I'm late, I'm late...

I must be the last person to discuss the hotly anticipated Stella McCartney for LeSportsac collection, but I had to weigh in.



First, is there anyone Stella McCartney does not have a line in the works for? So far, aside from her signature line, she's got H&M, Addidas, Target (only in Australia), and now Le Sportsac...what's next? Stella McCartney cookware for Calphalon? Dog jackets for PetCo? Fortunately, it's always limited editions, which saves her from diluting the brand and winding up like Pierre Cardin, Halston, even Calvin Klein...the only one of the three to emerge with his brand intact.
But, jumping back to the bags...

Get it? Jumping? This bunny backpack is the most talked up piece, and definitely going to be the must have accessory for tweens and juveniley dressed adults this summer. At $120, it's expensive for a stuffed animal on a strap, but reasonable for something recognizable with designer input.

The place where the collection stands out, also the place where LeSportsac always works best (kid's backpacks and bookbags aside) is in the travel group. The luggage is very nice, with multiple pockets and either has comfortable handles, or handles and rollers. It also has the added bonus of it's instant spot-ability...especially in the prints. The price range of $120 (for the kid's roller case...my kids have Lillian Vernon specials...$30, and they came in Superman...boys just don't get fashion) to $475 for the largest case pictured above. There is also a smaller carry-on size, but why waste the opportunity to pull this off the carousel?


The bags are available in assorted prints, and quilted solids. There are also color blocked pallets in the same theme as the Posh and Pop prints.
The place I notice LeSportsac the most, is in the schoolyard, so I am definitely biased towards thinking of the brand as very young, almost childish, and the prints and colors in the Stella McCartney styles don't really help that much. It also makes the line feel like a gateway drug to designer servitude...first it's a cute designer bunny backpack, next thing you know, a Chloe handbag has found it's way onto your 14 year olds Christmas list... Just something to think about.
The Stella McCartney Collection for LeSportsac is being sold on a pre-order basis through the LeSportsac site. Some items are not yet available yet at all, and there is no indication about when to expect delivery. But, quantities are limited, so if you have your heart set on a bunny pack or diaper bag, order soon!

Bubblicious

Don't you hate bad weather? The one snowstorm to hit NYC all year, and it happens the day I'm getting on a plane to come home...needless to say, I was delayed, and as a result there were a few days' newspapers piled at the door. As I was gathering them for recycle, a lone advertising insert escaped, and sailed to the ground. I took it as a sign.
It was Versace's latest "big push" bag, and it's name shows a bit less hubris than last season's (not such a) Hit Bag...
It is The Bubble Bag...and it pops all ideas about the end of the uber designer IT bag's reign.

Considering it's from Versace, home of gold Medusas, and fluffy Sesame Street inspired bags it's subdued, but hardly dull. This bag is less about hardware, and more about texture. Quilted in an undulating pattern, the perforated leather has subtle gathering which gives the bag a very squishable look.

The textures continue into the handle, made of plaited leather that scales down as it nears the ends, is clasped to the bag with spring locks. Signature rings on the sides of the bag echo the zipper pull which is topped off with a long monochromatic tassel.
I'm sure plenty of people will be hating this bag, but I really think it works.
The Versace Bubble Bag is $3,440, and is currently stocked in beige and black in the Flagship at 647 5th Avenue in New York. The orange, however, is the color to covet, as it is not yet in the store, and already oversold.
For more information on purchasing your own Bubble, call 212-317-0224

Beach time!

In My Bag is going on vacation to the sunny, and warm beach. Yes, it's been a warm winter up here, and I'm sure there will be a blizzard the day I return, but sometimes you just need to veg on a beach with a nice big foofy umbrella drink. Besides, while pale may be in, but nothing feels better than a winter tan looks.
Just in time for my trip, Prada's Spring handbags have hit the stores, and some look like all you need is an air pump and...voila, designer beach ball!

The striped leather is definitely cheerful, and the shades keep it from being too clownish. The colors are unusual shades, and lend themselves to so many different clothing choices...even a print, worn the right way. They are also dark enough to be worn right away for anyone who just can't wait for Spring! For a patterned bag, it is pretty wearable, not to mention festive!


The smaller sized hobo comes in a very sunny color palliate of turquoise, orange, and purple. Happy, but a bit too I Love the 80s for my taste, and you all know how I do love the 80s...not. There is a pink one too...very, very, My Super Sweet 16.
Both balls, I mean bags are available at Saks where the larger Napa Stripes Multicolor Tote is $2360, and the Small Hobo, which is available for pre-order, is $1675.

In My Bag will be back with new posts on February 25th, so don't forget to check back then. In the meantime, please make sure to check out some of my links to my favorite blogs...they're over there -----> on the right, and down the page a bit. See them? Now click one you never read before...

Be my Valentino

Happy Valentines Day!
This year, instead of the obvious big heart shaped bag, I'm thnking of something more subtle


Not that there is much that is subtle about a super shiny, lipstick red clutch...but if a bag could be sexy, this would be it!
Gathered, and wrapped into a bow, it looks like a gift, but without being obvious or overdone. Definitely the sort of super special bag that makes an outfit, it's a perfect accessory for the simple little black dress, but bold enough to work with a more casual look of jeans and a great shirt.
Keep your hearts, flowers, and chocolates...my heart belongs to this bag!
The Valentino Patent Side Bow Clutch is a heart thumping $895 at Bergdorfs.

Marc goes Deco

Finally, seeking inspiration from another era, not still in my memory, Marc Jacobs sent some really lovely bags down the runway which are unlike the collections shown for Louis Vuitton, or his Marc by Marc Jacobs lines.


Looking like something out of the Great Gatsby, the 20's and art deco accents were a big focus, and so well done. I love that this ostrich bag has such soft feminine folds radiating from such a hard edged pleated kite accent. It doesn't look like an IT bag, just a beautiful, timeless one.


The rounded and straight lines were duplicated in this shoulder bag made from suede with a leather flap, also ornamented with a metal piece, and accented with decorative stitching. It looks modern and vintage at once.


Perhaps the closest to a tongue in cheek look, was the Caddy bag, which offers a wink, but subtly. Done is shades of the same color family, it hardly approaches the laugh out loud jokiness of some of the Richard Prince pieces for Vuitton.


Sleek, timeless, and modern all describe this satchel, which was one of several similar bags with the pyramid appliques. It's an accent used classically by Hermes, and more recently in a hard way by Burberry, and Marc Jacobs makes it look new by muting the usual shine to a subtle glisten. Again, it's a bit simple and anonymous to be an IT bag, but maybe that's part of the message? Could it be that one of the big daddies of IT bagdom is thinking more towards timelessness...at least in one of the groups he designs.

All in all, color me impressed. I could see buying any one of the bags shown and using them until they really became vintage. These were doubtlessly some of the best bags shown all week.

But will it have a waitlist?

$1,000 for a bag? Big deal, hardly worth batting an eyelash these days it's so common. But for a book?
Well, if it's a copy of an "IT" book being auctioned on eBay 2 months before it's release date...



According to Page Six, that is nearly how much an advanced copy of what is sure to be the book every bag fanatic will have in their totes this Summer, Michael Tonello's Bringing Home the Birkin. They did fail to mention that the auction was done with the author's consent (it was actually, a limited edition in a "Birkin" holder and signed) and the proceeds went to benefit Lung Cancer Research.

It's the author's memoir of getting around the Hermes velvet rope of a "waitlist", and buying the highly coveted handbag on the spot...simply by knowing the right way to ask. And, he made a living at it, by reselling the bags to his own Birkin starved clientele, all the while enjoying the perks and priviledge of an Hermes insider.
Now, you say you don't feel like spending handbag amounts of money on a book, even if it is an IT book? Get yourself on the real waitlist...you can pre-order a copy on Amazon and save $950...but you'll have to wait until April to read it.
In the meanwhile you can see Michael Tonello talk about his book, and show off some Birkin booty here.

I hate the 80s...the final chapter (I pray)

Why is it so hard to let a good decade die? At this point, I think even VH-1 has (finally, after 3 go-rounds) put I Love the 80s to bed...a sure sign of disinterest in my book.
And yet, like clockwork, someone sends day-glo and big obvious slogans down the runway. In this case, I could have handled the color scheme, since it is coming from so-called visionary Marc Jacobs albeit for the diffusion Marc by Marc Jacobs, but the big block letters? Giant houndstooth? It just shows a lack of effort, in my opinion.

So, this is a BIG TOTE. It is also, one should note, "Not a Plastic Bag", or even a "Big Brown Bag "...though the cross marketing potential with Bloomingdales could be great! Imagine a special edition BIG MARC JACOBS FOR BLOOMINGDALES shopping bag...done, done done.


Slightly better, though hopefully, he's not planning to get a critique from the panel on Project Runaway who all hate bright pinks, this is just unwieldy. The hard flat bottom looks extremely uncomfortable, and the balance is sure to send that bag sliding off your shoulder unless you hold it in place.


And just to bring a blend of all things that give me fashion nightmares...fuchsia, paint splatter, day-glo, block print, and colorful zippers (god, I hope it's not made from rip-stop parachute fabric)...though on second glance, those round pouches look like a perfect size for a baby bottle, and who would notice a little spit up on a bag like this? See? Even ugly has a place...this could work as a diaper bag.
Hopefully, this does not foreshadow things to come down the runway tomorrow at the Marc Jacobs show...a show already making news (courtesy, NY Post). Not for the play on the runway, but for the pay-off before it. Seems that to get the venerable Lexington Avenue Armory space companies were being shaken down for assorted bribes. The Marc Jacobs company is subject to that ongoing criminal investigation, to see whether any payoffs were knowingly made.

Gucci bites the big apple

Fashion week isn't the only reason everyone wants to be in New York City this week (face it, it's warmer, easier, and less crowded to sit back and watch streaming video or Full Frontal Fashion from your comfy couch...not to mention you don't have to sit around fauxberrying while you wait for something to begin...). The big show this week was the pre-opening of the worlds largest Gucci outpost (outpostS, if you consider the jewelry is it's own store). Everyone who was anyone, wanted one of the 700 invites to what is definitely the biggest party of the week.
Fittingly, the biggest store is housed in the building of the biggest ego, Trump Tower on 5th Avenue and 56th St.

The store will be the only place to carry everything Gucci makes, and then some. Borrowing a page, perhaps, from Coach Legacy, there are limited edition "you can only get them here" items from the Gucci Loves New York line to snatch up... while they last.
I know, the Gucci (hearts) NY Joy Bag pictured above has that Juicy-esque "Gucci Couture" quality, I can get past it since 100% of the proceeds from the bag's $770 cost goes to the Central Park Conservancy, a charity near and dear to the heart of many NYers...it's our backyard! (granted, you don't get the $770 tax deduction, but at least the contribution isn't a premium tacked on to the real cost). It is definitely going to be the bag every tourist wants, never mind the Guccifiles...talk about instant collectors item.
The store is supposed to continually stock a variety of "Only in New York" merchandise, though I don't know if there are plans for other similar charitable items.
Lastly, just like the fashion shows, you don't have to feel like you're missing out entirely if you're somewhere else...you can still take a virtual tour of Gucci's New York Mecca on the website. Perfect for the armchair traveler, and shopper.
For all the locals, the store opens to the public on February 8th...just in time for Valentines Day shopping!

Label redux, redux

It feels like every season someone picks the bones of a dead designer, and tries to stage a Halston comeback...backed by Harvey Weinstein, movie mogul, and husband of Marchesa's Georgina Chapman, this time it may work.

You can see the show, and read all about the latest incarnation of the venerable American label, and even buy 3 pieces shown on the runway right now at Net-A-Porter. What you can't get (yet), is this amazing over the shoulder hobo. Rommy enough for lots of stuff, but soft enough to mold to your body, and with an extra wide strap, it is sure to be extra comfortable to carry. A perfect alternative to a messenger bag, or satchel with a long shoulder strap.
I've been looking for exactly this type of bag to no avail...now hopefully, I won't have to wait until the end of the year...Harvey? Net-A-Porter? Are you listening?

Ultimate lunch sack...

Perfect for brown...rather, snake bagging it next fall from Tuleh.

Really, it makes an impressive splash on a runway, but in the realway? I don't think so.
Face it, call it a hand bag, call it a clutch, but it most resembles an oversized lunch bag in style.
Did I mention it's huge? It takes a rare woman who can have that much empty handbag and resist the urge to fil it. Fill it, and you know that slippery reptile will be sliding right out of your hands...it looks like the model is even having trouble holding it comfortably...and she's the pro!
Certainly, it is still hard to look at such a large piece of sleek snake, and not want it...but I'm sure you can find one that hasn't shed it's handle.