BagBible

If you love the look of Chanel bags but don’t want to spend thousands of dollars and refuse to buy hideous knock-offs, Kate Spade Gold Coast is the solution for you.  It won’t break the bank since it’s only $445 (you can get it for even less if you wait for the sale). Also, Kate Spade bags are made of quality leather with great workmanship.  The only thing that you’ll miss (or not) are the big interlocking Cs.  There are a lot of look-a-like bags out there, from the Target look-a-likes to the designers’ look-a-likes.  I can’t stand the cheap look-a-likes, probably because of the poor quality and the fact that they are made of pleather.  However, I don’t mind the higher-end designers look-a-likes.  I guess it’s just a quality issue for me. So, what do you think of wearing a look-a-like bag?

Buy from Nordstrom

Image from Chanel

I just love, love, love this bag.  As you probably already know, I’m obsessed with slouchy bags right now.  I know for a fact that not all slouchy bags are created equal.  Some will fall nicely from your shoulder and some will just sit like ugly shapeless lumps.  I noticed that what sets the great slouchy bags apart from the bad slouchy bags is the bottom part of the bags.

A great slouchy bag has a proportionally wider bottom than the top, like this one. Furthermore, it has to have supple leather that will conform to the content of your bag.  The leather on this Tano bag looks supple from the zoomed in view. The side drawstring pulls reassure the suppleness by creating beautiful ruch instead of rigid and spiky folds.

Now, let’s talk about the color.  It only comes in one color: bronze (in Neiman Marcus).  I think bronze is a great color, because it goes with everything and it is more interesting than just a plain old tan color.  If you look at it closely, the bronze color of this bag is not just a flat bronze, it is more like a distressed bronze, which I think adds character and richness to the bag.

Another great thing about this bag is the price, which is only $225. You don’t even need to wait for it to go on sale. Buy from Neiman Marcus.

If there is one shape of bag that will make you look slimmer, this is the one.  I noticed that long bags like this one are very flattering.  Forget about starving yourself to look slimmer: Just wear the right shape of bag.

Even though the overall look of the bag is fairly simple, it is definitely worth buying just because of it’s slimming effect.  This bag measures a generous 16.5″ x 5.5″ x 17.  I like the fact that it is roomy but does not look bulky.

There is only one minor gripe that I have towards long bags.  It is harder to reach for your things inside the bag compared to the shorter bags. But hey, if a bag can make me look slimmer without pinching my feet, making me stand on my tippy toes, or holding my breath.  I’m all for it.

You can buy this from Tobi for $486 (sale price)

More tips on choosing bags that will flatter your figure.

Lately, I’ve noticed that Dolce & Gabbana has some bags that are more subtly designed (for their standard). This leather hobo is definitely one of them.  The design is not complicated at all, unlike the usual Dolce.  The main interest here are just the pleats and the metallic leather. That’s it, no weird handles, no multiple rainbow color zippers, and no surface that you can use to check your make up on.  I guess they are applying the “less is more” principle for this bag.

Another thing that I like about this bag is that, instead of smacking the rectangle Dolce & Gabbana plaque right in the middle of the bag (yeah, it happened before), they made it detachable.  This way, people like me have the option to remove it, while other people that love having labels on their bags can just keep it.  It pleases everybody.  Don’t you just love options?

Buy this from Bergdorf Goodman for $1895