As we wait for Fall 2009 bag collection to slowly (really slowly) hit stores, some collections are bound to come out earlier than others. In the past few days, a number of new Burberry bags have been popping up around the Internet, so if you see a lot of them in the near future, that’s why.

One of my favorites of the new crop is the Burberry Metallic Leather Hobo. It’s well-documented that dark silver or pewter is my favorite of all the metallics and probably my favorite neutral, and this is a great example. It has a great shimmer without being too shiny and over-the-top like lighter silvers can tend to be, and it would work well in any kind of weather. Also, I’m usually very anti-logo, but I think the way that Burberry subtly embossed their signature plaid into the soft leather is really creative – it gives the bag a bit of branding and visual interest all wrapped in one. If you’re looking for a slightly glam neutral for fall, I’d go ahead and pick this one up. Buy through Nordstrom for $1795.

Tom Hanks and Rita Wilson’s son, Colin Hanks, recently got engaged to publicist Samantha Bryant. And what did Rita Wilson give her future daughter-in-law? A $10,000 handbag to congratulate her. Initially a Hermes Birkin comes to mind, but there are many other handbags that she could have purchased. Not too shabby a gift. I definitely did not get a $10,000 handbag when Vlad and I got engaged, but I must say that gift is totally out of the ordinary. As is having your in-laws be Tom Hanks and Rita Wilson. What guesses do you have on the gift from Rita to Samantha?

[Story via NY Post]

Not a lot of news to report on this subject, but I thought you ladies might enjoy seeing a picture of what’s to come from my personal favorite clutch designer – the Celestina Cruise 2010 Collection.

One of Celestina’s strong suits is making clutches out of unexpected, non-traditional materials. Most handbag designers limit themselves to animal skins and maybe some straw or canvas, but beyond that, there’s little creativity. Well, not these folks. They specialize in using materials like wood, shell, and metals to craft incredibly inventive, stylish little bags for every occasion that you could imagine.

Here we have two excellent examples – first, their famous woven box clutch in what appears in be a new bronze iteration (they’ve done sterling silver in the past). The clutch is simultaneously subtle and complicated, a combination that is incredibly hard to achieve. The second clutch appears to be a completely new design, probably made out of sterling silver, which appears to have beautiful, glowing mother of pearl on the bottom. These clutches are typical of the Celestina aesthetic and I can’t wait to see what else they have in store in future collections.

Photo via WWD.com

Ask anyone that knows me (including Megs and Vlad) – I’ve never had much of a problem forming an opinion. About pretty much anything, in fact. I was captain of the debate team in high school. I took lots of comparative lit classes in college because their assignments usually involved forming an opinion on a book and then arguing it in a paper. My life is exceedingly wordy and over-articulated. I talk too much.

Having said all of that, I can’t decide for the life of me what I think about the Yves Saint Laurent Y-Bow Suefe Bowler. I’m in a Yves Saint Laurent mood lately, partly because I like the way that they unconventionally combine materials and textures in some of their recent bags. I like that they stamped suede to look like lizard skin here, it’s a technique that most designers wouldn’t use in this combination. I also think that I might like the little bow ends coming out of each side, but I’m not sure. It might not work, and I have no idea how to decide if it does or not. As with the texture, I like that it’s unexpected, but instead of doing something interesting with the bag’s form or structure, it’s just a stuck-on decoration to a basic satchel. But maybe I’m okay with that – I just can’t decide. Buy through Neiman Marcus for $1695.

I have to tell you, this is a feat that I don’t think I EVER imagined would happen. Back in 2005 Vlad and I started Purse Blog as a fun side project after my career ending sports injury and attempt to find something ‘new’ to do. Both Vlad and I wanted something to work on together and that ended up being Purse Blog. We never imagined our site would grow to be what it is today, reaching over 20,000 visitors everyday. After we started the blog Vlad introduced me to the idea of a forum. I had never been on an online discussion board but I thought it would be great idea to have a place for other handbag lovers to convene. A month after we started the Purse Forum we had 200 members.

Now, less than four years after we started the Purse Forum, which has become known as tPF, we are nearing our 200,000th member. This number is beyond staggering, beyond amazing, and we are so thrilled to be part of such an amazing forum. While hugely vast in size, there is still a close knit community which has become one of the most active forums on the web. The importance of tPF in the handbag and fashion community continues to come to life every day, with more designers and companies realizing the impact of the forum. For us, the entire journey is something we have loved every minute of, no matter how many Nike Shoe spammers hit our forum at the wee hours of the morning (really, what is up with them?!).

Thank you to every single one of you who visits our blog, visits our forum, and helps us continue to grow to be the leading source in handbags and fashion. Who knows how quickly the 200,000th member will come now, I am thinking to pull an all-nighter with a bag of popcorn and celebrate this monumental moment!

Again, thank you to every one of you who make this blog and forum what it is!

♥ The Purse Blog and Purse Forum Team
Megs, Vlad, Shannon, Amanda, Anna, Amanda (Swanky Mama of Three), and the entire Mod team!

We have teamed up with many designers over the years to bring you exclusive information, giveaways, and bags. Working with Bottega Veneta in the past few weeks to bring you exclusive information on a product launch is not only exciting but something from our dreams. Known for its supple woven leather, Bottega Veneta has garnered a worldwide audience of fans. While their bags are stylish and on many must-have lists, one thing Bottega Veneta avoids is being known for seasonal trendy bags.

Today we are bringing you an exclusive product launch, a style from Bottega Veneta that you know well in a color that blends purple, taupe and pink perfectly. From the fall/winter 2009 line, the Bottega Veneta Lilac Campana symbolizes everything the brand is known for; beauty, timelessness, and impeccable craftsmanship. The shape of this bag seems light and feminine, just as the bag actually is. While the interior is roomy and has a cell phone holder and side zipped pocket, the size of the bag is not overwhelmingly large or underwhelmingly small. Touching this woven lambskin reels you in, as I have said time and time again Bottega Veneta picks the most amazing leathers and has the best implementation of weaving the leather together.

More on the Bottega Veneta Lilac Campana...

This week is going to be absolutely amazing. If you are anything like me, you might have just finished a weekend where you couldn’t wait for Monday to begin. While this doesn’t happen much, I could hardly wait for today and the kick-off of our new giveaway. We’ve partnered with our fashionably fabulous friends over at Luxaholics to co-host a five-day long exotic handbag giveaway!

As you may know, exotic handbag designer, Adriana Castro has not only supplied handbags for this giveaway, but she’s actually custom designed and constructed the bags that are up for grabs!

Wondering how everything will work? Each day from 9AM EST through 8:59 AM EST the following day (24 hours) you will have the chance to enter that day’s giveaway. You will need to provide the secret code which will be found in that day’s Purse Blog post when entering over at Luxaholics. Only one entry per person/per day. Of course you can enter each day during the Week of Exotic Handbag Giveaways! A winner will be randomly selected and notified within 24 hours following that day’s giveaway.

So, what’s up today? An absolutely gorgeous Adriana Castro Crocodile Cosmetic Case. One of the best things about this bag, is that depending on what your needs are, you can use it as a cosmetic case or a clutch! Personally, I’d tote this beautiful bag as much as possible, so for me, it would be a clutch. Retailing at over $400, this exclusive bag is something that would add class and sophistication to anyone’s collection!

This bag is not just about being Eco Friendly, but it is for a great cause. Bergdorf Goodman just launched Lauren Bush’s newest FEED bag exclusively. The FEED 2 Kenya bag will help feed 2 people for one whole year for each bag sold.

Each FEED 2 Kenya Bag will feed two Kenyan kids in school for one year. The bag will cost $100 which is a donation to the United Nations World Food Programme’s School Feeding operations in Kenya. The FEED Kenya Bag is handcrafted by a coop of women in Kenya featuring colorful beading. The materials may not be worth $100, but the point of the bag is to donate to support the kids in Kenya while also supporting women artisans in Kenya. This bag is being sold exclusively at Bergdorf Goodman.

Read more about the FEED 2 Kenya Bag...

While we patiently await for fall bags to stock up at our favorite vendors, we are enjoying the sale season as well! Net A Porter has added an additional 20% off all sale items from designers like Chloe, Bottega Veneta, and Jimmy Choo. The deals are amazing! Hurry over quickly, or else you will miss it.

According to a graphic design professor I had in college, the vast majority of the US population chooses blue as their favorite color, and it’s relatively uncommon to find someone that chooses differently. Before she shared this factoid with us, she went around the room and asked everyone in the twenty-person class what color they liked best. Indeed, 19 people said blue. I was the lone holdout – my favorite color has been red for a long, long time (when I was very little, it was black). And not just any red – more specifically, scarlet. Not quite dark enough to be maroon, but darker and richer than a fire engine. I am endlessly in search of bags (and anything else) that fit this criteria, and in my experience, a good red bag is unfortunately hard to find.

Which is why I was so pleased to see the brand new Burberry Leather Satchel. Because of the nature of red pigmentation, in can be really difficult to get a rich color on leather and red bags often lack the pop that I desire. Not so with this purse, though – the red is deep and lovely (patent or glazed red bags usually have better luck getting this effect) and the bag’s design is simple enough to show off the great color. The hardware details are also great, but not overdone – the chain and the handle attachment are both subtly imprinted with Burberry’s signature check pattern. Buy through Nordstrom for $895.