Hobos

I’m in a big Yves Saint Laurent mood lately, and I’m not sure why. Normally, I like things that are a bit weirder, a bit flashier, or just a bit more unexpected. Which is not to say that YSL is boring, but their aesthetic is normally just a bit more tailored and simple than my own.

I keep finding YSL bags that I really like in the past couple of weeks, however, and the Yves Saint Laurent Deerskin Hobo is the most recent. I even like the shade of almost-chocolate brown that they used, which is exceptionally odd for me, and possibly means that I need to lay down for a moment. But it seems like it would be usable in most people’s wardrobes (if not my own, which is exceptionally heavy in black) for a variety of occasions and for most of the year. The seaming at the ends gives the bag a slightly more interesting shape than your average small hobo and the small chain elements to the handle add a bit of visual interest as well. All in all, another solid effort from YSL. Buy through Bluefly for $895.99.

Botkier bags have been a longtime favorite of the Purse Blog team. There is a category for them on Purse Blog savvy which they so deserve but I still want to talk about them on Purse Blog sometimes as well. Amanda already covered the Botkier Venice Hobo on PB Savvy and now I am here on Purse Blog to share my love of this bag with you as well.

Let the lusting begin. The Botkier Venice Hobo is designed with smooth supple leather. The leather from Botkier is amazing, this I can attest to. Ample front zippers and tassels add an extra dimension that looks super chic. The hobo will fit perfectly under your arm and not rub right under your arm with the 9″ drop. All sorts of pockets are on the inside for storage as well, a zip and three open pockets. And this hobo is extra roomy, dimensions are 16″W X 13″H X 2½”D. I love this bag. A yellow version for $595 at Nordstrom is available (they have a magnificent yellow hue) or opt for black or caramel (which is my pick) at Saks for $595.

The first thing that struck me about the Jimmy Choo Lucy Hobo was the name – Lucy! My parents have a seven-month-old English Bulldog puppy named Lucy that is just about the most adorable and aggravating little thing in the world, and whenever I hear the name I think of her. That’s neither here nor there, but everyone loves a puppy, right?

As far as the bag goes, I find it a little aggravating as well. I like the idea, and I like the theory behind the leather’s finish – what I don’t like is the execution. The stamped pattern and shininess seem a little too glam for the color, shape and hardware that were used. When I think about a brown bag, I want something casual with a soft, maybe even slightly rugged, finish. I want the leather too look like it’s been worn in and worked like a baseball glove, and what Jimmy Choo has done here just doesn’t seem quite right to me. Keep the hardware, keep the color, keep the hobo shape, maybe make the body of the bag a little larger, and lose the stamping and shiny finish. The flap is a little big and triangular, but that’s kind of a minor point. Follow that prescription, and they’d have a mighty fine bag indeed. Buy through Net-a-Porter for $1495.

Excuse me for a moment while I gush a bit.

Black hobos are largely boring. Take a general-use bag shape, combine it with a neutral color and expected material, and usually you get something without much personality or style. One of the hardest things to do in fashion is to take a basic and make it even the least bit extraordinary, and I think that that may be what the Katherine Fleming Bradbury Hobo is. It’s a black hobo with just enough personality to be stylish and interesting, and the patent trim is unique enough that people will notice it without being so gaudy that it makes the bag look cheap. Also, it avoids a pitfall that a lot of bags with flashy trim unfortunately don’t – the main leather on the bag doesn’t look like an afterthought. It’s smooth, soft-looking, and looks like it would be nice enough to carry a bag without any fun extras. But in this bag, you get the best of both worlds, and you also get a neutral bag with lots of personality – a rare find indeed. Buy through Barneys for $1550.

It took me a second to understand the name of the Alexander McQueen Clover Hobo. My thought process went something like this: well, it’s not green. It’s not printed. It’s not in the shape of a clover. So wha….oh. I see it. Do you see it? Did you see it quicker than I did? What does that say about me?

Anyway, for the folks like me that aren’t feeling quick on the uptake today: The black patent trim forms a large four-leaf clover shape on the supple cream leather. See it now? Yep, that’s what I thought. Kind of interesting, right? Because it’s not too literal at all, and there’s nothing that would irritate me more than having something really obvious like a piece of foliage stuck to the front. McQueen is a better designer than that, and I think this bag proves it. It may not be your cup of tea – I don’t particularly think that it’s mine – but it is well designed and the materials look incredibly lush on close-up. If I could have everything in my house, including my pillows, upholstered in that cream leather, I would die a happy girl. Buy through Zappos for $1999.

I’ve had mostly positive things to say about Dolce & Gabanna bags lately, but I just can’t get behind the Dolce & Gabanna Miss Dalia Hobo. My problems with it are similar to those of a bag of which we’ve spoken recently – the Jimmy Choo Metallic Hobo.

They obviously look nothing alike, but I can’t help but feel that this bag might be an afterthought as well. At they very least, it’s perilously under-designed and without much personality. There’s a bit of animal print, a bit of exotic leather, a bunch of suede…so how, exactly, did the folks at Dolce manage to make that boring? And not just boring, but also, possibly, a bit 90s. Particularly for it’s hefty price tag (almost two grand – egad!), this bag just isn’t cutting it. It’s too simple and lacks creativity. Next. Buy through Saks for $1995.

It’s really a shame that the one time Jimmy Choo makes a bag that doesn’t cost a bazillion dollars, it’s as bland and kinda cheap-looking. The Jimmy Choo Metallic Hobo has very little personality – one of its only points of visual interest is a simple exposed seam down the middle that holds together the two big pieces of leather. And it’s not even a contrast-stitched seam.

Perhaps its just the color, but does the leather look super thin and maybe a bit vinyl-like to anyone else? Maybe sorta like the PVC that they makes Target bags out of? Because that’s how it’s reading to me, and there is no situation in which that is a compliment to the bag. And if they’re going to have a bag this simple (read: boring) then they’ve really got to bring their A-game as far as leather goes, don’t you think? Gorgeous, thick, smooshy leather could have saved them and gotten a good review, particularly at this price point. But this bag looks entirely like an afterthought, and who wants to pay a grand for that? Buy through Saks for $1095.

Oh, Versace. Just when we start to get into the summer fashion blahs when nothing new is coming out, another one of their ridiculous bag appears and we have something to talk about yet again.

In the grand scheme of things, for this brand in particular, the Versace Leather Flap Hobo isn’t terrible. It can actually be used as a handbag. It will hold things. You can put it on your arm. Which in some cases, for Versace, is a progress. It’s a bit overdone, because of course it is, and it’s got some sort of red patent wings or something hanging off the front. They appear to serve no purpose, because of course they don’t. And this particular bag is both patent and regular leather, which is particularly hard when using red since the pigments render so differently on the two materials. They got fairly close, though. Kudos. I mean, not exactly the same, but not hugely different. But the gaudy gold hardware spells out their name in big block letters and the flaps are nonsensical as I already mentioned, and the price is insulting, because of course it is. It’s Versace. Buy through Saks for $2470.

When it comes to shoulder bags, particularly hobos, it’s fairly well-documented that I have a penchant for slouch. I like things soft and even a bit saggy when it comes to that type of purse, and my taste rarely deviates from that. When you look at handbags for the majority of your day, you come of with different theories of what makes a good bag and what doesn’t work for particular shapes, and while none of those ideas is monolithic, I rarely find myself digging something that deviates far from my own personal bag ideals. The Roger Vivier Faceted Python Hobo is one very, very notable exception however.

Vivier is not known for slouch or shapelessness, and this bag is a highly structural hobo that uses its panels to highlight the differences in the python skins used and the colors featured. I’m still on the fence about the colors used (I love the red and white, but would have preferred another bright to the beige/grey), but I love the structure and differentiation between the panels, and this bag may make more of a high-fashion statement than any that I have seen recently. Buy through Luisa Via Roma for €2900.

In general, I really don’t like so-called “neutral bags.” The leather has to be truly special, the design truly innovative and beautiful for me to look at one twice, and if it’s not, I bore really easily. My aversion is a result of the belief that there are so many bags out there made in so many beautiful colors, why would anyone choose one in a color that is supposed to, by definition, blend in and hide?

But when I do like a neutral, that neutral is almost always some version of pewter or gunmetal, and the Burberry Metallic Leather Hobo is a great example of that color. It’s not a bright silver at all – it has a lot of grey in it, but enough shine and innate glimmer to make it decidedly glam and metallic. I can see it going with almost anything, but I can’t imagine it blending in and hiding at all, as the “neutral” moniker would indicate. So if you’re going to do something neutral, please do something with at least a LITTLE BIT of a kick. Buy through Nordstrom for $1795.