Custom Design

After Alexander McQueen’s death, one of the ways many people reacted was shock followed by wanting to buy a piece from one of his last collections. The Skull Clutch is an iconic McQueen bag and all of the websites that previously had them in stock sold out within hours.

Saks just stocked a few new McQueen bags, one being the Alexander McQueen Stringray Print Skull Clutch. The clutch is on pre-order right now, with a shipment date of the end of July. In fact this clutch popped up a couple weeks ago with a much earlier shipment date, but was sold out quickly and the shipment date changed. The black/silver stingray print adorns the outside of the classic clutch with a skull clasp closure and purple lining. Pre-order through Saks for $1,175.

Original post by Megs Mahoney Dusil

I’m not sure if it’s Lady Gaga’s influence or what, but I’m sure that I’m not the only person that has noticed sequins everywhere for the past few months. High-end handbag designers have largely avoided the trend, but Jimmy Choo has been embracing some rather fly-by-night trends as of late, so the Jimmy Choo Sequined Snake Pattern Tote doesn’t really surprise me.

It’s difficult to see the sequins in this picture since they’re clear, but I assure you that they’re there and they appear to cover the entire bag. As much as I love sequins (and really, I adore them), I just can’t support their inclusion on an everyday tote for a variety of reasons.

First, this bag is busy enough as it is. The blue-silver metallic snake print leather has plenty going on, and it gives you more than enough to look at. Plus it’s already metallic, so there’s no need to have an extra layer of shine on top. The sequins are unnecessary and create visual clutter when the light shines on them.

And then there’s the functional problem of sequins. When they’re covering a clutch, they mostly stay in your hand and away from your clothes. But when they’re on a shoulder bag, the sequins will constantly be rubbing against your clothes, and I can think of a few sweaters in my closet that wouldn’t be particularly thrilled about that. There’s also the problem of sequins coming loose when you’re in constant contact with other materials, and that’s just a problem that I don’t want to deal with. Buy through Saks for $1195.

Original post by Amanda Mull

Ever find yourself hearing about something that is ostensibly new, and then you have to go searching through the dark recesses of your brain, trying to figure out if you already knew about it? Maybe you just forgot? That’s the feeling that I get about the apparent new that Herve Leger bag line. Did I know about this already? The more I think about it, the more it sounds vaguely familiar, but I’m not sure. I’m also not sure how I feel about the Herve Leger Crystal Clutch.

Sure, it’s a perfectly serviceable evening bag. It’s tiny, sparkly, neutral and glam, which are the only real standards that an evening bag has to meet in order to have some sort of audience. But what it lacks is more important – any kind of interesting statement to speak of.

Perhaps it’s just me, but when launching a new bag line, it seems like it would behoove the designers to find a way to differentiate their product from the more established brands that are available. Besides the slanted shape (which Sang A did first, albeit in a different material), there’s nothing new here besides the Herve Leger name.

Is that enough to motivate people to spend $1,000+ for a special occasion bag that is otherwise nondescript? Maybe for some, but for the marketplace at large, the brand is going to have to do something bigger and splashier in order to move itself ahead of the looming pack. Buy through ShopBop for $1298.

Original post by Amanda Mull

I have a hard time pinning down the Miu Miu handbag aesthetic. Their bags seem to roam freely between minimalist and intricate, taking a pit stop at every level in between. Since “brand cohesion” is probably only something that obtuse fashion people (like moi) ever think/care about, it doesn’t necessarily seem to be a bad thing – it certainly brings them attention from a wide swath of stylish girls and women.

The Miu Miu Lurex Jeweled Shoulder Bag is the brand at its most intricate extreme. Based on how successful the bag is, maybe they should spend more time at that end of the spectrum.

This lively clutch-alternative reminds me of the glory days of the early aughts, when brightly patterned Dior Saddle Bags and Fendi Baguettes rules the accessories roost. This bag is like those bags were, except with an elegant, ladylike bent that most of the accessories of that era sorely lacked. This is the Queen’s Baguette, if you will.

The lurex/brocade combination is just updated enough to be cool and modern while still an obvious retro reference, and the smokey jewels on the chain are just perfection. I know this clutch probably has too much personality to appeal to everyone, but that just means that there will be more for me. Buy through Net-a-Porter for $950.

Original post by Amanda Mull

I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again: Whether you like their bags or not, Valentino does the best detail work in the business. There’s not a major designer that can touch them when it comes to taking regular (albeit extremely supple and wonderful) leather and turning it into something that is far more than the sum of its parts. Behold: the Valentino Fleurs Couture Tote.

That the designers behind the brand managed to create such a beautiful menagerie of flowers from leather is, at the very least, impressive. The color combination my favorite, but that seems like a minor quibble when faced with this kind of leather work. Still, the contrast that the colors create is important to differentiate all of the texture and detail that is contained in the bag; simple building this in black wouldn’t do it justice.

Just like all Valentino bags, this one comes with a hefty price tag. But if it wasn’t justified for something so intricate and made out of such fine materials, then for what exactly would it be justified? Buy through Nordstrom for $2690.

Original post by Amanda Mull

If I had to pick one phrase to describe the Gucci Secret GG Satchel, it would be “exceedingly grown-up.” Make no mistake about it – this bag is for a grown woman and it means business.

It doesn’t appear to be exactly the right size or shape to carry actual paperwork, but it does give the distinct impression of being an all work/no play sort of handbag. Perhaps its the sharp right angles or the rectangular, stiff shape. Perhaps it’s both, plus the dark-chocolate brown leather and crocodile trim that reminds me of the materials that are often used to make fine briefcases.

Whether or not those are negative things probably depend on your own personal style. Even though this bag isn’t exactly in line with mine, I can’t help but admire its elegant lines and the rich-looking materials that comprise it. I’d rather have avoided the logo fabric at the sides, but you can’t win ‘em all. Buy through Bergdorf Goodman for $1950.

Original post by Amanda Mull

Ahh, the eternal handbag questions: how much should we, as consumers, be willing to pay for bags that aren’t made out of leather? How about one made out of canvas? How about a really SIMPLE bag made out of canvas? Should it vary by brand? If it does, does that mean we’ve all fallen victim to someone’s marketing scheme? For me, the Yves Saint Laurent Safety Pins Tote brings up all of those questions and more.

For what it is, I quite like this bag. But is the bag that it is worthy of the price that Yves Saint Laurent is asking? I suppose that depends on who you are and how much extra money is sitting in your bank account.

If I disregard the price tag, I kind of enjoy the form factor of this bag by itself. Sure, it’s just a canvas tote, and it’s probably just like the canvas totes that the natural-foods grocery store I go to gives away. There are precious few ways to make something like this “high quality” – at a certain point, it just is what it is. Taking that into consideration, the graphic safety pins are still not only an appreciated visual departure for this bag line, but they remind me of the pins I used to put in the canvas messenger bag that I carried as a scenester and punk music obsessive in high school. So, it’s possible that I’m a bit biased, since this seems to be a post-modern rendering of the look I spent years of my youth trying to achieve.

But then I have the unfortunate duty of considering the price. If I had a bunch of extra money, I’d probably buy it just because it makes me smile, even though I think that $195 is too much for untreated canvas in such a simple, common tote form. As I stand right now, I’m a fairly recent college graduate that hopes to maybe buy a new car (Audi A3, come to me) in the next couple of years and upgrade my apartment furnishings, and a $200 canvas tote just seems like the last thing I need to be buying. Then again, I guess “need” isn’t really the point here.

So if “need” isn’t what we should be considering here, what about “want?” Do I want to pay $200 for a canvas tote of any kind? No, I want to spend $200 on a dress and sweater at Anthropologie. This tote may not be quite as egregiously priced as some that I’ve seen in the past few years, but I think I’ve answered my own question. Buy through Saks for $195.

Original post by Amanda Mull

Hey, Jimmy Choo. Listen and listen good. You’re trying too hard.

The Jimmy Choo Conti Snakeskin Shoulder Bag is…how to say this…a bit confusing. Also, it’s a bit gimmicky, and gimmicky and good design are, sadly, mutually exclusive.

One of the biggest rules of writing is “show, don’t tell,” and the folks at Choo violated a similar design rule in making this bag. Instead of creating something that is so painfully cool that it oozes “rock star” out of its little bag pores, they merely chose to slap an animal-print lighting bolt on a snakeskin bag that would have been gorgeous otherwise.

In doing so, they created a bag that screams, “Look at me, I’m so EDGY,” on the owner’s behalf, and that’s too obvious of a statement for any truly stylish person to want to make. In fact, the design almost comes off as insecure or self-conscious it appears to be so nervous that other people won’t find it cool enough that its entire existence seems to be predicated on reminding people of that fact. Of course, when something has to broadcast how cool it is, the effect is totally lost. Buy through Net-a-Porter for $2095.

Original post by Amanda Mull

A few months ago, we brought you news that friend-of-PurseBlog Carlos Falchi would be collaborating with his daughter on a new line of graffiti-inspired bags to debut in the coming months.

Well, the future is now: the bags are here! We already had some pictures of what they would look like, so that isn’t much of a surprise, but it’s nice to see something so unique and fun arrive in stores nonetheless.

What we know now is that the bags are made of snake-embossed microfiber (great for animal lovers) and priced accordingly. The tote pictured here is available via Bloomingdale’s for $295.

Original post by Amanda Mull

I kind of love the Marc Jacobs Fluorescent Tweed Bag, although I kind of wish I didn’t.

What exactly do I find so charming about it? What is there to find charming about a tweed bag with some random, oddly colored gemstones stuck to it? I’m not sure, but as usual, I’m buying whatever it is that Marc Jacobs is selling.

I’m not sure what place wit has in fashion, but I can’t help find this bag (along with the birdcage bag that Shannon wrote about last week) incredibly witty and irreverent. They both made me smile immediately when I saw them, and the more I think about it, the more I think that Marc Jacobs probably is smiling too.

Fashion doesn’t always need to be so serious, and often it’s so much more fun when it’s not. That’s one of the reasons for my personal love of Lady Gaga – I think she gets it, and she infuriates people that don’t. It’s no coincidence that she’s also a public fan of Mr. Jacobs. This bag might not be his most practical or classic, but the fact that it exists says good things about the fashion industry. Buy through Net-a-Porter for $995.

Original post by Amanda Mull