Custom Design

As I mentioned last week, finally, oh finally, the retail stores are stocking their shelves with all sorts of amazing new handbags. My must-have bag of the day has to be the Michael Kors Skorpios Pleated Crescent Hobo. I’d like to even say that it could be my bag pick of the week, but seeing as though it is Monday, I don’t want to jump the gun yet.

All I do know is that this bag is a staple, a must-have, a classic.

For being a girl who loves simple, understated elegance it might seem a little odd that I only own one black handbag. To me, black handbags are like little black dresses, you might have one you use more than another, but you can never have enough.

I’ve been in the market for a new black bag for quite some time now and I’ve already put this bag on my list. It was the pleated body that initially caught my attention. But, it was the single braided shoulder strap and goldtone hardware that locked me in. The dimensions are pretty nice too: 16″W X 11″H X 3½”D and 11″ drop. Of course, there is plenty of room, but at the same time, the bag isn’t overwhelming. In fact, even if you are a petite woman, this bag won’t overwhelm you. Buy through Saks for $795.

Original post by Shannon Mahoney

Valentine’s Day is around the corner and I am thrilled! Not only am I a sucker for a day devoted to telling those close to you that you love them, but also my anniversary is a week later. February really is a month filled with love. One of our favorite designers, Tory Burch, teamed up with renowned artist Leanne Shapton to design an exclusive collection of items for Valentine’s Day. The collection is made up of cosmetic cases, totes and pajama sets.

The collaboration resulted in two prints, the watercolor Tory logo and the lips prints. Both are done in hues of red, perfectly suited for Valentine’s day. My pick goes to the lips print (I ordered the pajama set yesterday!) though the watercolor Tory print has a colorful whimsical touch.

The tote is perfect to use for multiple occasions. The body of the bag is canvas with leather trim. On the inside there are two interior pockets. The cosmetic case makes for a great gift as well! It is also canvas with leather trim and a cut out logo at the center.

Buy the totes via Tory Burch for $195 and cosmetic cases for $55.

The pajama sets I adore! I have always had an affinity to long arm and leg button up pj sets. All I want to do is wear my pajamas and sit in front of a fire with a mug of hot chocolate. AMAZING. The pajama sets are 100% cotton.

Buy via Tory Burch for $125.

Log on Valentine’s Day for an exclusive follow up to this post!

Original post by Megs Mahoney Dusil

Valentine’s Day is around the corner and I am thrilled! Not only am I a sucker for a day devoted to telling those close to you that you love them, but also my anniversary is a week later. February really is a month filled with love. One of our favorite designers, Tory Burch, teamed up with renowned artist Leanne Shapton to design an exclusive collection of items for Valentine’s Day. The collection is made up of cosmetic cases, totes and pajama sets.

The collaboration resulted in two prints, the watercolor Tory logo and the lips prints. Both are done in hues of red, perfectly suited for Valentine’s day. My pick goes to the lips print (I ordered the pajama set yesterday!) though the watercolor Tory print has a colorful whimsical touch.

The tote is perfect to use for multiple occasions. The body of the bag is canvas with leather trim. On the inside there are two interior pockets. The cosmetic case makes for a great gift as well! It is also canvas with leather trim and a cut out logo at the center.

Buy the totes via Tory Burch for $195 and cosmetic cases for $55.

The pajama sets I adore! I have always had an affinity to long arm and leg button up pj sets. All I want to do is wear my pajamas and sit in front of a fire with a mug of hot chocolate. AMAZING. The pajama sets are 100% cotton.

Buy via Tory Burch for $125.

Log on Valentine’s Day for an exclusive follow up to this post!

Original post by Megs Mahoney Dusil

Believe it or not, Valentine’s Day is just around the corner. I am a fan of the day of romance, in spite of the overblown commercialism. A true romantic at heart I adore all things pink, girly, and sweet – but all in good taste of course. And even better if there is an edge to the sweetness! Can you say Lanvin? Well I’ve scouted out some heart inspired handbags and accessories to get in the mood for Valentine’s Day. I’d much rather receive a handbag than perfume or candy, wouldn’t you?

Tory Burch Nylon Ella tote, (top left, $195 at Net-a-Porter) is perfect for weekend getaways or even as a gym tote. It is made of nylon which makes it light and travel friendly. Embellished with a turquoise and plum leopard-print heart appliqué on the front, this over-sized tote features two patent top handles and base corners. Inside you’ll find two zipped pockets and a stone canvas lining.

The petite and sweet Mulberry Heart Zip Purse (top right, $125 at Mulberry) makes a noteworthy gift for your sister or BFF. It is lined with a grosgrain fabric. From Marc by Marc Jacobs is a nylon printed heart tote, (middle right,$150 at Shopbop). The multicolored ditzy print shopper tote folds into a compact pocket inside the applique heart.

From Burberry a patent leather heart keyring (bottom, $85 at Net-a-Porter). The keyring has pewter-tone hardware and a heart charm. It would make a perfectly charm-ing Valentine’s for a loved one as well.

Another heart-inspired design from Marc by Marc Jacobs is the ‘Party Girl’ Heart Appliqué Clutch, (bottom left, $248 at Nordstrom). A scattering of fringe-edge hearts add a whimsical touch to a satiny clutch handbag embellished with MJ embossed studs. Any picks of these would make a special Valentine’s gift indeed.

What is on your wishlist for Valentine’s Day?

via The Find

Original post by Shannon Mahoney

Believe it or not, Valentine’s Day is just around the corner. I am a fan of the day of romance, in spite of the overblown commercialism. A true romantic at heart I adore all things pink, girly, and sweet – but all in good taste of course. And even better if there is an edge to the sweetness! Can you say Lanvin? Well I’ve scouted out some heart inspired handbags and accessories to get in the mood for Valentine’s Day. I’d much rather receive a handbag than perfume or candy, wouldn’t you?

Tory Burch Nylon Ella tote, (top left, $195 at Net-a-Porter) is perfect for weekend getaways or even as a gym tote. It is made of nylon which makes it light and travel friendly. Embellished with a turquoise and plum leopard-print heart appliqué on the front, this over-sized tote features two patent top handles and base corners. Inside you’ll find two zipped pockets and a stone canvas lining.

The petite and sweet Mulberry Heart Zip Purse (top right, $125 at Mulberry) makes a noteworthy gift for your sister or BFF. It is lined with a grosgrain fabric. From Marc by Marc Jacobs is a nylon printed heart tote, (middle right,$150 at Shopbop). The multicolored ditzy print shopper tote folds into a compact pocket inside the applique heart.

From Burberry a patent leather heart keyring (bottom, $85 at Net-a-Porter). The keyring has pewter-tone hardware and a heart charm. It would make a perfectly charm-ing Valentine’s for a loved one as well.

Another heart-inspired design from Marc by Marc Jacobs is the ‘Party Girl’ Heart Appliqué Clutch, (bottom left, $248 at Nordstrom). A scattering of fringe-edge hearts add a whimsical touch to a satiny clutch handbag embellished with MJ embossed studs. Any picks of these would make a special Valentine’s gift indeed.

What is on your wishlist for Valentine’s Day?

via The Find

Original post by Guest Blogger

As an ode to the iconic 2.55 Chanel handbag there are a number of handbags incorporating this the quilting trend. Quilted handbags feature various patterns primarily stitched onto leather. Many of the Marc Jacobs handbags incorporate quilting into the styling of the bag as well.

Quilting can also be seen on accessories like this Stella McCartney Wide Quilted Waist Belt (upper left on model, $525 at Net-a-Porter) and of course winter puffer jackets. Embroidered patterns are laid out in vertical and horizontal patterns overlap to create diamond or other patterns that add dimension and texture.

We’ve spotted some of our favorite styles that incorporate the quilting trend. Juicy Couture’s Serena Quilted Duffel Tote (upper right, $198.00 at ShopBop.com) is constructed of nylon and has plenty of room to store your essentials inside 3 zip front pockets and two interior patch pockets. The double rolled handles; ruffled banding and Juicy Couture logo charm give this bag a youthful appeal.

Already on its way to becoming a classic, the Marc Jacobs Women’s Quilted Bruna Satchel (middle right, $1,295.00 at Bloomingdales.com) is shown in black leather and features double handles and gold tone accent hardware. This quilted handbag is tied up with a front belt accent, Marc Jacobs logo, zips closed and is embellished with a faux gold tone turnlock.

Balmain’s runway looks continue their influential appeal with this Mat quilted leather bag (bottom right, $1,915 at Net-a-Porter), which is quilted in Italy and assembled by hand in France. Tory Burch’s wearable modern classics are inspired by the designer’s globetrotter adventures. The Tory Burch Quilted Nico Tote, (bottom left, $295.00 at ToryBurch.com) is made of coated quilted poplin. Options for handles include both cross body and dual leather handles. Inside you’ll find two pockets and one side zip pocket just the right size for stashing your keys, phone and other essentials.

via The Find

Original post by Guest Blogger

Ombré is, admittedly, a really difficult thing to pull off. It has to be the correct color transition, done in the correct shades, and with the correct depth of color. I’m not sure why the good people at Miu Miu thought that this would be a good thing to try and do with giant sequins on a tiny bag, then, but I can tell you that the Miu Miu Ombré Paillette-Embellished Clutch does not work out as well as they probably intended.

It’s not that I don’t see what they were trying to do here – I do. But on a super squat bag, three colors of sequins does not ombré make. It just makes six rows (two of each) of similarly colored paillettes. The effect is completely lost because there’s no slow and gradual transition, and the paillettes themselves are all solid-colored. If they had had an ombré effect as well, things might have gone more smoothly.

Not only that, but the paillettes look rather sloppily attached and arranged. Forming a larger overall pattern with movable objects relies pretty heavily on the ability of the designer to keep them looking neat and organized, and that doesn’t really happen here. Plus, when a sequin moves out of turn, it reflects light different than the rest and further hinders the ability of this clutch to look ombré in the least. Overall, this is not an evening bag I would actually pay money to own. Buy through Net-a-Porter for $950.

Original post by Amanda Mull

As a slavish fan of the Tom Ford era at Gucci, I’ve got to say that Spring 2010 is easily the best collection we’ve seen from current designer Frida Giannini.

Instead of the girly, at times hippie-chic clothes that have come out of her tenure at the company so far, what we saw this season was modern, athletic, and a tad science fiction. Normally those would be words from which I would shy away as descriptors of beautiful clothing, but the high-waist leggings, voluminous jackets and body-conscious dresses make sci fi chic and aspirational – if only Ra’mon from Project Runway had made something like this on last week’s episode, he might not have been auf’d.

But he didn’t, and Frida did, because there’s a reason that she’s employed by one of the largest and most recognizable luxury brands in the world. She started, as has proven popular this season, with white (it would be a full nine looks before another color appeared) and slowly moved herself into light greys before going for bolder books in black, orange, and even a little bit of pink. Print was limited mostly to ikat here and there on smart shift dresses, and the majority of looks were solid and neutral.

But the glut of monochromatic looks didn’t mean there wasn’t texture to spare – stretch jersey was paired with athletic nylon and mesh, delectably dyed crocodile was seen alongside macrame straps and accents. But even when you consider the numerous competing materials, the clothes had a distinct sense of wearability about them – many of those pieces could have come directly off the runway and gone straight out onto the street on the back of an editor or fashionista. It was evident that Giannini had done a consummate job making her sporty, sci-fi fantasy into something couched in real-world elegance.

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Images via style.com

Original post by Amanda Mull

I’d like to say, first and foremost, that I have no problem with eccentricity. Particularly in fashion, the desire to be willfully different is what finds new trends and charts new territory. It’s what keeps things going. Without eccentricity, we’d all be wearing sensible shoes and toting around our belongings in canvas grocery bags. And there’s nothing fun about either of those things.

But there’s also usually a problem with creating eccentricity for its own sake, which appears to be what was done with the Dolce & Gabbana Miss Charleston Chain Flap Bag. And I think we can all tell that it didn’t work out particularly well.

The best fashion trends come from the cool kids. And I’m not talking about the popular kids in high school – I mean the kids that looked different, that wore things you’d never think of wearing, and that are authentically cool despite doing precisely what they felt like. They existed in a universe that was sort of parallel to the normal popularity structure, and they probably will for the rest of their lives. Many of those girls go on to be “fashion people.” They’re tastemakers, it’s part of their personality. They’re the reason that Alexander Wang is selling handbags hand over fist right now.

But instead of embracing trends that come organically from people that are cool enough to make trends, Dolce & Gabbana appears to have simply decided to make something weird for the sake of being weird, which doesn’t really work. I don’t think I’ve ever said this before, but I think I could actually make this bag myself, given the proper tools. All it appears to be is woven grosgrain ribbon (the weaving isn’t even particularly straight) and some beads stuck in the chain, and perhaps it’s presumptuous of me to think that I could recreate it, but I don’t really see why I couldn’t. And even if I could, I wouldn’t want to. But rest assured, if I did, I wouldn’t charge anyone $2600 for it. Buy through Nordstrom for $2595.

Original post by Amanda Mull

One company that appears to be paying absolutely no attention to fall trends is Versace. And why would we expect them to? They pay no attention to good taste or reasonable pricing standards, so this is about par for the course.

Objectively, the Versace Socialite Satchel is not a terrible Bag. It’s perfectly fine. But it is completely tone deaf when compared to what else is going on in fashion right now. And, as always, the price is astronomical.

But first, does anyone else feel like Versace might be reaching a little bit when they name the bag the “Socialite Satchel.” Sort of like the fashion industry version of “If we build it, they will come?” It’s been ages since I saw a celebrity or socialite wearing one of their bags, if ever, and the name seems more hopeful than realistic.

But if they want to make an It-Bag, they’re going to have to try harder. The color of this bag is nice, as are the bold hardware details at the handle attachments, but I’m just not loving anything else. I want slouch and style, not insane rigidity and over-designed pockets. If they could take some of the elements here and work them into something that feels more relevant to current styles, they may have a huge winner. As it is, I’m unmoved, and certainly unimpressed with the price. Buy through Nordstrom for $3600.

Original post by Amanda Mull