Saint Laurent’s Latest Bag is a Colorful Ode to Yves Saint Laurent

Ten years ago, almost to the day, then new creative director Hedi Slimane decided to drop the Yves from Yves Saint Laurent in favor of just Saint Laurent Paris. At the time, the Y in YSL was an integral part of the Parisian design House’s branding, but rumor had it that Slimane wanted to implement fast change in the form of modernization and that a name change was his first step.

Repeating History

The news was met with widespread criticism, both within the industry and amongst brand loyalists. Saint Laurent has one of the best and most recognizable logos in all of fashion history. While Slimane dropped the Yves from Yves Saint Laurent, he simultaneously revived an integral part of the brand’s history by reverting to the branding used in 1966, all the way down to the font.

It was that iconic YSL logo that defined Slimane’s tenure at the brand while successfully revitalizing the brand into what we know it as today. And while the brand is no longer referred to as Yves Saint Laurent, that integral part of House history remains to this day under the creative direction of Anthony Vaccarello. YSL branding remains in place, popular still today amongst shoppers, revived and refreshed season after season like on the new Icare Maxi Shopping Bag and the Le 5 a 7.

Paying Hommage to an Icon

The brand’s latest version of its Jamie Bag not only features the iconic YSL hardware, but it features a fun ode to House history. A bright, colorful Yves Saint Laurent print sits on top of the Jamie flap bag in silk with Carré Rive Gauche quilted stitching, providing a subtle reminder of the man behind Saint Laurent, Yves himself, who co-founded the House back in 1962. Quickly emerging as one of the most influential designers in Paris, Yves Saint Laurent helped to popularize trousers for women and became known for his use of metallics and transparent fabrics in the late 60s and early 70s.

His collections became more and more colorful as time went on, and it’s said that travel largely inspired the colorful world of Yves Saint Laurent. The multi-color print provides a fun vintage feel reminiscent of the colorful vintage logo tees you can find on Etsy or other secondhand shops. A unique piece that feels somehow vintage and fresh at the say time, you can pre-order this limited-edition bag now via Saint Laurent for $2,550.