Donna Ida

If you treat denim as an investment piece rather than a throwaway buy, the brand earns its following. Donna Ida is a London-based denim label whose core line centres on women's designer jeans, and founder Donna Ida Thornton is so closely associated with fit that she is regularly called the Jean Queen. Shoppers tend to buy for the cut and the lasting quality rather than a bargain price.

It is a tightly edited wardrobe of everyday luxuries. The core DONNA IDA collection consists of women's designer jeans, silk blouses, cashmere jumpers and simple tees. The idea is a small set of beautifully made pieces that work together, with denim at the heart of it.

Yes, it is thoroughly London. DONNA IDA is a London-based denim fashion brand, and its very first boutique opened on Draycott Avenue in Chelsea. The brand's identity is rooted in that Chelsea denim-boutique world.

She is the founder and namesake of the brand. Donna Ida Thornton created the label, and she is regularly referred to as the Jean Queen for her expertise in denim and fit. The brand carries her own name, so her personal eye runs through the whole collection.

The fashion brand DONNA IDA was launched in 2012, created by founder and namesake Donna Ida Thornton. That makes the label itself relatively young, even though the wider Donna Ida story began earlier with the boutiques.

It did. The first DONNA IDA boutique opened on Draycott Avenue in Chelsea in 2006, stocking top denim names such as J Brand and Rag & Bone, and its success led to further boutiques. The eponymous brand came later, in 2012, growing out of that retail expertise.

Not in the original boutique form. In 2016, the DONNA IDA boutiques closed so the business could focus on the online operation and a pop-up concept. So today the brand lives mainly online, with pop-ups rather than permanent shops.

After the Draycott Avenue success, three more followed: The Village in Westfield, London, Swan Lane in Guildford, and Elizabeth Street, London. The Draycott Avenue flagship was later refurbished in 2013, a sign of how central that original Chelsea address was to the brand.

Yes. Notable fans include Made in Chelsea regular Millie Mackintosh, who did a photo-shoot with Donna Ida in 2012 and was seen shopping at the store the year before. That kind of London visibility suited a brand born in Chelsea.

Treat both gently to protect the pieces you have invested in. For denim, wash inside out, cold and infrequently to preserve the colour and shape, and for the cashmere jumpers in the core collection, hand-wash or use a delicate cycle and dry flat. Careful washing is the simplest way to keep designer denim and knitwear looking their best for years.