Louis Vuitton Fall Winter 2010/2011 Advertising Campaign

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Louis Vuitton’s Fall Winter 2010/2011 collection was beyond words in its glamor, elegance, and beauty. In fact, there is no way to properly give justice to the ladylike functionality implemented into each design. Marc Jacobs is pure genius.

Louis Vuitton Advertising campaigns never let me down either. The creative vision of the Louis Vuitton Fall Winter 2010/2011 campaign feels like a fairytale world of luxurious perfection. I am entirely envious of the women in these photos, they appear as if they have fascinating stories to tell. How could I leave out the ladylike Cuir Cinema bag that immediately catches one’s attention? The soft rose color on the structured calf leather bag flows seamlessly in the photo [$4450 via Louis Vuitton September 1st].

Talented artist Kathryn Elyse of PaperFashion illustrated this campaign photo in two different finishes. Both are simply stunning and match perfectly with the feminine timeless appeal of the collection.

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Carlos Falchi makes my fall dream bag

Any regular reader of this blog knows that I’m drooling over a whole lot of bags for winter – Celine, YSL, Mulberry, Alexander Wang…my list is long and expensive, just as it always is. We can go ahead and add the Carlos Falchi Gathered Crocodile Tote to it, although I’d need a bit of a windfall to make it a practical option.

Since this blog is clearly not about practicality, however, let’s pretend for a moment that we can all afford to spend over five grand on this beautiful bit of grey crocodile loveliness. This satchel is certainly more affordable than, say, a crocodile Hermes Birkin, and in my mind, that gives me a little bit of hope. Or perhaps it merely strengthens my delusion…

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The Kooba Monroe Tote is military chic

Sometimes, a bag manages to hit all of the right notes on the way to momentary brilliance. Kooba has found its handbag sweet spot recently, first with the beautiful bicolor Kooba Kelsi Satchel, and now with very on-trend Kooba Montroe Tote.

Colored suede, khaki tones and military aesthetics are all very important looks for fall, and Kooba manages to roll all three into one without making the bag look like an over-designed, over-thought fad piece. Combining strong trends in a simple, thoughtful way can be extremely difficult, but the people behind Kooba have pulled it off with considerable aplomb.

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Fendi Peekaboo, I want you

It is ok to tell me how absolutely absurd it is to want to spend a good amount of money on a designer felt bag. Because really, intellectually I know it is ridiculous and typically I would agree with you. But my handbag-loving-emotions are taking over and I am seriously head-over-heels in love with the Fendi Felt Peekaboo Tote.

It is made with felt. Yes, felt. As in the material my mom and I used to go buy for me to use when creating a school project. Because it is inexpensive and not exactly a luxury material. My logic has left the building. Even after seeing every covetable option Fendi created of the Peekaboo, this somehow is the version that I seriously desire.

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Get a little leopard in your life with Rebecca Minkoff

Leopard has received a lot of editorial love and fashionista attention for the past six weeks or so, and the trend is only going to pick up more steam as fall rolls in and cold-weather trends take over our sartorial existences. Even with all the tongue-wagging that has been done over the print, a lot of women I hear from still don’t really know how to work it into their wardrobes in bag form.

But it’s easy, really. Choose leopard print in the type of bag that’s going to be used when you’re unlikely to be wearing other patterns or clashing colors – a clutch! The Rebecca Minkoff Leopard Print Fling Minaudiere, for instance.

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Handbags help Vuitton, Hermes maintain spots atop luxury power rankings

In case you had forgotten that the end of summer is generally a bit of a slow news period in fashion, we’re here to remind you! The New York Daily News (with some help from Fashionista.com) counted down the most powerful global luxury brands of 2010 this spring, and although we didn’t have a chance to post about it back then, we do now. Consulting firm Millward Brown Optimor comes out with this list every year, and the brands staking claim to the top spots in the middle of a bad economy for luxury likely won’t surprise handbag aficionados.

Even though the industry as a whole is down about 3%, number one-ranked Louis Vuitton has still managed to grow its worth by 2% to nearly $20 billion, which appears to refer to just the brand and not the entirety of the LVMH conglomerate. Hermes, meanwhile, comes in at number two and has grown by 8% to almost $8.5 billion. Rounding out the top three, Gucci is up 2% with a little over $7.5 billion. What do all three brands have in common? None of them are bolstered by the high-margin cosmetics market (although Hermes and Gucci both have fragrance lines) and all three are most famous for their handbags and leather goods.

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Botkier + PurseBlog Bag at Saks 5th Avenue NYC

While the main purpose of our trip to NYC a couple of weeks ago was to find an apartment, Vlad and I knew we had to make a trip to Saks Fifth Avenue NYC to see the Botkier + PurseBlog Limited Edition Bag. Not only did we find the bag on display on the front table of floor five among the contemporary designers, but also is it featured in one of the window displays right off of 5th Avenue!

As far as high points in our blogging life go, this is one of the very top. I wanted to scream with excitement and tell everyone walking by the window that the bag on display was designed by the readers and members of our website. But I didn’t – I should have, right?!

The bag is still available for sale online but it is also for sale at the Saks 5th Avenue Flagship store in NYC. If you are in the area, you must check it out!

Thank you again to Botkier and Saks for the amazing partnership. And of course, thank you to all of you – who made this collaboration one of the most reader and brand involved processes I have ever been a part of or seen!

CLICK TO BUY THE LIMITED EDITION BOTKIER+PURSEBLOG BAG!

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Dolce & Gabbana at the office? It can be done.

Dolce & Gabbana, the perennial providers of bustier tops and leopard print, is probably not the first brand that springs to mind when you think of wear-to-work accessories. When I think of wearing the brand’s clothes, the kinds of situations I picture usually involve skintight pencil skirts and very posh VIP clubs.

With the Dolce & Gabbana Cervo Doctor Bag, the signature sexiness is hidden on the inside in order to provide an exceptionally functional and ever-so-slightly conservative bag for a working woman. Save the leopard dress for nighttime, but this bag is just as comfortable in the daylight as the brand’s sexiest clothing is after dark.

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Seeing this Tory Burch satchel in person makes all the difference

In general, Megs and I do our jobs here without seeing the bags in person. Often we might have seen a bag at one point or another on shopping trips or on the arms of friends, but usually bags hit the internet before they hit stores. We can’t wait to write about a bag until we’ve had it in our hands or it’ll be old news, but past experience with a brand’s bags combined with good photos are usually enough to comment accurately.

The Tory Burch Leather and Chains Satchel, on the other hand, I did get to see. I had dinner at an Atlanta restaurant known for it’s people-watching on Friday night, and a woman carrying this bag walked by our table several times. I don’t know why she was up and milling about the restaurant, but I got an eyeful of her bag and I liked what I saw.

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Alexander Wang Sydney Backpack is THE Backpack of 2010

I am not a backpack person. I never really was. When it came to school, I was a messenger bag kind of girl. But right now I am all about the backpack and of course that is because of designer extraordinaire Alexander Wang. Alexander Wang is the designer for me, so much so that if I was told I could only buy from one designer right now I would live very happily with my choice.

The typical schoolbag has been made super cool in the Alexander Wang Sydney Backpack. In fact, it has been made so cool that I feel like enrolling in a class just to buy this bag. Of course you don’t need to be in school to carry a backpack, but I just about love this bag so much that I would consider going back to school for a new backpack. See, I find ways to get around my bag ban right now!

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If you’re not sick of studs yet, ROMYGOLD would like to sell you this bag

Studs. Where do we stand?
I’m always a bit prone to liking studs because I grew up listening to punk music and going to underground shows in high school, but even a devotee like me who has an emotional connection to a the motif can feel a bit of fatigue after every label under the sun produced a stud-covered bag for last fall (and this spring, and now this fall…ad infinitum).

Personally, I need a little bit of obvious ingenuity in a design to get my motor running for a studded bag these days, but if you’re just now warming to the trend or if you’ve been in jail for the past year and want to carry studs before they’re completely over, the ROMYGOLD The Drew Bag is probably as good an option as any.

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