Years before the Louis Vuitton Tribute, a $42,000 "can't get one even if you could afford it" handbag debuted, the art (if you can call it an art) of putting those leftover scraps of handbag to good use was pioneered by Coach.
From that first patchwork tote created as a Holiday offering, a whole collection has been spawned...whether it's a good thing or not...well, you can decide that for yourself (I reserve my opinions for a few lines down).
Pictured above is one of the latest of the bunch, the Ergo Patchwork Hobo from the Summer Patchwork collection. The little washed denim pocket is a newer touch, but having never been a fan of the logo fabrics, I'm not sure I'd want to carry several of them on my arm...at once.
Where the Louis Vuitton Tribute was, in my opinion, less than attractive, there was something compelling about it...I wanted to see if I could figure out where all the bag styles were. The Coach patchwork bags have gone from a clever idea, to "kute", to just tired and pedestrian (as has Coach in general...where only a few years ago there were sparks of fashion promise at a decent price, the bags are kind of meh and uninspiring...but I digress).
The collection runs from $98 to $458, making it far more accessible than the Tribute (how many times does $458 go into $42,000?) and extends from bags to hats, sneakers, even scarves with the patchwork printed on them.
Summer's collection has 2 color ways...denim or khaki, and you can see and buy them from Coach.