for women – beautiful wardrobe pieces that work across all aspects of modern day life from weekday to weekend.

We have three stores in Ireland and selected stockists throughout the EU. Our fabrics are sent all over the world and used by luxury designers. These unique cloths are focused around noble natural yarns – wool, cashmere, alpaca, linen and silk. We also offer a Made to Measure Service in our own stores and selected stockists. A collection of over 300 cloths – from Donegal tweed to fine Italian suiting.

Our ethos as a family brand is to ensure we capture and retain our unique heritage, with this in mind we work towards creating collections that are contemporary yet timeless. We use luxury materials and pay special attention to the fit, quality, make and detail of each piece. Our Irish roots are very important to us and we are taking an increasingly sustainable approach to the business.

We aim to create a lifestyle brand that is evolving with what we believe in and wear as a family – weekday to weekend.

This blog is written by us and hopefully gives you a more personal glimpse into what life is like in a brand that is over 150 years old – the passion, the dedication, the knowledge and of course add little bit of fun!

Find out more about us or shop online

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Behind the scenes June 26, 2019

Behind the scenes – SS20 photoshoot Day 1

The planning for the Spring Summer photoshoot starts in December when the initial concepts are played out for the season. Spring is the perfect season to showcase the best of Donegal, our home and the place where much of our inspiration stems for the collections.

Inspirational mood boards for SS20

The process evolves at Milan in February, our main textile show, when choosing fabrics for the collection. At times it can be hard getting excited about linens and the beach as the snow falls in Europe in the middle of winter, but the fashion world is always two seasons ahead.

Selecting fabrics at Milan

A photoshoot has a glamorous ring to it, but involves rather mundane planning and logistics, in particular chasing samples around the world to make sure they arrive on time. However it does have its exciting elements – pulling together the long-planned outfits and creating a story around the collection, we finally see those initial concepts coming to life.

The day arrives and with it, the hope it will be dry, we don’t mind if it is cloudy (better for the photographer) or windy but horizontal rain, so often found in Donegal creates a problem. We have managed over the years to combat all weathers – from snow, to gales and torrential rain. This year we chose Murvagh to shoot – a long sandy beach banked with Maran grass and dunes. Perfect for this year’s theme – a Sea Safari.

We have a brilliant team – Alex our photographer who we have used for the last few years – he has the ability to give Magee, a brand steeped in heritage, a cool and contemporary edge. We pull video into the day as well – a vital medium for the digital age we live in, Ciaran quietly works around Alex and brings the day to life with his engaging behind the scenes and collection videos. Add makeup, hair, models and our own patient, hardworking and enthusiastic team.

This season for men’s we are using Roelof, a fun and classically good looking South African model who we shot a few seasons ago. (The key is ensuring our models work with our brand profile and fit our clothes – we have had a few disasters over the years, with wooden models and those that simply do not fit our garments, despite their profile size and reassurance from the agency…)

The day usually starts with makeup and hair around 0700. By the time Roelof arrives we are ready to shoot the first shot at about 0900. This year we started with our capsule collection of casual lux – a contemporary, branded range of Irish Linen shirts, pants, sweats, polos and tees – a very new look for us! We try to get the bulk of the shots in before lunchtime – about 1400 and tend to work through about 12 – 14 shots a day, with casual clothing it is easy, but suits create require more tweaking to ensure they look sharp.

My aim is to ensure the shots look great but also that the day is relaxed and fun. If everyone is happy the shots and videos are so much better. The results below speak for themselves, a sneak preview into our SS20 collection – launching January 2020.

An Irish Linen suit designed and woven by us styled with an Irish Linen grandfather shirt. Suit available from February 2020

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