A girl can never have too many bags. They are the ultimate
fashion fix – cheap, versatile, practical (well, sometimes)
and they don’t require endless trying-on sessions. A good
bag can transform an ordinary outfit into a fabulous one. Buy a
bag in any of this season’s key colours – canary
yellow, apple green, and coral pink – and you will have
found a more subtle and forgiving way of wearing such shades. Firstly, the evening bag or clutch bag: must be small enough
not to hinder dancing/mingling but big enough to hold the
essentials for a night out. If you’re wearing a plain
outfit, choose a bag that will add interest: go to Accessorize
for a sparkly/beaded/ colourful clutch. If your outfit is
interesting enough in itself, you can’t go wrong with a
classic black or neutral bag. Think about splashing out on a
vintage designer classic like a Chanel quilted handbag. For everyday uses, you need a carry-all bag. Being an Oxford
student, you will need to make sure this can fit at least one
book in it but a fun, novelty bag can easily disguise dull
contents. For summer, a beach bag is the perfect size for student
essentials and they come in all sorts of colours and prints so
it’s easy to find one no one else will have. Gap is reliable
for this sort of bag (see top left), but if you want to splash
out, Irish designer Orla Kiely is the undisputed expert for
good-sized and quirky bags (see bottom right). The model
carry-all bag, though, has to be the Mulberry Roxy bag (see
bottom left), but at £575 you may need to search long and hard
for a highstreet alternative. There are two types of bag that fall under the ‘weekend
bag’ category. The first type is the one you use every
weekend for shopping and general use – it needs to be
slightly bigger than the evening bag, but you can forget about
having to fit in books – relief. Neutral colours like brown,
cream and black are practical choices for this sort of bag. The
second weekend bag is the type you use when/if you’re lucky
enough to go on a Bridget Jones-esque weekend get-away. All the
designers like Louis Vuitton, Burberry, Mulberry and so on have
perfect weekend choices but equally, the much more affordable
Designers at Debenhams range have come up with some impressive
alternatives. Of course, if you’re a true bag addict, this season alone
you’ll need (or is it want?) the pastel bag, the metallic
bag, the brightly coloured bag, the print bag, the sporty bag,
the glam bag, the list goes on. And if you want to be streets
ahead, for autumn/winter the must-have bag is Gucci satin
patchwork bag (waiting lists will already be huge), and the
bowling bag is back big time. For now though, invest in a cheap
and cheerful summer bag and you’ll be surprised how much it
can brighten up your mood.ARCHIVE: 3rd week TT 2004
Bags of fun
