Fashion + Sense with Bronwen Llewellyn
forex trading live Today’s blog post is brought to you by the letter “m.” M is for messenger, a fabulous unisex utility bag that can be a purse, a satchel, a shopping tote, or a briefcase. Since the messenger tends to lean toward the masculine persuasion, it is often difficult to find just the right size…or it was in my case. Since last December I have been searching for the perfect cross-body bag. My plight is motivated by a holiday shopping excursion to Williams Sonoma, where I needed to be hands-free to carry all my loot. I found that in a tightly packed store, everyone runs into everyone else’s bags, and a hand held bag carried in the crook of the arm does not a happy shopping experience make.
Naturally my first inclination was to search Louis Vuitton’s wares. There I found a couple of contenders, the Odeon MM and the Bloomsbury PM, but the Odeon was slightly too big and the Bloomsbury was only available in damier ebene and, for some odd reason, I find dark brown leather on an LV to be odd and unsettling. So I could not bring myself to commit to either bag. Then I tried Belen Echandia’s Treasure Me, but it was slightly too small for all my things, and the zipper detail, perforated logo, and wraparound straps detailing on the bag were a bit fussy. So, beginning to understand Goldilocks’ dilemma, I continued my search.
Photo courtesy of Restoration Hardware
coinmama As I tried to narrow my wish list–superb leather, simple styling, classic clean lines, rectangular in shape–I came across this picture on a website. I am naturally drawn to all things from Restoration Hardware, but this stuck me as a great utilitarian room with all the stylistic features plus the bonus of a stunning view. I knew if I could find a bag that, if dropped into this photograph, suited the room, I would have a winner.
Photo courtesy of J.Crew
binaryoptions The first contender is the Belstaff® large New York postman bag. I love the overall look of this bag, and am drawn to its heritage (and its English origin). The color is iffy, but come on…it has a triple turnlock closure option and the burnished leather looks scrumptious! And then I looked at the size. At 13″ high x 16″ wide x 5.5″ deep, this bag is way too big to be a purse stand-in. Then there is the interior–it has multiple compartment dividers. This is another no-no for me. I know the ladies will feel my pain when I say that it is hard enough to find my stuff when I only have one compartment to search, must less three or four! And at $795 it is the most expensive of the bags featured (well, at least the ones I can realistically consider). So, onto the next bag.
Photo courtesy of Sundance
Ah, simplicity. This bag bears the enticing title “Milan Metro” and lives up to that name with wonderful clean lines (and a nice color). The brown is much easier to coordinate with the wardrobe than the more yellow-tan of the postman bag, though perhaps not as nostalgic. And since it hails from Sundance, there is a natural assumption that it is an artisan piece. The price is right, too, coming in at a mere $248…about the price of a lower-end Coach bag. The interior is not divided, and features multiple pen loops and a small cell phone pocket (has anyone else noticed that NO cell phone ever fits into these so-called “cell phone” pockets? We need “smart phone” pockets or, better yet, smart phone in-a-case pockets if we are really going to be functional and organized). And for a guy this may be the perfect bag, particularly if that guy is of lean build. However, my discovery that the bag is less than eleven inches wide (12.5″ high x 10.5″ wide x 2.5″ to be precise) killed the deal for me.
Photo courtesy of Hermes.com
And then I saw this. The perfect bag. The Steve messenger by Hermes. Minimal hardware, simple clean lines, timeless design, and a leather cross-body strap. It is even lined in ultra soft leather! At 13.4″ long x 10″ high x 3.9″ deep the size was perfect. Then I saw the price tag: $6,750. Yes, you read that right. Enough said.
Photo courtesy of Mulberry
Well, I was fairly crushed and unhopeful after seeing the Hermes bag. No bag could ever live up to the Steve. Or so I thought. I had almost resigned myself to having to go with Mulberry’s Alexa bag (not shown) with its inflated price tag, fabric interior, and slightly-too-triangular shape when I found this. But it can’t be the right size, I thought. 11.75″ high x 13″ wide x 3.25″ deep…it is! Well, the Alexa is four figures, so the price must be high, right? Not so. Apparently Mulberry men’s bags are more reasonably priced (and lined in suede!), and less than either of my initial LV options at under $700. And it is available in dark chocolate…a color that is dark enough to coordinate easily, but not quite black, so a bit less formal. The final test was to put it side by side with the Restoration Hardware room to see if it met the “room vibe” test. It does. I can picture it slouching on the floor at the base of the table. Mulberry has a history of fine leather bags…and I have a feeling that I will be bringing a piece of that history home with me in the near future.
