Handbags

The 1950s Handbag for Fall 2010: A Return to Grace Kelly

 in General Fashion / Handbags / Trends  tagged 1950s / classic style / fall 2010 / satchels / vintage styles / winter 2011 by

Fashionistas in the Bay Area who adore vintage are in for a treat this Fall season! The 1950s style handbag is back in fashion and designers have paired it with the full skirt, 1950s silhouette; referred to in modern times as the Stepford look. The 1950s era handbag is literally worn by hand or slung over a woman’s forearm. The handbag has a small, thick strap which cannot be worn over the shoulder. This vintage throwback style is smaller in size than the oversize handbags fashionistas became accustomed to earlier in the decade. In order to wear this trend, women will need to decide what really belongs in their handbag!

The 1950s handbag evokes memories of well-dressed women shopping at City of Paris, I Magnin, Livingstons’s, Ransonhoff’s, Joseph Magnin, The White House or lunching at Townsend’s or the St. Francis. Visions of women at Eplar’s Bakery or strolling down Maiden Lane while wearing a full skirt, proper handbag, hat and gloves brings many fashionistas, from all generations, begging for their own vintage 1950s handbag. Of course, women in San Francisco never wore white. Handbags graced the arms of well-dressed San Franciscans in black alligator, brown alligator or a neutral colored leather.

The 1950s style handbag is starting to dot the shelves of stores for Fall 2010. Prada has several styles in varying, two-tone neutrals. In sharp contrast to the color palette in the 1950s, Prada’s bags are white with tan, navy with red or all black. Hermes has the holy grail Kelly handbag available in any color worth sitting on a waiting list for several months. Chanel is showing the style with two chain straps in a nod to the variation of the handbag style earlier in the decade when the double handled handbag was all the rage. Can we say Lambertson-Truex Box Car? Louis Vuitton is showing the style in various fabrics as well as Epi leather. More affordable lines such as Coach, Longchamp, Banana Republic and Dooney and Burke have the style in stores as well.

Cheap Luxury Handbags Store Tip: Why buy the same handbag as all of your friends? This is one trend that screams “go vintage!” Now is the time to scour vintage stores in San Francsico and around the bay for the perfect 1950s style handbag. Once word gets out about this trend, the vintage finds will be scarce. You may also try to shop your closet, your Mother’s closet or your Grandmother’s closet. Chances are, the real thing is in there somewhere! Happy shopping and stay fabulous.

Seeing Red: The “IT” Handbag for Fall 2010

 in Color Trends / General Fashion / Handbags / Trends  tagged clutches / fall 2010 / red / satchels / street style trends / totes / winter 2011 by

Designers and fashionistas are seeing red for Fall 2010! The red handbag is coming back in style with a vengeance in the form of a clutch or tote. Red clutches and red tote bags were scattered around the Paris, Milan and New York runways for Fall 2010. They were a stark contrast to the 1990s minimalistic outfits models were wearing as they strutted down the runways. The red pops of color gave fashionistas everywhere a glimmer of hope that Fall was not all black, grey, white, brown and army green.

The red clutches shown by Chanel, Prada, Marc Jacobs and Hermes showed structured, red leather clutches with outfits of black trousers, stacked heeled boots, white turtle neck sweaters and black coats.The red clutch was not paired with other pops of red such as a coat or sweater. Red clutches clearly are there to accent a black or black and white outfit. The red clutch swings in and out of fashion every few years, making it the perfect investment clutch of the season. Many fashionistas in the bay area may already have a red clutch tucked away their collection, if not, there are beautiful clutches heading to store shelves as we speak. Handbag designers such as Chanel, Nancy Gonzalez and Hermes are showing beautiful, structured clutches in red shades. This is not an orange-red trend. The red clearly blends well with blue tones rather than orange. Dooney and Burke, Coach and Longchamp have more affordable yet luxurious red leather clutches on the market.

The other red bag of the season is the red tote. The red tote is the perfect handbag to bring to the office this Fall. Totes are large enough to fit files, small laptops and ballet flats for tired feet. The Hermes Birkin is highly desirable, yet out of budget for most bay area fashionistas. Coach, Valextra and Dooney and Burke offer sturdy, red leather totes that will be able to handle the day-to-day wear and tear of a work tote. For more casual occasions, the always-fabulous Sunday Tote by Balenciaga is heading to stores in a rich shade of red for Fall 2010.

Red totes and red clutches are the perfect pop of color to keep up the spirits of fashionistas across the bay. They will pair well with the 1990s minimalism trend as well as the full skirt trend for Fall. If you do not already own a classic, well-made, red leather tote or clutch this is the handbag investment to make this year. You will find yourself wearing the red handbag almost every day this Fall, plus the trend comes and goes every few years. This will be an investment piece you find yourself reaching for every few years, for the rest of your life. Happy shopping and stay fabulous.

Chanel Fall 2010 RTW Collection

 in General Fashion / Handbags  tagged 1990s / chanel / fall 2010 / minimalism / paris fashion week / runway / vintage styles by

Chanel has long been considered the benchmark of fashion for haute couture and ready to wear. Designers and clothing companies around the globe are inspired by the collections that Chanel puts on the runway every season. It may be no surprise that the upcoming fall season will be a reflection of what Chanel showed on the runway. As we know, 90’s minimalism was all over the runways in Paris, Milan and New York. This theme has been reflected in the ready to wear collections hitting the stores for Fall 2010.

The Chanel ready-to-wear collection for Fall 2010 will give any fashionista in the bay area a sense of deja-vu. Chanel’s collection is a sharp nod to the minimalism of the 1990’s. Black was the dominant color for suits, jackets and dresses. Asides from black, there was a large amount of charcoal and grey with a splash of red thrown into the mix. Chanel’s shoe line is almost completely black with one small hint of white trim. The signature camellia garnishes the toe box of Chanel’s flats for Fall. The handbag collection is clearly classic with a full line of 2.55 handbags and classic flap’s in mini, small, medium and jumbo. The classic collection is arriving in black, white, plum and a darker red. The red is actually quite stunning. It has more of a blue undertone as opposed to the brighter reds we have seen in the past few seasons. The contemporary handbags are classic in theme with clean lines and basic colors such as black, white and grey. Chanel is showing varying sizes of totes and shoulder bags that are variations of the classic collection. Anyone interested in a Chanel bag that is considered contemporary cannot go wrong this season. The handbags in this collection will not go out of style. They are true investment pieces. There is also a good mix of lambskin, caviar leather and sparkling patent leather. The patent plum is to die for!

The wonderful part about this upcoming Fall’s collections will be the classic lines and colors that allow bay area fashionistas to buy key wardrobe pieces that will never go out of style. Every fashionista can use a classic black Chanel tweed suit paired with a fabulous red patent leather classic flap handbag. This is the ultimate go-to outfit for any event; especially when the event is short notice! Happy shopping and stay fabulous!!