Monday, November 7, 2011

A new bag in town - well, two



This lovely bag is made from "Italian Tapestry" (I'll take their word for it) and does in fact come from Italy. It new (to me) and absolutely pristine. So charming - serenading his lady-love in the refined Italian countryside. There's no question that a bag like this cries out for a structural pairing with say a menswear-inspired ensemble.

I am a sucker for needlepoint bags and the good ones are getting harder to find. I curse myself for every one I let pass by thinking the real mccoy was just around the corner. Although it's tapestry rather than needlepoint, I couldn't let this one go. I love the clasp which snaps-to with a secure click.

Then for something entirely different - a buttery shoulder bag.



This is beautifully lined with an equally supple leather lining and compartments. It has that slight hippie look and feel that is satisfyingly '70s. The challenge I find is with the strap: I'm so accustomed to a handbag that a shoulder bag distracts my usual gait - I'm constantly tugging the thing back up onto my shoulder.

Although from an ergonomic perspective, the handbag is no better than a shoulder bag ... neither do us a lick of good. We should all wear backpacks.

Here's what Rebecca Willis of The Intelligent Life had to say on the subject:


Shoulder bags make us raise one shoulder to keep them in place, at least until evolution presents us with a little hook on our clavicles. Bags held in the crook of the elbow put pressure on the lower arm, and even the cross-body style of bag, which leaves you enviably hands-free, is still lopsided.


So true and yet, how could one possibly end it all? I can't say I've spotted a single women in l'age looking fine sporting a backpack. Serious efforts have gone into designer, leather, textured and so on, backpacks but to no avail. They just look stupid.

I'm still trying to forget this idea ...



An improvement, but who are we kidding ...


Nothing beats a bag.



More on layering and menswear/womenswear next.

5 comments:

  1. That tapestry bag is divine! The only answer I've found to the ergonomic conundrum is just to try to keep my bags as light as possible. It works for about a day then I start adding stuff back and pretty soon it's back to pack mule status.

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  2. Having had a frozen shoulder and tennis elbows I agree a bag is a problem. The best I have found so far is a cross body, if you keep it as light as possible. I have a tapestry bag very similar to the one you show I must have a look for it.

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  3. That tapestry bag is so gorgeous! I'm generally using a cross-body bag these days, but to switch it up, I'll sometimes carry a handbag (like it to have a cross-body strap, through, just in case). I have found that a well-designed shoulder bag -- with the strap wide enough to sit without sliding -- is manageable, although I make sure to switch shoulders, and again, I switch after a while.

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  4. I too am a sucker for tapestry/needlepoint bags.
    As I said before, we are sparsely populated in thrift stores, but, if the weather allows, we have lots of fleamarkets.
    Lately I found a new bag of the german brand "Goldpfeil". It's in perfect condition (maybe produced in the 50ths) and it was a liebeskauf. I think, the handle of yours is made of the same material as the bag, so is mine too. Very rare, mostly it's made of leather or so.
    Topic handbag, shoulderbag - in the endeffect, each and every bag is disturbing.
    In the good old days, Helmut Lang made all women's jackets with enough inside pockets, like men's jackets.
    Off course it didn't work for all occasions to go without a handbag, but going out for dinner, cinema etc. I found it so liberating to throw the handbag in the corner.

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  5. When I carry my bag in the crock of my arm, I swear it is the reason I get Tennis Elbow!

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