Tuesday, November 14, 2006

It's big, Big, BIG - The latest gotta-have-it handbag can stop a train in its tracks

The purse that ate the rent -- and the utility bill and the phone bill and more -- The Chloe Paddington is no longer an 'It' bag, but it still costs $1,540 at Saks Fifth Avenue.

J. Sadie Lawson thought about it long and hard before pulling out the credit card. She could have used the $550 toward rent. She may have been able to get a month ahead on her car payment.

Instead, on a recent business trip to New York, she splurged on her latest dream bag, a mini Chloe Paddington in a steel gray.

"I just had to have it," she says. "I love the shape, the hardware."

The clutch is now the prize in her growing collection of handbags -- along with her Louis Vuitton Speedy, her Coach satchel and her Mulberry shoulder bag -- that have come to define her style.

"I don't spend a lot on designer clothes," says Lawson, who is 37, lives in North Raleigh and works as a pharmaceutical sales representative.

"But my bags, I love my bags. I want to be known for my bags."

Once just a functional accessory in basic brown, taupe or black, handbags are bigger than ever. And we're not just talking size -- these days they're built to fit everything from lipstick to lunches -- but also popularity and price. They've become the focal part of many women's wardrobes.

Instead of owning one bag to get through a season, women now have a collection: A shopper for day, a clutch for evening; an oversized tote for a long flight, a sleek baguette for an evening out with the girls.

"Handbags have become a fashion accessory just like shoes are," says Kate Leser, owner of A Distinctive Image, a image-enhancement-consulting business in Raleigh. "Bags are becoming much more creative, more stylish. They can spice up a wardrobe."

The bag frenzy has sparked a kind of treasure hunt among high-end shoppers. The more fashion-forward the woman, the more expensive the brand she wants: Coach, Kate Spade, Gucci, Chanel, Marc Jacobs, Chloe, Tod's, Fendi, Balenciaga or Hermes.

Local malls sell a few Coach or Kate Spades for under $350. But the reality of designer handbag shopping these days is this: The average bag costs about $1,200, and only some of the top brands can be found in North Carolina at high-end speciality boutiques or luxury department stores such as Saks Fifth Avenue or Neiman Marcus.

Even more exclusive? The newest "It" bag. These latest, greatest, most-sought-after designer bags (usually photographed first on celebrities) have for several years had some women scrambling to get on a waiting list just to get a shot at buying them. Most recently on the "It" list: the Fendi Spy, the Chloe Paddington and the Marc Jacobs Stam.

But like a hot stock, the "It" list can be fickle. Ask any collector and they'll scoff at the notion of buying a Chloe Paddington today. It's so over.

Jean Schnitzer, 35, of Raleigh, has been on countless "It" bag lists -- often once she gets a bag, she uses for a few weeks, then sells it on eBay.

"Once you have to wait and get on a list for a bag, then going to a store to get one, the thrill is gone," she says. "Until you get your first bag like that, where you think about it, ponder it, wait for it. It's game over. You've crossed a bridge that you can't go back."

Shoppers who can't or don't want to pay for a designer label needn't be left out of the fun.

Target, Old Navy and many mid-tier department stores often re-create the latest "It" styles with cheaper leathers and hardware. Target has several faux leather hobo styles for under $30. Macy's has several Balenciaga and Marc Jacobs-like styles heavy in hardware and tassels for under $90.

Still, more women in the Triangle are opting for the designer splurge.

When Ashley Vermillion Harris opened her Vermillion clothing store in North Hills, she knew handbags had to part of the mix to offer shoppers a head-to-toe designer package. Now she stocks expensive, exclusive bags by Balenciaga and Bottega Veneta -- some that cost $1,500 or more.

"It's like buying a piece of art," she says. "Just that it's a wearable piece of art."

The cost has as much to do with brand as it does quality. "With the more expensive bags, they're better made," she says. "A really good bag wears better with time. As the leather gets more worn in, it should get better looking."

Winifred Gallagher used to have a hard time understanding that mentality. About $75 or $80 was as high as she'd go for a handbag.

Then one day she spent $250 on a bag, prompting her husband's shocked reply: "But you already have a purse."

A typical male response, to be sure, but it got her thinking about women and their relationship with handbags. She began exploring why women love handbags and why they're willing to spend so much to have the latest, designer model.

In her new book "It's in the Bag. What Purses Reveal -- and Conceal" she shows how a designer bag has become a symbol of how far women have come. Her research shows how closely the rise of handbags parallels the emergence of women in the world.

Until the 1920s, when women started traveling and leaving the house alone, women didn't carry purses.

"Women suddenly became a lot more liberated," she says.

And with that liberation, they needed some sort of bag to carry their compacts, lipsticks and money.

It wasn't until the 1980s -- when women began cracking the glass ceiling and figuring out how to juggle a career and motherhood -- that handbags became a true fashion accessory and designers began tempting them with more expensive leathers and exclusive designs.

"All these women had more complicated lives," she says. "They needed a nice-looking vehicle for their multitasking lives."

Along came the "It" bag -- a status symbol for women much like a successful man's BMW or Rolex watch.

"Now, if you see a woman with a Balenciaga, it says 'I'm a professional woman,' " Gallagher says. "All of these bags are designed to be instantly identifiable."

Today, the "It" bag has translated into multiple "It" bags. Women want one for every outfit.

Gallagher says she doesn't see that changing any time soon.

"I think as long as women are in the work force and they need something nice to carry, the handbag is going to be a noticeable item," she says.

Source: newsobserver.com

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