As if we needed another reason to fall for Paula Rowan’s decadent leather opera gloves …
In 2025, when Paula Rowan received a request to supply gloves for The Devil Wears Prada 2 it was an honour. The Blackrock-born accessories designer describes it as an “even greater one” to finally see her gloves on the silver screen when she attended the premiere of the film last night at The Stella cinema in Dublin.
Unsurprisingly, the sequel of the 2006 blockbuster leans into high-octane glamour, so Rowan’s luxurious gloves are excellently placed. Actress Emily Blunt wears Rowan’s silk-lined Lola leather gloves, while both Blunt and actress Simone Ashley, who debuts as Amari, an assistant to Meryl Streep’s Miranda Priestly, wear the Montserrat gloves, a lambskin style that boasts an eight-inch cuff that finishes just below the elbow (and has also been worn by fashion heavyweights like Linda Evangelista). Meanwhile, Lady Gaga wears three designs by Rowan in the music video for Runway, a song made in collaboration with Doechii for the film’s soundtrack.
Emily Blunt, who reprises the role of Emily in ‘The Devil Wears Prada 2’ wears leather gloves by Paula Rowan in the promotional poster for the film.
“Being in The Devil Wears Prada 2 isn’t just a placement; it’s a symbolic alignment with one of the most powerful fashion narratives ever created. It signals the relevance of my brand and my alignment with the language of fashion storytelling. My gloves are not simply functional objects or items for sale, they contribute to character, image and meaning,” Rowan says.
Rowan’s gloves are frequently worn by celebrities, appear in films and TV series, and are feted in the international fashion press. Her 16-inch opera gloves have been worn by Beyoncé and Sydney Sweeney; Taylor Swift prefers the short, silk-lined variations. Paula’s favourite flower, the foxglove, inspired the bell shape of the Molly glove, worn by the maximalist Lisa Todd Wexley on season two of And Just Like That. In Tim Burton’s Wednesday, Joanna Lumley and Catherine Zeta-Jones have also worn her gloves – these styles were tulle and leather in sculptural, peony shapes.
When Rowan started her eponymous fashion brand in 2008 there was a niche for quality gloves with theatricality. “I refer to my gloves as couture for the hands,” she says. Made in Naples, using ethically sourced Ethiopian lambskin, with only natural oils and waxes used in the tanning process, the gloves are cut and stitched by hand. A single pair can take up to four months to produce. Prices range from €85 to €4,800.
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