You know how men think that we spend too much on clothes/shoes/bags? As sad as it is, they might be right, unless… we are talking about iconic fashion items, like Louis Vuitton Mongram Canvas Bag!

If you consider buying a designer bag and haven’t yet decided which one to splurge on, here are 6 Reasons that’ll make you run for that Speedy Bag to the nearest Louis Vuitton boutique :)

1. It’s a Classic

Audrey Hepburn with Her LV Monogram Speedy 25

Louis Vuitton Speedy Bag with it’s notorious monogram canvas and classic silhoette has been in style for years and years now, so once you get it, you can be sure it will look fashionable and stylish as long as you have it (which is not always the case with “it” bags of the season).

2. Pick The Perfect Size

Louis Vuitton Speedy 25

Louis Vuitton Speedy Bag comes in 4 sizes, which means you will definitely find the very right size for you ( I personally think Louis Vuitton Speedy Bag Speedy 30 is the best as it is neither too small, nor too big).

Louis Vuitton Speedy 35

Oh, those gorgeous designer handbags… No matter how perfect the clothes or the shoes are, no look can be complete without the perfect handbag, and to be honest, what accessory can top a designer handbag?

For a lot of us, bags are more than just something to carry our stuff in and with good reason. Designer handbags are about making a statement and evoking that envious look from other women and God knows we enjoy those looks! So if you happen to have the means or you simply enjoy fine designer craftsmanship, here’s our 151 picks for the top designer handbags one can possible find!  

1. Alexander McQueen. Large Faithful tote in dogtooth print

2. Alexander McQueen. Faithful hobo bag in dogtooth lacquered napa

3. Anna Sui. Studded leather bag

4. Balenciaga. Crocodile, leather, and ostrich patchwork Sunday bag

5. Balenciaga. Suede neo classic bag

6. Balenciaga. Print leather neo classic bag

7. Bottega Veneta. San Marco karung bag

8. Bottega Veneta. Truffle karung bag

9. Bottega Veneta. Mineral intrecciato multistone Diams bag

10. Burberry. Overdyed vintage check tote with barb belt

11. Burberry. Check dévoré Woolf bag

12. Burberry. Overdyed vintage check tote with alligator belt

13. Calvin Klein. Pleated leather large frame bag

14. Calvin Klein. Black Swarovski crystal small frame bag

15. Chanel. Easy Tweed handbag

Looking for a new handbag? The designers have been going bag-crazy this Spring, so there’s a lot to choose from! Here are my favourites…

1. Chloe Andy Small Canvas Tote

Price: $670 at net-a-porter.com
This is a gorgeous little everyday bag, which combines a youthful look with sophisticated designs and colour. Team with jeans for a casual look, or attach some charms and take it to work. It’s a stunning bag, and one I’m sure to be saving up for!

Nothing can be as high-Italian fashion as the Prada label. Founder Mario Prada managed to embed the luxury goods produced by the company in our culture since 1914.

Today, the highest standards in Italian leather goods are set by Prada.

Check out our list of the top 16 Prada handbags which are a real “arm candy”.

16. Prada Nappa Mordore Handbag

I absolutely love the shape of this handbag – it’s a designer accessory which is roomy enough to hold all your knickknacks in. Made from 100% black leather, it’s the ultimate statement of luxury.

I’ve just come back from Louis Vuitton Boutique and I am head over hills in love with their Alma Vernis collection! I went there to take a look at a small monogram canvas bag, but those red, violet and dark-brownish vernis bags totally kicked my Monogram Canvas Speedy 25’s butt!

Unfortunately this Louis Vuitton Alma GM costs $2410, which is way, way, wa-a-y over my limit… Unless I stop paying my rent and move into the street… hey, that’s an idea! :)

Do you think they’ll be on sale? Ever? Nah… as much as I want it to be so, even I don’t believe that :)

You have probably heard that violet is the new black this fall-winter, ladies. So, it’s time to make sure you’ve got some accessories in this fashionable hue before the leaves start falling on the ground! Here is the hot bag in the new hot hew I found – the one and only gorgeous Violet Fendi Patent B Bag!

Here it is once again, full size, in all its glory:

The price is high (what’s new here) – $1,990 at Net-a-Porter.com, but, hey, it’s patent, it’s violet and it’s Fendi! Right? ;)

Today started as another ordinary day, I browsed a couple of competitors’ websites, you know, just to see how they are doing :))) Then went to one of my favorite online boutiques – YvesSaintLaurent.com and I practically froze in my seat, when I saw the price of…

$489 (!!!)

for this gorgeous, bordeaux Yves Saint Laurent Tribute Bag!

Have you ever seen a price like that for a hot a-la-mode handbag of a world premier designer? Some $489 for the perfect in-between the seasons YSL bag – I mean, seriously, what’s next, M&Ms falling from the sky?

Well, the next thing I knew I was grabbing for my Visa card! Naturally.

So, just thought it would not be nice of me not to tell you guys that there is this beautiful Yves Saint Laurent handbag out there waiting for your loving hands! But make sure you get it fast, cause there must be thousands and thousands of other fashionistas’ loving hands reaching for it this very moment!

Hey ladies, I am pretty sure you all have already seen Sex and the City the Movie, and you all probably read the last Vogue issue, but I could not say it enough, I just love, love, LU-U-UV the Bag Borrow or Steal website!

The website and the designer handbags and accessories choice is SO great, it drives me crazy ( in a good way, of course)!

Only a genius could come up with an idea of “renting” the hottest designer handbags and accessories for a very fair price!

Surely, it would be better to OWN all the bags you like, but since a $1500 is a bit too much to spend on a bag every week, the Bag Borrow or Steal idea sounds like a fabulous one!

They actually rent Leiber, Prada, Chanel, YSL – you name it!

You can actually have this Prada for just $150 ($190 for non-members) for the whole month!!!

And this Chanel Patent Classic Bag will cost you only $100 a week!

And remember this Prada Limited Edition? It’s only $202 ($208 for non-members) per week!!!

I am sure you will find all the designer bags you were crazy about on Bag Borrow or Steal website and you will have the best bags and accessories without going bankrupt! :)

So, Ladies, which bag you will rent first?

Ladies, I hope you are sitting tight, cause the news I’ve got for you may come as a shock!

This beautiful authentic green leather Ferragamo Tote we’ve seen in Cosmo and Elle is now available for just $688!!!

Initially it was $1.150, but now it’s 40% – that’s what I call a bargain! You might think it’s a good idea to wait untill it’s 50% off, but I would not push it – it’s a miracle such an “it” handbag is still out there!

The minute I opened UK Vogue for February 2008 I knew I had to have it! It was right there – on one of the first pages of the issue – the Prada Ad for Spring-Summer 2008. The bags were so bold colorful and perfect, at first I even did not notice that the girl in the ad was the young and famous Russian model Sasha Pivovarova (I wonder if they let her keep any of those goodies… if they did, I am taking my lazy butt to modelling classes immediately! :).

Prada’s online boutique (which delivers within European countries only :/ ) had pretty much any color combination of the bags – that is until all of them were sold out!!!

Despite the $ 1150.00 – $2300.00 (correct me if I am wrong here) price range the mini hobos and the large ones were sold out in a New York minute! All I hear is that people in Europe do not care for the way they look, with some exceptions in the capitals, but when you live in Paris or London, you would never order a Prada online, it is so much more fun to go to the boutique in person and walk out with a huge shopping bag with a Prada logo on it…

That means that the Prada stripe handbags were shipped to small towns and the country all over Europe, so don’t drop your jaw if you are the only one without a Prada on your shoulder at a local Cheese Fair somewhere in the South of France.

The only color available at the official Prada online boutique is the Anemone, which looks amazing too and if you live in Britain or happened to be in Provence for the weekend – hurry up, cause these babies will be bought out in no time!

For Ladies with a taste who live in the States and have a spare $1 495.00 on their hands, this Anemone hobo is available at Saks Fifth Avenue.

Another Prada Hobo – the Fusia-Violet kind also has that spring/summer vibe and available at both Saks Fifth Avenue and Neiman Marcus for $1 675.00 plus tax :)

Despite the fact that Purse Experts do not find this particular bag that hot (and I always used to agree with their opinion), I still love this Prada:

…Though I love the convergence of brilliant colors on this Prada Striped Leather Hobo, I’m not sure I like the end result very much. The thick leather is slightly gathered on top and some stripes of color are jagged, lending the purse a slightly imperfect, casual feel…

Says Tanya from the PursePage.com.

The Turquoise-Violet version of the bag is praised at BagAddicted.com. It’s also a fabulous hobo and it’s still available at Saks Fifth Avenue:

It’s not the one I want to get, but it looks pretty damn good too!

And speaking about the favorites, I am putting aside the $1675.00 for this baby – the Gold and Black Stripe Mini Hobo on the right:

Doesn’t it look absolutely fabulous? It will go with everything both day and night! I’ve decided to trade for this hobo the Mac Air I was going to treat myself with. But when it came to Prada handbags, those striped babies shook my value system to the core! Who cares if you work on a Dell or a Mac when you have a Stripe Prada Hobo on your shoulder, don’t you think?! :)

March 14, 2008
post written by Bag Bliss blogger: Vanessa

Fendi’s Paint-Your-Own Baguette
Well this is a first! Fendi has come out with their very own “Paint-it-Yourself” bag. For a mere $1,300 you can practice your painting skills on a top designer bag. It is the Paint-Your-Own Baguette Tote. It is a coated canvas white bag with a removable belted shoulder strap, a polished gold metal logo-engraved appliqué on each side, double-F logo on the front, multicolored cartoon-like logo textile lining, and ten Pantone Universe markers to paint our bag with.

This bag is great if you have always yearned to get creative with your designer handbag. It allows you to make the bag unique and your own. Needless to say, you won’t find anyone carrying the same exact bag. Personally, if I am going to practice my painting skills I’d much rather do it on a cheap canvas tote from the local craft store. These top designers charge top dollar for a reason, and it is because they deliver. They are the ones who come up with the creative ideas and execute those ideas to offer us unique, quality, trendy handbags. I don’t think this is one of Fendi’s best ideas. I’ll keep my painting skills for the canvas.

Discover it: eluxury

end note: Jennifer also wrote about this bag, see what she said here: Fendi Artist Baguette Bag: The DIY Project

I woke up one dark winter morning earlier this year and decided then and there that I had to become the owner of a soft, leather designer bag. No longer would my black £35 patent M&S holdall suffice in my new job (it’s fashion daaaahhling). Now, this could have something to do with the fact that I had only recently overheard a conversation about handbags in the blonde and beautiful corner of my office that went something along the lines of: “£500 for a bag is an absolute bargain, I mean my Balenciaga cost, like, more than a grand”. Enough said �” I had some serious catching up to do.

So began my trawl through eBay to find that designer bargain that had someone slipped through the net of the three hundred pounds and above reserve prices. So serious was I in my search for perfection, that I downloaded each and every ‘how to spot a fake on the internet’ guide that I could find (drop me a line if you need some tips by the way), and I literally spent weeks staring at pages and pages of Mulberry Bayswaters, Miu Miu Malatesse’s, Chloe Edith’s and the list continues.

When I couldn’t find anything that I liked on the British site, I started staring at the US site �” a 3am wake-up call was not uncommon in my flat even though the husband thought I was slowly losing my mind (to be honest I think I was). Then one evening, during my ritual of arriving home and hitting eBay straight away before he got home and accused me of being anti-social, I found it. The perfect Mulberry Bayswater. And it was real, genuine, used once, and a bargain at two hundred pounds including p&p. So I bought it, and it felt great. Like a weight had been lifted off my shoulders, finally, I would belong to the cult of the designer handbag owner and I couldn’t wait.

Unfortunately it arrived a few days later from someone with a very suspicious name, and was, undoubtedly a blatant fake. I sent it back and went into a decline. Woe was me, I didn’t deserve to live blah blah blah. I started attending church, praying for the right handbag for me.

A few days later after dragging my sad self home from work with said black patent M&S holdall, I found a letter from the taxman. It seemed he wanted to give me some money back. In fact, quite a lot of money. My mind started ticking, and I knew straight away where I was going the next day �” to Bond Street where the wealthy stroll the streets and the chauffer driven cars line the pavements. So I did it, I bought my dream bag, a Mulberry Bayswater that is now sleeping soundly on my bed. I can truly say I am in love with it. The husband had to sleep on the floor (no, really) on the first night, and I keep going up to strangers and saying, “smell it, it smells so good” in a dreamy lovesick voice.

Now I’m not saying that eBay isn’t great, I mean I did purchase my wedding dress on it in a 2am bidding war (that’s another story mind you), but personally it’s just not for me. Nothing can ever beat the rush of dropping that kind of cash in a store and sauntering casually out like your bank card isn’t crippled, shiny store bag slung over your shoulder. Now, for that Louis Vuitton patchwork bag I saw in the window yesterday, a snip at nine hundred pounds…

Every designer handbag collection needs at the very least ONE gaudy, logo-drenched handbag, and this Fendi Zucca Tote with Pouch may just be it for someone. Adorned with the Fendi Zucca print all over, the bag is perfect for travel thanks to it’s large size and convenient little pouch. The bag is only made of mesh, so whether it warrants the $505 price tag is up to you, but I’d love to see it at a pool, or better yet, on a yacht. There’s not much left to say about this bag, as it says everything for itself, so wear it with your most tailored duds and a load of confidence. The Zucca Tote with Pouch is available at saks.com.

Shop for more designer purses by Fendi

The Gucci Hysteria Large Top Handle Bag is a massive bag, but it’s so big and squishy that I’m almost eager to suggest it as one of spring’s It bags. Spring 2008 is all about super large or super small, and nothing in between, so this huge bag has plenty of space to make a name for itself this season. Available in dark silver at saks.com, the bag retails for $2,395. I love the softness of this metallic handbag, and the Gucci Hysteria metal crests on either side of the the handles is a great touch. The body pleats and side ruching really give the purse a mix of masculine and feminine details that look great with work or play clothes. The neutral metallic will also span seasons to come.

Shop for more designer bags by Gucci

It’s moving day, but that didn’t stop newlywed Katherine Heigl from bringing out the designer handbag gear. Here she is riding shotgun in sweats and jeans while one very sleek and elegant camel-colored leather handbag takes the driver’s seat. It’s a lovely bag – though not necessarily something I’d tote on a day when I’m lugging furniture and boxes around – and one that I’d love to see Katherine pair with one of her signature belted sweaters and tall boots.

Can you name the bag’s designer?

Photo from PopSugar.com.

February 5, 2008

Tuesday Fashion Bits
It’s Tuesday, which means it’s time for the weekly highlighted fashion bits from our sister site The Fashion Row. Gift ideas, star style, beauty products, designer news, sweet deals and so much more. So in case you missed it, here is a sample of last weeks topics…

> Louboutin Mody Pumps under $300.

> Louis Vuitton Marguerite scarf a magic eye posters?

> Fuzzy wuzzy Karl: Steiff immortalized the designer in stuffed-animal form

> Sophia Bush sparkles in Jacob and Co. Jewelry at the Herve Leger fashion show.

> Giveaways, sample sales, and promo codes this week. Here’s the list.

> Calling all future dress makers.. are you a frock star?

> Learn how to talk to a stylist, get $20!

> Designer Ivanka Trump jewelry is now just a click away.

> Guinness World Records crowned Clive Christian No.1 the most expensive perfume in the world.

> Coach: Protecting Men

> Battle of the Red Sole: Versace does Louboutin

> New Designers List @ NAP

Much more on The Fashion Row!

Other Chat: Designer Handbag Discussion over in The Bag Forum

A burst of fresh, minty color is just the thing to get you set for the warmer months. Cool and fairly low-key despite its vivid hue, this Prada Tessuto Weave Tote is a casual, take-everywhere handbag with a youthful appeal. It will easily lighten up a dark ensemble, but it’s especially great if you really want to go for a jolt of color without going overboard. On the downside, the color won’t match everything, and the woven nylon may remind some of an art class project. Available for $995 at Neiman Marcus.

Shop for more designer purses from Prada

January 15, 2008

Tuesday Fashion Bits
It’s Tuesday, which means it’s time for the weekly highlighted fashion bits from our sister site The Fashion Row. Gift ideas, star style, beauty products, designer news, sweet deals and so much more. So in case you missed it, here is what we have this week.

Tis the season for sample sales: This week include Love YaYa, Robert Rodriguez and Habitual

Mulberry introduces Footwear: Designer handbag brand Mulberry is taking the next step in the world of fashion, by adding footwear to the brands accessory line.

Diane von Furstenberg Wrap Dress: A must-have for any wardrobe.

Ferrari celebrates: Ferrari and Italian fashion eyewear company Marcolin join forces to created limited edition gold sunnies.

HayLuv Jewlery: A great find!

More on The Fashion Row!

An uncomplicated bag like this Miu Miu Woven Leather Tote is perfect for an effortless, day-to-night transition. If you haven’t really had the opportunity to appreciate woven leather yet, feast your eyes on this slouchy wonder. The intricate material is fabulously soft and is all done up in a modern, stylish shade of clay brown (which, incidentally, looks great with black, too). The softly gathered handles make it super comfortable to sling on the shoulder, and because it’s so versatile, it’s the ideal piece to see you from the AM hustle and bustle to the PM wind down. Available for $1455 at MyTheresa.

Shop for more designer purses by Miu Miu

Where do I begin? The Be & D Kan Kan Portfolio Shoulder Bag is one for the books. It’s got way too much going on and the ruffled exterior may seem like a cute idea in theory, but executed like this, the purse screams Paris Hilton, and not on her good days. The tiny studding isn’t needed when there’s so much else happening, and the soft beige color does what it can to balances the commotion, but it isn’t enough to keep this bag from becoming a miss. The Be & D Kan Kan Portfolio Shoulder Bag retails for $595 and is available at net-a-porter.com.