Bags
A little word about a big subject.......
Find a good bag that will last you and that you love! We believe that spending your hard earned cash on a couple of Fur Coat investment bags is money well spent. A Fur Coat bag, as well as a few frivolous No Knickers bag, are great additions to your wardrobe. The bag accessory makes the loudest statement about who you are, not because of the label it carries, but because of its beauty.
Choosing a bag
When choosing a bag remember the basic principle that smaller people can wear smaller bags and taller people can get away with larger totes etc. Think about whether you are a messy bag person who likes to dig deep into the recesses of a handbag; or are you tidy and precise in which case a large and messy bag can look silly? Shoes and bags don't have to match but it does help if they compliment one another. We have found a dark brown bag is a fabulous place to start as an investment buy and actually is more useful than black because it contrasts with more colours in your wardrobe.
Branding
Whichever bag you choose, it has to be more beautiful than the label. Avoid bags that scream the label from the top of the rooftops. If you are being made to be overt advertisements for the brand forget it, it doesn't matter how much you paid for it, it will immediately look cheap. Although most of the designer bags are exquisite in every way, some are not!
Look at the detail
Originality means choosing a classic bag with a distinguishing feature. This could be a detail on the clasp, a shape definition, the quality or colour of the leather.
Try and Buy Leather
There will be rare exceptions to this rule. Some brands specialise in high quality PVC bags like Furla and Guess. Stella McCartney also specialises in bags made from non-animal materials. There is a world of difference between a Primark PVC number and a Stella McCartney bag!
Watch the hardware
Too much on a bag makes it look cheap. Make sure it is stylish and doesn't cheapen the bag.
What's on your feet?
Shoes and bags don't have to match but it does help if they compliment one another. Before you go out in search of a bag have a peek at your footwear and remind yourself of the various colours in your wardrobe. Dark brown, tan, taupe or grey are fabulous neutral colours for choosing an investment bag. Black bags are often less likely to look Fur Coat because they are so commonplace and less flexible than the colours mentioned.
Have a peek into the bag blogs!
There are loads of fashion blogs out there, which provide up to the minute advice and thoughts on bags and fashion. FCaNK particularly loves the following blogs:The Fur Coat Bag
I bought my Fur Coat bag at Biscester Shopping Village in 2005. I wanted a bag that would take me through the years. I took myself into Tod's and bought a beautiful tan leather bag. It is a classic design and looks great with anything. It is now in its 5th year with me. It still looks as good as it did the day I bought it and is forever acquiring admiring comments and glances. It did cost me a pretty penny but I have not purchased a bag with its price tag since. If you calculate the cost of the bag over the 4 years since I have had it, the annual cost works out to much less than I would spend on a cheaper bag each year. The bag cost £180. That works out to £45 pounds annually!
When Fur Coat shopping, we are talking about quality not price. Sure, there are your heavily branded and iconic Fur Coat bags. Jimmy Choo, Hermes, Prada, Gucci, Tod's to name but a few. These bags are hardly ever discounted in the shops apart from the poor selling items. Some stores like Selfridges and ASOS.com will sell them with a small discount.
If you feel like a bit of fun, you can hire the bag of your dreams. At FashionBag, after paying a monthly membership fee, you can hire a Fur Coat bag on a month by month basis. FCaNK can't really see the point of this, but each to their own. FashionBag does have a link to a Second Hand store on their site where you can purchase ex hire bags. They are still quite expensive but better value than paying for the long term hire of a new one.
TK Maxx is the Fur Coat bag shoppers' heaven as long as you are there at the right time. TK Maxx will have the odd, huge, random delivery of fantastic, discounted, designer bags and if you find a bag you love, buy it. Don't leave it because stock is erratic and unreliable. This does make it all the more exciting when you stumble upon your rose, hidden amongst the thorns! TK Maxx now also has an online store where you can pick up some great bargains. Subscribe to their mailing list to be the first in the know.
Do you buy a PVC Fur Coat bag? We seriously question whether a Guess PVC bag is worth the pennies. It might be the nearest you'll ever get to buying a label that hasn't been discounted. However, to be honest, you may as well save your pennies because a bag like this will add little credibility to your Fur Coat image. Save the money and put it towards a Jimmy Choo!
There are other bags without an iconic label that are seriously worth looking at. Established in 1777, Dents have been producing high quality leather goods for over 200 years. Kate Kanzier has some fabulous totes that are well worth looking at and some other classic bags at excellent value.
FCaNK Recommends:
Fur Coat Bags £70+
- TK Maxx
- ASOS.com top range
- Jane Shilton- leather
- Dents
- House of Fraser
- La Redoute – Christian Lacrouix designs cheapened versions for this catalogue
- Vanilla Paris for leather totes £75 upwards
- Jigsaw
- Kate Kanzier: her top range bags are really, really great value
- Alkara Designs
- Karen Millen - they have decreased the amount of branding on their bags and are now just fab!
The Trendy, Brash, No Knickers Bag £40+
If you are going to go for a cheap bag, go for a brash and loud retro look that shouts frivolity and joy and is great fun for you to hang on your shoulder for a season. The old favourite bottom end stores are great for these. - H&M
- ASOS.com - bottom range
- Top shop – although the real leather bags are quite pricy!
- New Look
- And please don't forget to look in the Vintage stores too.
- BagSlag! What a FCaNK find. Check out their Iris Black leather bags with Zips all over it! To die for...
The Classic No Knickers Bag £40+
If you want a more serious but cheap end bag, then we highly favour Lu Lu Rose which is a small boutique in Brighton's North Laines. They sell women's accessories and bags from day wear to evening wear. Shop manager Jane Kelly is precious about her fairytale hoard of belts, bags, shoes, hats and scarves... "[w]e commission our pieces from closely guarded sources in Europe and Asia." Their bags range from £35 for their tasteful, non leather range or leather bags range from £85 through to £120. The exclusivity and care doesn't stop once you've purchased one of LuLu Rose's original items either. With your receipt comes an A6 page of care advice. For handbags it reads: 'Avoid overloading; avoid contact with alcohol (perfumes, solutions) and greases (for example, foundation and make-up).' You can purchase some of the bags online. Otherwise you will need to make a happy trip to Brighton!
Other places to buy cheaper to mid priced but serious bags are:
- Kate Kanzier fabulous for reasonably priced bags...what a joy!
- M & S
- Laura Ashley
- Warehouse
- Debenhams – particularly Fiorelli
- Jane Shilton - non leather
- Bottletop
In summary
- Invest in a couple of amazing handbags. They are brilliant accessories to ramp up your image and say a lot about who you are!
- As a rule, a good starting point for a leather bag is £45 so if you are paying that for plastic…it's got to be worth it!
- Unless you have paid a lot of money for the hardware and branding and want to show it off…we suggest you avoid too much of it. Too much on a bag makes it look cheap.
- Never ever purchase fakes! Living stylish lives require us to also make ethical decisions to feel rich on the inside. Even if you pick up a fake that looks genuine, you may be funding organised crime and you definitely are ripping people off.
- Try and buy leather. There will be rare exceptions to this rule. Some brands specialise in high quality PVC bags like Furla and Stella McCartney.
- If you are buying a cheap bag make sure it is a cheerful one. It is far more stylish to have a fun, retro bag that is blatantly cheap than a shy, serious poorest cousin bag!
Comments