Custom Design

My Balenciaga fangirldom is by now common knowledge around these parts, and despite Megs’ ongoing inability to find her perfect Balenciaga bag, I just keep discovering things from the brand that I need in my closet with a fierce urgency. Funny how that works, eh?

The latest object of my lust is the Balenciaga Giant City with rose gold hardware, and although I’m late to the rose gold party, I hope that I still get bonus points for earnestness. I brushed off the rose gold color choice as too “niche” when I heard about it, but after encountering this very bag in person, I can ignore it no longer.

At first I assumed that rose gold hardware would clash with most of my jewelry and my general sense of style, since I mostly associate the metal with expensive, gaudy jewelry that is very much not my style. In typical Balenciaga fashion, though, the designers behind the hardware gave it a weathered, gritty appearance that transforms it into something that fits right into my wardrobe.

Only the front zipper has a bit of shine to it, and the contrast is an interesting before-and-after demonstration of what the studs and buckles used to look like. It might prove more difficult to match rose gold hardware with Balenciaga’s famous bright leathers, but the rose and black combination works just fine for me. Buy through Matches for $1551.

Original post by Amanda Mull

It seems as though there are few animal-derived materials from which a designer has not attempted to make a handbag at some point. We’ve seen a zillion different versions of leather and fur, comprising almost any animal you can somehow raise on a farm, plus eel and stingray. Missoni makes a bag partially comprised of the skin from chicken feet. There is nothing new under the sun.

Except for maybe horsehair. It’s been used for centuries to make bows for string instruments, but Akris appears to have cornered the modern market on luxury horsehair purses with their line of Akris Ai Tote Bags. As far as I’ve been able to find, other brands have used horsehair to accent their designs, but this is the first bag in a while to use the material as the main attraction. The upside is that using the material doesn’t harm the animals in any way; the downside, unfortunately, is that the medium version costs a whopping $4400.

Horsehair is an interesting material for sure. I played classical strings for the better part of a decade, so I know how even and uniform it can look when treated and pulled tight, and it’s more or less endlessly renewable. The weaving on these bags looks impeccable and the simple style of the bags has already inspired lots of knockoff totes in less interesting materials. For the price, perhaps one of those is your best bet. The idea intrigues me, but I can skip it for that kind of money. With $4400, you’re well on your way to a Birkin. Buy through Saks for $4400.

Original post by Amanda Mull

With cold weather approaching (it’ll get here eventually, I know it will, even if it doesn’t seem that way right now), most of us have started planning our winter wardrobes and maybe even amassing our favorite fall pieces to make sure we get our hands on them before they sell out. Almost all of the stuff I’ve acquired is black or dark grey, which reminds me: I need some winter white.

Winter white (which is just a warm tone of ivory, but we’ll go with the season-appropriate name) came around as a trend a couple of years ago and never really went away, and it’s a nice alternative to not only the dark colors of fall dressing, but also the outdated rule that one shouldn’t wear white after Labor Day. If any of the people who still subscribe to that notion can look at the Burberry Quilted Patent Tote and tell me truthfully that it wouldn’t be beautiful with a charcoal sweater and dark denim, I’ll be very surprised.

I might normally regard this bag as too simple for me, but the shiny gunmetal hardware has totally won me over. Instead of skewing traditional, as most people probably expect of Burberry, the clean-lined buckle takes on a modern military look that’s as cool as it is unexpected. The bag’s shape is classic, the color is lush and the details are trendy, which is a formula that almost always equals a great bag. Buy through Nordstrom for $1395.

Original post by Amanda Mull

We usually feature bags from Lockheart over on PurseBlog Savvy because of the brand’s very reasonable price points, but sometimes a mid-range bag impresses us so much that it richly deserves to make the jump to and be considered alongside much more expensive bags. The Lockheart Priscilla Fanfare Shoulder Bag is clearly one such occasion.

Lockheart is a master of intricate texture at a reasonable price, and the Priscilla Fanfare bag fits perfectly into the brand’s aesthetic. The use of black allows the pleated, ribbon-accented leather to do all the aesthetic work for the design, and the finished product looks very much like something Valentino would think up. The only difference is that the Valentino version, were it to exist, wouldn’t cost $345.

Not only is the bag reasonably priced for the amount of detailed leather work that went into it, but it’s really two bags in one. The shoulder strap comes off to reveal a perfectly detailed clutch for nighttime use, and at a little over twelve inches wide, the bag is the optimal size for use as either a day or evening option. Black bags can be boring, but this one is anything but. I’m guessing that most women could find a place for this purse in their closets, particularly at such a reasonable price. Buy through Neiman Marcus for $345.

Original post by Amanda Mull

Dolce & Gabbana, the perennial providers of bustier tops and leopard print, is probably not the first brand that springs to mind when you think of wear-to-work accessories. When I think of wearing the brand’s clothes, the kinds of situations I picture usually involve skintight pencil skirts and very posh VIP clubs.

With the Dolce & Gabbana Cervo Doctor Bag, the signature sexiness is hidden on the inside in order to provide an exceptionally functional and ever-so-slightly conservative bag for a working woman. Save the leopard dress for nighttime, but this bag is just as comfortable in the daylight as the brand’s sexiest clothing is after dark.

At first, this bag reminded me of some of Prada’s Saffiano totes, but the doctor’s closure and multiple compartments not only make it more interesting as a design, but also more functional. Many women dislike having to throw all of their possessions into a single dark compartment, and this construction would be ideal for people who want to stay more organized. Plus, the leopard lining gives you a little reminder of who you are when you’re off the clock every time you open the bag. Buy through Neiman Marcus for $1945.

Original post by Amanda Mull

Things from Jimmy Choo have been a bit “blah” lately. They’ve continued to make a lot of popular styles from previous seasons in new materials and finishes, which should make the brand’s devotees happy, but I always prefer to see something new alongside old favorites.

The Jimmy Choo Rosa Satchel maybe not seem all that striking or innovative to the casual observer, but for Choo, it’s something a bit different. Many of the brand’s bags have been a bit over-designed in recent seasons, and with that in mind, the restraint and editing that went into this design are admirable, not to mention very attractive.

Many brands have been looking to pare down their offerings into sleeker, more subdued shapes that will appeal to today’s recession-addled consumers, and this is the right way to do it. This bag doesn’t lack in glamour or sophistication, but its lines are a bit less aggressive than what we might have seen in 2006, for example. The embossed lizard gives the bag texture on top of the already shiny leather, and the way the light hits the finish of the bag creates a sophisticated shine that you just can’t get by dunking a bag in a vat of sequins or glitter. Well played, Tamara Mellon. Buy through Nordstrom for $1750.

Original post by Amanda Mull

Chanel (and more recently, Marc Jacobs) has made an empire out of diamond quilting, but even for the most ardent fan of the Classic Flap bags, it can get a little repetitive. Still, quilting is one of the best and most versatile ways to add texture and detail to a handbag, and it shouldn’t be discounted just because so many others have done it in the past.

Alexander Wang has the right idea about how to make quilting unique with the Alexander Wang Isis Frame Clutch. The classic motif reminds me a bit of what another famous Alexander (McQueen) has done for Fall, but Wang keeps the colors dark and the details industrial in order to tie the look back into his brand’s style.

The results of Wang’s foray into quilted texture are great, if a bit expensive for his bags’ usual prices. The clutch is big enough to serve as a suitable shoulder bag with the included chain strap or go without as a hand-held, and either way would be great. The more ways a woman can work a textural, visually intriguing bag like this into her wardrobe, the better. Buy through ShopBop for $1050.

Original post by Amanda Mull

When you look at the camouflage, fur and fringe that dominate Prada’s fall collection, it can be difficult to remember that Prada is a label whose bread and butter is basic, somewhat conservative leather bags. And yet, it’s true – year after year, these bags fly under the fashion radar but are picked up by thousands of women of every conceivable age and lifestyle to add a note of sophistication and luxury to their wardrobes.

Bags like the Prada Soft Calf Tote probably won’t be featured prominently in Vogue editorials or spotted on the arms of endless starlets, but they’re the bags that make Prada a great source for accessories year after year. While half of the line chases trends, the other half looks like this – the kind of bag that most women would love to have in their closets. Or at least the kind of bag that I’d love to have in mine.

This design doesn’t attempt to break new handbag ground, but it does recreate a traditional shape very well. The draped leather emphasizes the material’s pliable, soft texture, and the placement of the brand logo provides a touch of asymmetry to balance the luggage tag on the other side of the bag. At 13 inches wide and 11 inches high, the bag is a nice medium size that likely wouldn’t be too heavy for everyday use. As long as Prada keeps making bags like this one, I will never begrudge the brand some of its sillier offerings. Buy through Neiman Marcus for $1650.

Original post by Amanda Mull

Have you ever seen a bag in person, talked yourself out of buying it and then obsessed over it for months on end afterward, at which point it has become sold out and you can no longer get it? That’s the tragic story of me and the Celine Boston Tote.

I thought I had successfully put the bag out of my mind, but after seeing Leighton Meester carry hers two weeks ago and Tommy Ton’s great photos of Celine bags on Jak & Jil Blog (from whence the above picture came), my obsession is back to full power and it shows no signs of abating.

The bag is just…perfect. Oversized and attention-getting without being overworked or over-designed, classic but modern, graphic in its details but simple in shape. I’ve yet to see a color combination that I wouldn’t be proud to add to my closet, but the bicolor blue version in this photo has my heart the most. I don’t even like blue bags. How did Phoebe Philo manage to make me like blue?

My love for this bag defies both logic and budget, but the more I look at women carrying the Celine Boston Tote, the more I want to join their ranks. Depending on color combinations, the bag ranges from around $1800-$2500, and it’s sold out virtually everywhere. For more lovely pictures of women who are lucky enough to already have one, visit Jak & Jill Blog.

Original post by Amanda Mull

Despite any fun that I might have had at Versace’s expense in the past, I really, really want the brand to get through its growing pains and come out the other side making beautiful accessories. Few labels have the kind of global name recognition that Versace enjoys, and it would make the accessories market as a whole much richer for Versace to find its voice and become a real player in the handbag game. If it keeps making bags like the Versace Hilary Satchel, there’s hope for the brand yet.

Instead of the over-the-top, mismatched styling that we’ve seen from the brand in the past, this bag’s design has been edited down to just the parts necessary to keep some of the Versace attitude. Most of that comes by way of the round hardware motif that dots the front of the bag, but it doesn’t distract at all from the beautifully textured and glazed purple leather underneath. Instead of having multiple colors, patterns and types of hardware compete with each other, this bag’s elements all work work together.

It’s not often that I see a Versace bag and think, wow, I would totally be able to work that in to my wardrobe, but that’s exactly the reaction I had to this bag. Medium-to-dark purple is a rich color that looks great against black and grey for winter, and it provides a bit of color to an outfit without looking season-inappropriate during colder weather. The abundance of hardware is typical of the Versace aesthetic, but in this iteration it doesn’t take away from the beauty of the leather or compete with the overall design. It fits.

The bag also seems to be at least reasonably functional. I wish it was a tad deeper, but as it is the design should still offer plenty of interior room for your everyday stuff without getting too bulky or heavy. The only problem, of course, is the price. If Versace wants to spark renewed interest from skeptical bag buyers, they need to consider a significantly different price point. There’s no way that this bag costs over a thousand dollars more to manufacture or market than your average Chloé bag, and most buyers know it. Buy through Nordstrom for $3250.

Original post by Amanda Mull