It’s wartime in Europe again. Well, sort of. Let me explain. It’s wartime in Milan, and on Miuccia Prada’s runway in particular. Forget the 80s-inspired neon club excess that we saw on New York’s runways – Prada isn’t going clubbing anytime soon. The shapes and materials alike in Prada Fall/Winter 2009 reminded me of World War II movies as soon as I laid eyes upon them, and the reference is as overt as the 80s redux shown by Marc Jacobs. There are rich tweeds in neutral grey and brown, cinched at the waist with thin brown belts. The shoulders and fall of the skirts are strongly 1940s reminiscent, and even the beaded pieces have an austerity that reminds one of a world torn apart by war in Western Europe.

Keep reading...

I’m in the mood for a picnic today. We somehow managed to get seven inches of snow last weekend, out of nowhere, and that’s more snow than has ever fallen where I live. It was 60 degrees the day before the snow fell, and now, less than a week later, the temperature is in the 70s and the sun is shining. Because of the shade that my front porch gets during the day, it’s still covered in 2 or 3 inches of snow and ice, despite the fact that all I want to do is go to the park and sit in the grass and feel the sun. And the Bottega Veneta Boston Intrecciato Tote looks like a picnic to me. The orange check pattern would probably be picnic-y even on flat leather, but when you add the extra visual element of Bottega’s signature woven construction, there is just enough depth to really remind me of the ever-present outdoor tablecloths (but in a good way). The intricate texture of pattern-on-pattern limits the number of ways this bag could be worn, but if extra cash on hand wasn’t a problem, it seems like it would be a lot of fun to pair with something solid-colored…I’m picturing a royal blue linen sundress for a bit of contrast. Buy through Net-a-Porter for $2350.

If you have been reading our website, you will know that Vlad is a major photography buff. A lover of the art of photography, we even transformed our guest room into an office and photo studio for the man behind Purse Blog. Designers send us bags to review and shoot, which has been an exciting adventure for us. When it came time to pick a wedding photographer, Vlad, of course, was very hands on. We would not settle for anything less than amazing when it came to the photography, and we ended up with more than we could ask for. After asking around, researching like crazy, and examining work, we ended up choosing Jeff Kolodny as our photographer.

Jeff’s work wowed us from his previous jobs and has blown us away for our own wedding. There will be hundreds of other photos he will be showing us to add to our album, but we got a first look at Jeff’s work from our wedding today. Being able to capture true feeling, emotion, and beauty in every photo, Jeff Kolodny photos amaze us. An array of photos from our wedding day can be found at Jeff Kolodny Photography. And as shown above, Jeff knew about my love of handbags and he integrated my Hermes Kelly Longue into many of our photos, which is ever-so-perfectly-fitting.

Thank you to Jeff and his wife Robin for their amazing work. Not only do we love it, but I know all of the handbag loving world will appreciate my Hermes bag being part of our wedding day!

Friday, oh glorious Friday. I pretty much love everything about Fridays. I love looking back and reflecting on the week, thinking about what I might do over the weekend and of course knowing that I will have some time to kick back and relax. And just because I say kick back and relax, I don’t mean that I just sit at home and watch tv (although, there are several weekends where that is beyond perfect). If I was in the NYC area this weekend, I know one thing I would most definitely attend would have to be the exclusive event being held at Henri Bendel. On Saturday, March 7th from 1pm – 4pm, not only can you shop for a new Botkier handbag, but you can also meet the fabulous Creative Director, Monica Botkier! That’s right, stop by the store between those hours, get your shopping fix while meeting an amazing designer. Doesn’t that sound like a great weekend activity? Head over to Botkier to get a head start on picking out which Botkier might be your next!

And now, in “Things That Cost Way More Than is Reasonable” news, we have the Versace Croc-Stamped Clutch. Is it an actual exotic? No, no, it’s stamped. So it’s regular leather like every other bag you own. Hmm. Well, is it big? No, it’s a clutch. A clutch-sized clutch. Ok. Well is the design really interesting or innovative? No, it’s just a regular pleated leather bag with a standard chain strap like most clutches have. It’s got a metal handle, but I’m not thrilled. And I’m not saying I don’t like it – I do! It’s cute! It’s couple-hundred-bucks cute, though. And when has Versace priced anything but a t-shirt in the couple-hundred-bucks price range? Certainly not a bag. And this bag, my dear bag friends, started out at a whopping two grand. Even thinking about is giving me a headache like you wouldn’t believe. Thankfully, the reasonable folks at eLuxury have had the good sense to knock about $800 off the starting price, but still. That’s $1200 for a completely unspectacular clutch (and the leather looks a little fake-y. Just sayin’). We all pay exorbitant prices for our bags, but this might border on insulting. Buy through eLuxury for $1239.

My first reaction when I looked at the Dolce & Gabanna Miss Sicily Snakeskin Handbag was that it didn’t look anything like a Dolce & Gabbana handbag. At least not the ones that have come out most recently – they’ve all looked like ruffly garbage bags or been in various color of lamé. I won’t say that’s a bad thing – I kind of like the ruffly garbage bags – but it’s certainly different than what we see here. The Dolce & Gabbana Miss Sicily Snakeskin Handbag Miss Sicily is the exact opposite of a ruffly anything. Its lines are so rigid, just looking at it makes my back hurt, and I’m pretty sure that I could fend off an attacker with it quite quickly. That’s not to say I don’t like it, because I do; it would dress up jeans and a white button-down quite nicely, and snakeskin is my favorite neutral material of all time. Go ahead, try and think of something snakeskin, in one form or another, wouldn’t match. And this skin in particular is gorgeous – it’s textured with tons of tiny scales that really deserve some time spent with Nordstrom’s zoom feature. Seeing this makes me really wish that Hermes would consider expanding their snakeskin offerings in the future. Pre-order through Nordstrom for $2475.

I know I mentioned it before, but last year I had the chance to meet lovely and talented Laura and Sheila of Treesje. Their combination of creativity, business savvy, wit and charm were instantly picked up on. As I walked into their office, I sat down and felt instantly at ease. After a few minutes it was as if I was talking to friends I’ve known for years. The story behind how their brand got started and morphed into what it is today is classic. They met at the wedding of a mutual friend, became friends, became co-founders, launched a brand, and have been making customers happy and eager to carry their bags ever since. In fact, you might remember the initial Treesje Interview we brought you a while back. Since then, Treesje has continued to grow and expand.

Click here to keep reading...

Many moons ago I wrote about a pink version of this Jalda clutch. Absolutely loved it then, love it even more now with silver python skin. As I was perusing my closet the other day I realized how perfect metallics fit into my wardrobe as accessories. Denim is a major part of my wardrobe, from skinny jeans to high-waisted wide leg jeans, and my tops tend to be more monochromatic. Just what my closet needs, another clutch. But really, I don’t own a silver clutch and adding the Jalda Python Original Clutch seems like a great idea. The shape of this clutch I love, with a bit of an angle at the edges, and the silver python is the perfect glitzy finish. Dimensions are 8″W X 4″H X 3″D. Buy through Saks for $490.

I saw the Chloe Sally Flap Bag yesterday at Saks in Atlanta and thought to myself that I’d really like to be able to write about it, but it’d probably be a while before I saw it online. I check all of my favorite sites for new bags basically every day, and it hadn’t appeared on any of them even for a moment, so I figured that all was lost. Sometimes bags don’t make it to the internet, and sometimes if they do, it’s so woefully late that there’s not much of a point in writing about them. So I was delighted when I got home from the mall and found that the bag had suddenly become available for presale at Nordstrom (who has really stepped up their game recently when it comes to designer bags, in my humble opinion). In person, the bag is deceptively simple: it looks like a normal, medium-sized flap bag at first, but I found myself impressed at how clean and precise its lines were. The pebbled leather also makes it a more casual option than a Chanel flap while still being some of the most beautiful textured leather I’ve seen in while; it’s sturdy but soft at the same time. From the front, it also looks much smaller than it is – at the bottom, it is a good bit deeper than a similar Chanel. The strap is long but not nearly long enough to be a crossbody bag, and the overall effect is tailored and polished, just like it should be to be a part of the “flap bag” trend that is gaining steam. This bag and those like it appear to be a pointed response to the needlessly huge bags of seasons past, and they’re making a very good argument for themselves. Pre-order through Nordstrom for $1995.

Sometimes you want a dainty, understated bag. Sometimes you want something delicate or subtle that won’t draw too much attention. And then, other times, you just want a big ol’ shiny animal skin behemoth of a bag. For those times, consider the Ted Rossi Python Shoulder Bag. Hardware? None. Pockets? It doesn’t have any of those either. What it does have, however, is several square feet of of black python skin with a great shine to it – almost patent, but without the thick texture that often comes with it. The snakeskin still looks supple and textured like a natural skin should, and the addition of a bit of metallic draws the eye even more to the differentiation between every scale. If you’re going to own a python bag, after all, you might as well own one that makes everyone go, “Hey, look how awesome that enormous, shiny python bag is!” On the practical side, I imagine it’d hold everything you could want to carry around on an average day (and probably more) and be super comfy to wear – python is notoriously light as a feather, and the wide straps would distribute the weight of all your loot evenly on your shoulder. So, what are you waiting for? Buy through Singer 22 for $2495.