Just because a celebrity appears to have great style (only they and their personal stylist know for sure) doesn't always mean they can or should be designers.
While many celebrity clothing lines are not much more than a brand extension of the celebrity (I mean being a rapper isn't enough, you need a clothing brand too, and you're not a real socialite until you have your own handbag line...) designed by pros with the intent of keeping the celebrity as high profile as possible...after all, it's not the design that sells, but the name attached to it.
Department stores are jumping on the celebrity brand wagon too. Two of the most highly talked about and awaited collections this season are allegedly designed by Madonna and Kate Moss for H&M and TopShop respectively.
The Kate Moss for Topshop line has been long awaited, and though it doesn't make the news stateside, I can imagine the crowds on release day were akin to those here when H&M had Stella McCartney (I was there...4 months pregnant and it was NUTS!).
Sadly, like Stella for H&M, the Kate Moss line has one lonely little bag, a fairly bland looking clutch.
It's OK to look at, surely there are nicer clutches albeit ones not "designed" by Kate Moss, but I had hoped for some alternative styles, maybe a larger duffel or shoulder bag...this looks like a fancy sunglasses holder (there were plenty of sunglasses in the group, by the way).
Even Madonna had several bags in her collection (and that goofy turban) in styles to match the clothing. Sadly, those suffered the usual malady that befalls H&M leather accessories...icky feeling leather...but the design element was there.
Much nicer stylewise, though it would have made a fabulous clutch, and the bracelet/chain is a tad gimmicky. It just packs more oomph.
M by Madonna is not available online, unless you go through eBay, and much of it is likely sold out in the stores (though I find that H&M often has pieces remaining which sit unsold once the feeding frenzy is over. Find your local H&M here.
Kate Moss for Topshop is available online, but at a premium cost for those of us in the US. At 45 pounds UK, it's about $89, and the shipping is another $19 depending on the rate of exchange.
