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The Jewish Chronicle

Get carried away

Remember how simple life was when there were just a handful of It Bags?

April 1, 2010 10:23
Denim Bayswater, £650, Mulberry

ByJan Shure, Jan Shure

2 min read

Remember how simple life was when there were just a handful of It Bags - the Fendi Baguette, Dior's Lady Di, anything quilted post-1983 by Chanel (ironically, the most covetable Chanel now is the classic 55, designed 30 years earlier) or a cylindrical tote by Louis Vuitton in the classic monogram fabric?

Then every designer on the planet created an It Bag, making it not only impossible to choose, but impossibly expensive, since each one cost a stratospheric sum that was all about status rather than quality or materials. Gradually, aesthetics took second place to gargantuan logos, chains, padlocks, buckles, bows and - possibly, hidden among all the luxuriant fringing - a small kitchen sink.

Then, just when it seemed bags couldn't get any vaster or more ludicrously over-embellished, along came the recession, and suddenly the overblown It Bag was horribly passé.

And while it may still be fine to own a bag by Mulberry or Smythson, there is a slew of high-street names selling bags which are desirable, well made and affordable. What's more, they may inspire "I love your bag"-type compliments from even the savviest handbag hound, since there are so many designer bags that only the accessories editor at Grazia can tell an M&S from a Miu Miu.