Fashion’s Side dish: Boots, Bags, Baubles and more

Dear Twolia Bagistas,

Oy! What a week. Fashion Week madness, planning my big BagTrends Arm Candy Party, keeping up with this insane Fashion Forecast project for AOL/Google and of course dealing with a broken camera. So please excuse my MIA. I wanted to share so much from the New York City runways while it was happening, but not much of a story without visuals. All is now fixed – well, I did loose a few images in the fixing process. But enough about that; let’s get back to accessories.

As I often do for fashion week, I turned to the fabulous site www.bagborroworsteal.com to get the perfect handbag. Not that I don’t have enough in my own closet; I just wanted a new wow bag! And wowowowah did I get it. For five glorious days, I was the proud owner of a vintage Hermes Kelly in black crocodile. I’ve never been that close to one of these beauties, so taking it for a joy ride was glorious and educational.

The verdict?

While I appreciate the craftsmanship and certainly the divine lady-like silhouette – it’s all me!! – I was disappointed to learn that the Kelly is not ideal for my on-the-go lifestyle. It’s just too time consuming to turn the locket, remove both straps, lift open the top, fish for your essentials and then attempt to gracefully close it. Were I not in constantly need to get in and out of my bag, I’d certainly enjoy this meticulously designed and classically appealing handbag – probably in grey ostrich J. If you’re as shocked by my revelations, imagine how I felt? I’ve waited 24 years to use one of these bags!!

All is not lost.

Thank goodness for BagBorrowOrSteal (yes, the same BBOS mentioned in Sex and the City, the movie).  The genius of this site isn’t just constantly switching bags to be in step with the latest styles; it’s also a way to avoid a regretful purchase. For $850 I rented the Hermes Kelly and learned that the bag is not for my daily life and therefore not a justifiable $7K+ purchase.

Maybe you’re thinking, “Pam, I’ve always wanted that LV Speedy?” Well, go for it. Take a spin for one week for $43 before you plop down $550! Maybe you’ll love it, but maybe you’ll just realized that the Speedy has no internal compartments – save for one measly pouch – and thus just doesn’t work for you. Or, maybe you’ll fall in love and say “yup I’m in” and click over to eLuxuty.com and buy it!

Happy Accessorizing!