If 2020, a tenebrous year across the world, felt like a long day’s journey into night, you may have found yourself wearing loungewear 24/7. The golden mantle of evening, once an opportunity to don something elegant or slinky or both, dulled in response to extended lockdowns – who bothered to get dressed up to scoff a takeaway? As if we needed an excuse, the cloak of darkness prompted us to change into pyjamas, if we’d bothered to change out of them at all. Brisk walks beneath Tupperware skies kept yawns at bay as we dreamt, wide awake, of lemony escapes to Lanzajorca-costa-bella-occo, or wherever cheery umbrellas open against blinding sun, in lieu of driving rain.

A year’s stretch of being housebound and it’s not just artisan sourdough that has risen in the Agas of Ireland; exhaustion, division, worry and boredom straddle social divides, bringing us to our knees with the weight of it. Struggling to glimpse light at the end of the pandemic tunnel, it’s heartening to remember that we’ve been here before, or at least our Stone Age ancestors have, some 5,200 years ago – think Winter Solstice at Newgrange, its passage and chamber designed to align with the rising sun, a beam of light penetrating its roof-box, illuminating the gloomy tomb after the longest night, marking a rebirth, the beginning of lengthening days, and with them hope and warmth and growth, bathing suits, barbecues and 99s.

I count five bathing suits in my wardrobe, though I haven’t gone for a swim in five years. According to The Washington Post’s Nicole Anzia, “Now is the perfect time to rethink your wardrobe, with an eye toward sustainability.” She posits we have too many and too much, suggesting we sort our clothes to reduce visual clutter, to “make it easier to shop your closet instead of always buying new items,” tempting as it is, acquiring the next beautiful thing to wear. But where to?

March, named after Mars, Roman god of war, marks spring’s awakening. March hares box (buck versus doe, sparring in a mating game), butterflies and bees emerge, sap rises, buds unfold, primroses bloom in the ditches, songbirds sing and male wrens build nests. It’s the month in which the Northern Hemisphere tilts toward the sun, positioned exactly above the equator, an equinox, when worldwide, there are nearly equal amounts of daylight and darkness. The vernal equinox, on March 20, promises longer hours of daylight and the opportunity to extend Happy Hour into Happy Hours. Why not raise a glass to the start of spring with a cocktail composed of nearly equal amounts of spirits and ice? Look up the recipe for a heady Vernal Equinox apertif or build your own tipple; don’t forget the garnish, foraged from the hedgeroe or window box herb garden.

The other day I saw a kingfisher skim along the river at the Camac aqueduct, an iridescent shimmer of blue in green, perfectly dressed, its orange-red belly setting off alarm bells in the small fish below the surface of the River Stradbally, sticklebacks, minnows and chubs. A fellow walker nodded at the lingering sun, remarking as he passed, “There’s a grand stretch in the evenings …”

1. I’M COS-PLAYING in a whiter shade of pale in ivory wide-leg trousers and tone-on-tone sleeveless mock turtleneck top. Shop the 2021 collection in COS stores nationwide; www.cosstores.com.

2. I’M DABBING pulse points with fruity and fresh BOSS Alive Eau de Parfum for Her, the next best thing to a tropical trip. To order from www.theloop.ie.

3. I’M STEPPING out in Bottega Veneta woven Lido sandals. At Brown Thomas stores in Dublin, Cork, Galway and Limerick; www.brownthomas.com.

4. I’M BIRDING in Ireland’s countryside, wetlands and waterways with www.birdwatchireland.ie.

5. I’M LOOKING at clouds from both sides now, in matte white porcelain cumulus earrings suspended from contrasting 14k yellow gold fittings by Amsterdam-based Atelier Luz. Browse a curated selection of Irish and international jewellers at DesignYard, Dublin. www.designyard.com.

6. I’M BRAVING the unknown in Dior SoLight pink shades. Look at the world through rose-coloured glasses, available from www.dior.com.

7. I’M GOING Gucci in 2021 mattes for an understated lip. Shhhh!

8. I’M STEALING Kristen Stewart’s make-do Covid do. Or maybe it’s headto-toe Chanel gear that pulls her look together; pretend it’s summer in sunny yellow lambskin Chanel logo mules available from www.chanel.com.

9. I’M TOASTING Vernal Equinox with a spring drink. Browse www.farmette.ie for intoxicating fusions.