Handbags Fashion

On September 28th Christie’s in London will offer an incredible collection of vintage Louis Vuitton luggage during its Interiors: Style & Spirit sale. Over 20 original pieces from the famed French luxury goods house dating from the late 19th century to the 1940s will go on the block, including perfectly patinated suitcases, cabin trunks, small trunks, hat boxes and vanity cases. Each timelessly luxurious item tells a different story, with many still sporting vintage travel labels from trips with their original owners on steamships and to exotic locales, while others feature hand-painted monograms and colorful custom stripes.

The latter are the original inspiration for the Mon Monogram personalization program recently re-introduced by Vuitton, harking back to the golden age of travel when aristocrats, sporting gentlemen and military officers would have their custom-made luggage emblazoned with their monogram, emblem, racing or regimental colors. With an inviting estimate range of £400 for smaller cases to £6,000 (about $9,000) for the steamer trunks along with favorable exchange rates, this is a perfect opportunity to add to or begin that vintage luggage collection and recapture the glamour and decadence of a bygone era when journeying to a foreign land involved adventure, romance and style.

Louis Vuitton is constantly releasing new lines and bags which rivet some people’s likes and not others. Personally, the Monogram Rivets line appeals to me in a smaller bag, and BOOM, there is one on eLuxury now! The Louis Vuitton Monogram Rivets Accessory Pouch sports the monogram canvas pattern with a “Louis Vuitton Inventeur” brass plaque and brass studs all over. Add a little bang to an already well loved line and you get a hit. An outside zip pocket tops it all off along with a removable leather strap. Wear it as a mini bag or carry it as a clutch. Love this one and love the size of 8.3″x 5.1″x 1.2″. Move quick if you want this bag online, eLuxury for $675.

If you are around South Florida, call up or visit the great folks at Louis Vuitton Bal Harbour to inquire further about this line!

The slick and stylish Movado Master 

Movado has a new gorgeous line of watches that are sure something to brag about. The Movado Master is so bold and sharp, architecturally oriented and yet stylish enough for the pampered. Movado ahs really taken it to the next level, converging many of their different ideas from other watches and watch designs which prove to be popular, producing this one strikingly beautiful timepiece.

The architectural aspects of the watch are clear expressions of the Bauhaus movement. The iconic Museum dial is used, albeit in slightly a different style. Following this design pattern, door-style hinges are used, adding to the industrial look while providing great comfort for the wrist wearing it.

The watch’s dial can be either white or black and is decorated with luminescent custom made hands. The dot at the twelve is a button like design with a convex center.

The circle of the watch is slightly off to add to the intriguing design and the inner pattern is similar to that of the strap.

Encircling the face is a bezel which is set with either double row diamonds or sapphire, adding to the class and glamour of the watch.

There is so much more to describe this watch. Every inch of space is filled with thought and master design.

Just looking at it could compel someone to buy it.

Behind the scenes, Marc Jacobs—now in his tenth year at Louis Vuitton—had a knowing tag for the season: He called it “Girl with a Monogram Handbag.” So there it was, as a mathematical equation: Scarlett Johansson (she of Girl with a Pearl Earring and the Louis Vuitton ad campaign, sitting front row) + Vermeer (research trip to Holland) = Fall 2007 collection. And yet, not quite. At the end of the show, which also featured a plethora of references to Jacobs’ previous LV outings, all he would declare was, “Clothes, and more clothes!” and then, more reluctantly, “A Vermeer palette. Romantic, graphic, painterly, but kind of strong.”

In fact, there’s no urgent need to Google “Dutch Masters” to get a fix on the fact that this Fall collection was actually a mustering of sportswear pieces as a foil for a huge range of Vuitton accessories—everything from big, floppy Flemish berets to tinted patent and shearling bags, brushed-gilt plate-metal buckled belts and shiny little shoe-boots. First off, the clothes were simply a matter of high-necked dark green, gray, and fluffy orange sweaters, color-blocked against copper, bronze, blue, and red lamé skirts. Then came leather circle skirts with loose-backed jackets falling in a curve at the back, and a great oversize blue-gray sweater over slim pants.

That section moved into black and navy tailoring, the best examples being neat pencil skirts with menswear pocket flaps, and eventually into grown-up chic suits (including a couple with pieces of densely tufted tulle and crochet whacked on the shoulder to puff things up) and black dresses. For evening, it was a matter of dégradé printed dresses, some sprouting ostrich feathers under the hem. In other words, the show felt a bit all over the place. But never mind: A lot of the women in the audience declared that, once the elements are merchandised for stores, they’ll be going shopping.

louis_vuitton_candy_scarf-180x179

So, I got TI’s new CD, “Paper Trail,” a few days ago and there’s a song on it that I really like called “Swing Ya Rag.” It’s a song you’ll probably hear on radio eventually, and if you like to go out and dance, you’ll probably hear it even sooner. When singing along in my car (yes, I rap alone in my car. You should try it), I can’t help but notice how much he mentions Louis Vuitton and Gucci “rags,” which I’m assuming must be scarves. Mostly, while rapping, I mistakenly say “bag” instead of “rag” because I think I’ve developed some weird sort of mild, purse-related Tourette’s, but I digress. These “rags” are apparently swung above the head, in lieu of dancing, at clubs.

So, I couldn’t help but ask myself: if I were to swing a rag, what rag would I swing? And today, I would swing the Louis Vuitton Candy Scarf/rag. It has a fun, pop-art sensibility to it that reminds me of the jelly-filled jewelry I used to have as a little kid in the 80s. That jewelry had glitter and other tiny, shiny treasures floating in the brightly-colored goo inside, the the arrangement of the LV logos and stars in this scarf look like someone has squeezed all the floating goodness towards the edges. It’s casual, glam, and a lot of fun – perfect for the type of rag-swinging that TI seems to be advocating.

oh!My God! I want to eat!

Imagine someone going to court to beg for protection against Paris Hilton! Well, surprises like that do happen in Los Angeles, and one of them occurred last Wednesday. TMZ managed to procure documents containing different accusations against Paris and demanding the issue of a restraining order.

The plaintiff, a man named Ramiro Benitez, unfortunately possessed of an undecipherable hand, accuses Hilton of numerous threats to assault him “both sexually, physically and financially”.
According to Benitez, it all began with a truculent telephone conversation as far back as 1997 and Paris has been keeping it up ever since, her manners growing more and more violent. Benitez says he is afraid not only for himself but also for his teenage son and seven-year-old niece.

The persecuted fellow requests the court order the vicious beauty to stay 100 yards away from him, his car, and the places he haunts.

As much as I love the shape of the Notting Hill Westbourne, it is the rich saturation of colors that has me ga-ga for the brand. To be honest, it is both aspects. The structured shape of the Westbourne is typically not one I am drawn to, yet the feminine and streamlined design handbags is perfectly put together. Why I really love this bag is that it is perfect for dressing up but can still be worn dressed down. And for me, having a more elegant bag in my wardrobe that I can still wear with jeans is a homerun.

Notting-Hill-Westbourne-Pink-Python-198x200

Notting-Hill-Westbourne-Lilac-Python-199x200

For Spring 2010 I could not pass up sharing the colors that Notting Hill has available in the Westbourne.
There is Lilac Python, Cream Matte Crocodile, Sunset Orange Glossy Python, and Pink Python. Each color catches my attention brilliantly. It is as if these Notting Hill bags are in a color league of their own. While the color is rich and saturated, it does not look overdone or too powerful. There is an element of toned-down to a vamped up color scheme that is anything but bland. Sounds like an oxymoron, but these replica bags are working it!
I have felt the python skin Notting Hill Design uses in person and it is rich and smooth, lacking any sign of light and flaky like some other skins we see. I am sure the matte crocodile is just as luscious as it looks as well. This fabulous foursome leaves an option for everyone.

Louis Vuitton Fashion Show

Marc Jacobs and the Louis Vuitton men’s studio director.Louis Vuitton Men’s Runway Fashion Show at Paris Fashion Week Here are the garments.

Louis Vuitton men’s spring-summer 2010 fashion show in Paris, France..
This is  Fashion Show during Paris Fashion Week in Louis Vuitton..

Straight from the streets of Paris is Arne’s pic of his fabulous Damier Graphite Jorn.  He wanted to share with us his LVoe for Louis and a pic of him and his wife, Sophie at “104″ Art Gallery where the Louis Vuitton Men’s Fashion Show for Spring Summer 2010 was held. Merci beaucoup pour envoyer les photos.learn more Louis Vuitton, Menswear, 2010 Fashion Week, 2010 Men’s Fashion Week in my other article.

I have a hard time putting into words the excitement I felt when I received the press release on the latest Louis Vuitton Core Values campaign. As with the previous campaigns featuring outstanding personalities like Sean Connery, Michail Gorbachev, Keith Richards and the famous astronauts Buzz Aldrin, Jim Lovell and Sally Ride, the latest campaign could not have chosen better Core Values icons.

There is no other photographer whose work I have adored and studied as much as Annie Leibowitz’s beautiful portraits for Rolling Stone, Vogue and Vanity Fair. Hence, I was delighted to find out that she would be featured in the latest Core Values campaign, alongside her close friend and legendary dancer Mikhail Baryshnikov. The self-portrait captures a delightfully intimate moment between the two friends in Annie’s NYC studio, with subtle lighting accenting key elements of the scene.

Absolutely marvelous! Fantastic of the fashion house to honor the exceptional photographer and artist who has been going through rough times financially in the past year.