After face masks, face shields, and (non-creepy) gloves, protective clothing is the final evolution of the COVID-19 armor. While personal protective equipment exists in the market, designer Nina Ricci Eleazar notes how there is a need for PPE that works with the special temperament of Philippine weather.
Eleazar, the founder of style brand Una Ricci, points out how it’s “not advisable to wear waterproof materials when doing simple errands like grocery or bank runs,” nor does it feel good to wear PPE for stretches of time like when you’re manning your small business all day. With these in mind, she set out to create “lightweight and breathable protective clothing,” which not only protects wearers in the pandemic but also helps eliminate viruses and other bad stuff. “All our protective clothing and cloth masks are all pre-washed and pre-treated with Scentsor N9 Pure Silver,” she says.
The Una Ricci protective coveralls won’t make you sweat.
Protective coveralls (P7,500) by Una Ricci
And so you have the Una Ricci protective coveralls, which accomplishes two important things. First, they fulfill the objective of staying cool. Intended for everyday use, Eleazar made sure to remove the discomfort of dealing with heavy textiles and the attendant sweating that comes with wearing them. For the coveralls, the brand uses light- to medium-weight fabrics such as polyester, woven polyester, light wool, and linen.
The protective clothing is treated with an anti-germ solution.
As well, the coveralls are treated with Scentsor N9 Pure Silver. According to Eleazar, the non-toxic, safe-on-skin spray, which is distributed by the brand also sells separately, kills 99.99 percent of viruses and bacteria, providing immediate protection.
Scentsor N9 Pure Silver spray (P250 for 100 ml)
“What is important is it does not allow bacteria to develop resistance and therefore is highly effective against resistant strains of bacteria,” she says. Applied in the final step of production of the coveralls, the Scentsor’s effect lasts for 30 washes. After that, the coveralls can be returned to the store for re-treatment.
The protective coveralls consider style.
One last thing: These look good. Think of the designer protective clothing as a long jacket, which you can layer over your clothes. It can be cinched at the waist if you require shape. The collar can be popped for added flair. And the buttons can be undone (but that lessens the protection). These also come in a chic black and, for more adventurous wearers, mustard or pink.
When it comes to pandemic protection, style is low on the totem pole of importance but Eleazar looks at it this way: She wants to provide people with a means to express themselves, especially now that we can only see obscured faces and are also discouraged from interacting with each other.
“We all need to feel sane, and styling yourself, in every little chance you can, helps alleviate the stress this pandemic has put us all through,” she muses. “Gearing men and women to still look their best while beating COVID-19 is included in this whole process.”
Una Ricci is available at unaricci.com and Power Plant Mall