No, we haven’t forgotten! We’ve been working on announcing the winner of our oh-so exclusive collaboration with Belen Echandia. We’ve collaborated with this amazing designer to bring you a gorgeous one-of-a-kind handbag. After you weighed in and voted, the bag was made, the giveaway was held and the winner was selected. Join me in congratulating Laura, from Colorado, who has won this amazing bag!

Ok, so you didn’t win, but you still want this amazing bag. No problem. Head over to Belen Echandia to get your very own exclusive Purse Blog/Belen Echandia handbag. This bag is made with exclusive TPF (the Purse Forum) tags and labels and as a tPF member, you will get 10% off your purchase. To order, if you haven’t already, you need to register over at the Belen Echandia website and then to group orders; add yourself to the group and order away! Pretty amazing, huh? Thanks again to all of you who have registered and of course, thanks to everyone who has made this possible over at Belen Echandia!

When we brought you the news that Hermes has its own crocodile breeding farm in Australia, most of you were rather appalled. Even with us loving exotic handbags, the story seemed to hit a nerve for many. We all knew PETA would hear about this and want to respond. And they did.

Here’s what PETA Senior Vice President Dan Mathews had to say: The thought of purposely breeding and killing crocodiles for an outdated, overpriced handbag should make any fashionista’s skin crawl. If Hermes really wants to be a leader in the fashion industry, it should stop killing animals for cold-blooded vanity and use cruelty-free mock croc and fake snake instead. As Pink—who recently provided the voice of a computer-generated crocodile in PETA’s “Stolen for Fashion” commercial—says, “Killing animals for their skins is so disgusting that it doesn’t make me want to befriend designers who use them.”

Has Pink never worn a leather bag? We all know that PETA does not love many designers and abhors Fashion Week, like when they raided the Cavalli runway show. And now they have it out for Hermes. I can understand them not loving the idea of a crocodile farm solely for exotic Hermes Bags, but I don’t see Hermes using mock croc or fake snake ever. What do you think?

[Story via PETA Blog]

The week is beginning to wind down. Let’s be honest, who doesn’t look forward to the weekend? I will be the first to say, I always look forward to the weekend! When I think of the weekend, I can’t help but think about which fabulous clutch I will carry out. For day four of our amazing giveaway with Luxaholics, there is a fabulous exotic clutch up for grabs. This Adriana Castro Crocodile Modish Clutch is a head turner. Retailing at $1530, what better way make this yours than by winning it!

Purse Blog Savvy adores the CC Skye Mimi Bag [PB Savvy]

A Must Read, Luxe Chat with Adriana Castro [via Luxaholics]

Last night in NYC the 2009 Independent Handbag Designer Awards took place. It was meant to be for Adriana Castro, as her Modish Clutch won Audience Fan Favorite in a category that had over 15,000 votes. Did you realize that today is the day we are giving away the Modish Clutch? It was not planned, but it could not be more fitting. We are so happy for Adriana Castro and her win last night! Make sure to enter to win the Adriana Castro Modish Clutch today. It is beyond amazing and I am envious of whoever will be the lucky winner!

I have to tell you about a handbag obsession of mine. To see a stamped suede finish off a bag that I already adore, my heart melts. I don’t know what it is about the soft touch and matte finish, but I have a weak spot for printed suede bags. One of the best brands to pull this off is Yves Saint Laurent . I am actually mad at myself that I did not splurge on the YSL Croc Muse Two which has two colors that I adore with a sueced croc pattern. I LOVE. And then this week on Purse Blog Amanda covered the Yves Saint Laurent Y-Bow Suede Bowler which stamped the suede to look like lizard skin.

Today I bring you another amazing option that brings you lizard-print suede on the longtime favorite Yves Saint Laurent Muse. The Muse is a classic YSL bag and it is easy to see why. YSL continuously brings us designs that stand out from others, like the rounded top on the Muse. I am not drawn toward brown bags, but I desperately want this bag in for my fall wardrobe. It is truly perfect for the autumn; brown, suede, exotic print. Sure, it wouldn’t work in Florida as well, but imagine a brisk fall day when the leaves are turning and you have this perfect bag. There are double handles, a zipper closure, and inside pockets. Buy through Saks for $1395.

Jimmy Choo is another of the major designers whose fall designs have started to trickle out a bit sooner than some of their brethren. And, from a public relations standpoint, it might have been a great idea for them to arrive a little early. I feel like we’ve all been looking at basically the same group of handbags on every website for the past few months – first at full price, now on sale. And I’ve got some fatigue of those designs, even at their newly lowered prices. I want something new.

And the Jimmy Choo Odette Tote is definitely something new, both for us and for the good folks at Choo. It’s decidedly more “biker” than any of their bags I’ve seen so far, what with the black pebbled leather and silver-hardware harness that stretches down the sides of the bag from the handle attachment in the front (can’t see it in this picture, but I promise it’s there! And it’s cool). I’m usually look at pebbled leather rather sneeringly, but here, I like it and it goes well with the industrial theme. It also doesn’t seem to sacrifice the bag’s slouch, as pebbling so often does, and a good bit of slouch is oh so important in my life. Buy through Saks for $2095.

You asked for it and Rebecca Minkoff complied. Really, what else could our devoted Minkettes ask for? (I know you all can think of something!). Rebecca Minkoff is actually getting married almost as we speak. Congratulation to Rebecca! A great way to celebrate is with her online sample sale. So maybe you didn’t make it to NYC, LA, SF, or DC, but we can all attend the online sample sale. I will be there, with my jammies on, ready to click if needed! The sale starts tonight at 9 P.M EST and you all are known to take down the Rebecca Minkoff site and servers. Who is ready to click away? After you buy, make sure to share what you get with the large group of Minkettes on tPF on the Sample Sale Thread!

Happy Hump Day. It is the middle of the week and the middle of our week of amazing giveaways. We love working with our friends over at Luxaholics and promise to keep bringing you other amazing giveaways like this! With your help, today, Adriana Castro has designed an amazing clutch that could be yours. The Adriana Castro Lizard Daisy Clutch is sleek, elegant and boasts just a bit of color to spice up your handbag collection. And if you think you like this one… just wait until you see what we have for you tomorrow and Friday!

As you have probably noticed, I adore structured bags. They have such an inherent sophistication in them, like someone plucked them out of some ancient photograph and spiced them up a bit, of course. This Alexander McQueen Izzie Clutch is the latest bag in this shape that I have found. I love the hardware, even if the gold is a little too gold-y for me, a tad too garish. It’s the shape I’m obsessed with. The clutch itself, on the other hand, is a different story.

The iridescent patent leather reminds me of one of those glow-in-the-dark frogs, but I obviously don’t want this on a purse. It’s the same color as McQueen’s Skull Clutch, which Shannon reviewed, but the color is considerably cuter on that clutch than on this one. And while I love the retro turn lock closure, it’s what is on the back of the bag that I’m not a fan of. Why is there a wrist strap on the back? I can understand having a thin wrist strap on the side, but why make it flush with the back? Oh McQueen, if only this clutch came in another (normal) color- without that strap. Buy through Zappos for $1527.