Ok, so we’ve spent plenty of time lately talking about brights, neons and other assorted eye-assaulting colors that you might want to wear for spring. While Megs and I love and adore those kinds of bags, we realize that they may not be for every, either in a practical or an aesthetic sense. If you’d like something a tad more neutral but you still want to update your bag wardrobe for spring, you’re in luck – snakeskin is still the texture that everyone wants to have.

We’ve covered the all-snake look in the past, but for many women, a bag that mixes snakeskin and regular leather is a more demure option that allows a bag to be acceptable in a work environment where it might have otherwise been a bit too showy. Plus, mixing textures is also a big trend, so you’re getting a little bang for your buck here. (Your metaphorical buck, at least. Stuff’s still expensive.) And yes, we included one bright option. It’s almost spring, I couldn’t help it.

Fendi Chameleon Colorblock Tote, $5370 via Neiman Marcus

Yves Saint Laurent Cabas ChYc Python Tote, $2795 via Neiman Marcus

Jimmy Choo Jasmine Python and Leather Clutch, $1695 via Saks

Dolce & Gabbana Dolce Straw Handbag, $1875 via Neiman Marcus

Reed Krakoff Standard Mini Shoulder Bag, $690 via Net-a-Porter

Michael Kors Saddle Bag, $895 via Neiman Marcus

Every year, Pantone picks a new color as a PR stunt to have us all talk about Pantone and colors for a week or two. Every year, it totally works. It’s a gimmick with staying power! Most years, the color selections seem a bit…off, at least by fashion standards. The last two have been a dark teal and a disappointingly middling shade of pink, neither of which had anything to do with the neon-a-gogo mood of the style industry in 2010 and 2011. For 2012, Pantone managed to get it right – the bright, saturated, orange-y reds that we’ve seen all over the runways for the past two seasons (and that were especially popular for Resort and Spring 2012) is 2012′s Color of the Year.

It’s technically called Tangerine Tango, but I see a lot more red than orange when I look at Pantone’s official swatch. Almost all of my friends have lamented this shade as a difficult one to wear, but that’s where being a handbag person comes in handy – you can wear it all you want, and since the color doesn’t sit near your face, it doesn’t matter if it’s flattering to your skin tone. Naturally, we have six handbag options in red-orange so that you can get a jump on 2012.

Bottega Veneta Maxi Veneta Hobo, priced $2700 via Neiman Marcus

Tory Burch Amanda Tote, priced $465 via ShopBop

Alexander Wang Marti Backpack, priced $850 via ShopBop

Proenza Schouler Extra Large PS1, priced $2350 via Net-a-Porter

Diane von Furstenberg Sporty Drew Tote, priced $495 via Net-a-Porter

Fendi Mia Mini Crossbody, priced $760 via Neiman Marcus

When it became clear that ivory and pastels were going to be one of the biggest trends of 2012, I felt a bit disheartened at first. Very light colors can be a bit challenging to most skin tones, much more so than brights or jewel tones. Since we’re all basically self-interested people, I feel as though I should admit that they look particularly bad on me, which makes it especially hard to embrace even a subtle and ladylike trend like the largely cool-toned (it makes them less retro!) pastels of the Spring 2012 runways.

That’s the beauty of handbags, though. If you want to embrace a color trend without having to wear it next to your face for an entire day, accessories are the perfect way to do it; when a piece is viewed mostly against the colors of the rest of your outfit, whether or not it looks good on your particular skin tone becomes something of a non-issue. After the jump, we have six of our pastel picks so that you can start wearing the trend before spring’s bags even hit stores.

Miu Miu Vitello Bow Bag, priced at $1495 via Net-a-Porter

MaxMara Bobbio Croc Print Leather Bag, priced at $336 via Matches

Reed Krakoff Standard Mini Shoulder Bag, priced at $525 via Net-a-Porter

J.Crew Edie Bag, priced at $238 via J.Crew

Nina Ricci Liane Tweed Evening Bag, priced at $1950 via Neiman Marcus

Alexander McQueen Knuckle Duster Clutch, priced at $1944 via Matches

Gaging a trend’s lifespan can be a precarious endeavor, particularly when that trend is born out of something like leopard print, which is an innate classic whether its haters want to admit it or not. It’s been around for ages, and even though it tends to fall in and out of favor cyclically, it will never leave the style world entirely. For leopard lovers like me, that’s a beautiful thing.

Over the past couple of seasons, though, leopard has been pushed by every brand from Givenchy to the Gap. I find this Yves Saint Laurent Cabas Chyc Tote in leopard haircalf exceptionally beautiful, but thanks to overexposure, it does occur to me that some of you might disagree. We’ve set up a handy-dandy poll to measure your leopard fatigue after the jump, or you can buy this bag via Nordstrom for $2795.

Even with the rapidly changing landscape of fashion criticism and American Vogue‘s relative conservatism compared to its European counterparts, the magazine and its website are still first and foremost among the industry’s most important publications. When Vogue says that something’s important, designers, buyers and consumers pay attention, and Vogue.com recently posted its picks\ for the season’s key accessories trends.

If you followed along with our Fashion Week coverage, you probably noticed some of these things too – Vogue‘s calling them Modern Embellishment, Transparency, Athleticism, Ladylike Pastels and The Skin of the Season. We’ve got their picks for which of Spring 2012′s bags best illustrate those trends after the jump, and we’d like you to let us know if there’s any look that you’re particularly impatient to get your hands on in the comments. Pay particular attention to the bags that could fit easily into more than one of these categories – those are the styles to watch come spring.

Modern Embellishmen

Prada:

Gucci:

Transparency

Louis Vuitton:

Athleticism

Marc Jacobs


Givenchy


Balenciaga


Alexander Wang

Ladylike Pastels

Versace


Ralph Lauren


Louis Vuitton

The Skin of the Season

Valentino


Tod’s


Reed Krakoff


Prada


Michael Kors


Salvatore Ferragamo


Fendi


Derek Lam


Chloe


Bally

Despite the fact that I have chosen maximalism as my overarching aesthetic theme, I have a healthy respect for those who do minimal and do it well. During the days of Olivier Theyskens, Rochas was never accused of embracing minimalism, but now that the brand’s creative vision has changed hands, the brand’s most widely available foray into handbags yet has lines so straight that my back aches just looking at them. Would you carry something like the Rochas Giallo Tote Bag (left) or the Rochas Borsa R18 Sporco Bag, or do you want your bags to be a little bit more detailed?

Personally, I’d be all over the bright yellow tote. Minimal designs work so well in bright colors because they let the color shine as the principle detail, instead of having neon yellow compete with pockets, zippers, ruching and hardware for the spotlight. The reverse works, as well: Neons and brights bring out the clean, restrained lines that are so important in a minimal aesthetic.

The white bag, on the other hand, I could do without. Although white is one of the most important colors in minimalism, the combination of white with the traditional shape and the subtly scolloped edge of the top flap create a look that’s a little bit too ladylike for my personal style. I do, however, adore the contrasting snake-print top handle. So what do you say, ladies? Would you be first in line to carry either of these bags? Buy through Saks for $1065 and $1695, respectively.

You’ve probably heard much being made over both crimson and cobalt as the colors to wear for fall, but the accessories that I’ve seen over the past few days make me wonder: Is orange going to be the real star of the show? Have we all ignored the obvious winner?

I was already planning to put together a roundup of orange bags for fall yesterday when Proenza Schouler tweeted the above picture from W magazine of the brand’s PS11 in a lovely shade of pumpkin. We all know that the PS11 is my personal pick of the litter, but if you’d like to go in a different (but still orange) direction for fall, check out the rest of our picks after the jump.

My one true love, the Proenza Schouler PS11. Good luck finding this color, it’s Pre-Fall 2011 and I had a hard enough time finding just the picture. If anyone still has it in stock, it retails for $1895.

Let’s be real – I could have included Bottega Veneta’s entire Fall 2011 accessories collection in this post. The oranges in that collection are so sublime, but I chose the Bottega Veneta Intrecciato Pitone Clutch because not only does plush velvet show off color exceptionally well, but the Knot Clutch is a timeless Bottega signature. Buy through Barneys for $1750.

Although Chloe’s Fall 2011 handbag collection includes its fair share of missteps, there are some lovely pieces to be had, like the Chloe Madeline New Tote. Buy through Neiman Marcus for $2295.

I can’t ignore the hippies, particularly when the proceeds from the Wayuu Taya Foundation Susu Bag go to a charity that helps the indigenous workers who manufacture the purses. Buy through ShopBop for $175.

People seem a tad split in their opinions over Burberry’s runway tassel bags, but I think that they work best on the larger scale of the Burberry Large Tassel Bowler. Buy through Neiman Marcus for $2195.

If a simple, seasonless, carry-everyone orange bag is your preference, you’d be hard-pressed to find an option more functional than the Reed Krakoff Grommet Cadet Hobo. Buy through Saks for $890.