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  • About Penelope Parasols

Welcome to Penelope Parasols

where sun protection gets a serious style upgrade

At Penelope Parasols, we believe a girl’s accessories should be as fabulous as you are — and that includes every effort to block the sun. Each of our UPF 50+ parasols represents the perfect blend of fashion-conscious flair and UV-savvy smarts, designed for women who like their style a little extra and their skin a lot less sun-kissed. Forget the temperamental baby umbrellas of yesteryear. Penelope is the parasol reimagined — compact, lightweight, easy to carry, impossible to ignore. Each design is a limited-edition mini masterpiece, created to turn heads, spark conversations, and keep you cool… in every sense of the word. Whether you’re strolling city streets, brunching al fresco, or heading to a summer soirée, your Penelope Parasol is your new must-have accessory.

Our Founders

Lynn TaylorLynn Taylor has worked in Hollywood and around the world as a makeup and beauty expert. and no, she doesn’t drop client’s names. Lynn hails from Great Britain, where she acquired not only her discretion, but her flair for personal style and her first vintage parasol. An antique linen with a pewter partridge finial and a carved mahogany handle, it quickly became her favorite accessory… not only an indispensable part of her wardrobe, but an attention-getter and conversation-starter wherever she went, a chat that always led to the same question: where can I get one? Lynn recognized the parasol’s undeniable but paradoxical appeal: in the age of SPF and sunscreen, is there a place for this vintage icon? Sensing an opportunity, Lynn began exploring the marketplace and identified an opening in the fashion world for a reinvention of the classic parasol – creating a perfect blend of skin protector, iconic silhouette and fashion statement. Months of manufacturing research and design development led to the first Penelope parasol created by Gilbert Center, the last umbrella maker in New York, the partnership with Teresa Connors and the launch of Penelope Parasols.

Teresa ConnorsTeresa Connors was known throughout Southern California as the voice of KCRW, the local NPR station, for nearly two decades. Although professionally she was strictly an off-camera personality, Teresa was a true fashion icon to everyone she met, legendary for cultivating fabulous personal style on a seriously limited budget. Blessed with porcelain skin, Teresa knew from childhood that tanning was not in her genes. Cultivating a lifelong aversion to the sun, Teresa dreamed about a fashion accessory that could protect her skin and, hats be damned, not mess up her fabulous coiff. She discovered parasols in an antique shop, took one of them home and decided that the fashion world needed some vintage inspiration. Finally discovering a way to protect her skin that also elevated her style, Teresa joined Lynn Taylor in launching Penelope Parasols, transforming the classic fashion accessory through an inspired reinvention. Every Penelope Parasol combines a perfect circle of personal shade with an impeccable sense of fashion and flair for versatile, convenient, high-impact style.

WHAT PEOPLE ARE SAYING

"Sweet, sophisticated, sunshades"

"Stylish, functional, timeless, contemporary, casual and elegant."

"Charming ladylike accessory"

"Penelope Parasols are a lovely and romantic summer accessory"

"I just packed my adorable little parasol for my trip to the Sarasota film festival in Florida."

"Penelope; tailor made for romantic glamour. My favorite summer accessory."

"They're beautiful"

"Sweet, sophisticated, sunshades"

CELEB FANS

Selena Gomez

Jessica Biel

Melissa George

Ellen Pompeo

John Carroll Lynch

Stephanie Pratt

Kaley Cuoco

Lucy Liu

Abigail Spencer

AS SEEN IN

Vogue

US Weekly

Harpers Bazaar

People

Accessories Magazine

Santa Barbara Magazine

Swiss Made Magazine

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