Hi Everyone!
Long time no post, I know!
I've just been busy with life and got too lazy to update my blog. I'm so sorry. I wanted to post like my outfits but then, I'm like no one's gonna take my photo and there's no good background here. So basically, I am full of excuses. LOL.
Now, this post is for people thinking about buying a designer handbag. You know, those bags that costs from $1000 above.
Also, this post is for people who can't afford them on a whim. Like, if you've never had one but thinking of it. Like me.
I, so far, have only ONE DESIGNER HANDBAG. I'm happy to say I'm a proud owner of the Givenchy Pandora Medium Studded Bag. It's limited edition.YAY!
So, how I came to that decision? Actually, I wanted the Givenchy Large Pandora Bag. But, when I went to Hong Kong, I stumbled by this bag on Lane Crawford and it was on sale. (Just 10% sale not clearance. I think it's just those random sale events like 10% off regular items thing) Soooo... luckily I have informed my bank that I'm gonna go to Hong Kong and I might make purchases. Also, lucky that the price can be covered by my credit limit (Whew!). They didn't have installment plan but that's ok because it's actually cheaper by a couple of dollars than the large one. AND I'VE ALREADY SAVED ENOUGH. SO YAAAAYYYYY!!!!
So, here's how I did it and you might find it useful.
1. Know that you're gonna have to wait and you're gonna be patient. Mentally prepare yourself. Designer handbags are like $1000 and above. Some are below $1000. But, if your salary isn't $1000 a month, you're gonna have to save up, dear. This is what I did. And it took me more than a year.
2. Do you have a brand preference? Maybe you do. Are you an LV girl? Or a Chanel girl? If you have a brand preference, then it's easy. Just go to their website and check their styles. If you don't, go to step 3.
3. Do you have a preferred style and size? There are different bag styles. Satchels, totes, hobos, bucket bags. Then, most bags have one style in different sizes. Like my Givenchy Pandora. I prefer you do this in a store so you can put it on you and see if it's too big or too small for you.
4. Do you want a leather bag right now? If you do, I suggest you buy one now, then save up for that designer. You can go to etsy, they have good handmade leather bags. I also suggest you go to sites like 6pm.com, or in QVC and HSN. They have leather handbag brands that costs less than $200. I think that's reasonable. Also, QVC and HSN have FlexPay so it splits your payment so you don't need to pay 200 USD right away.
5. Please don't buy Michael Kors, Tory Burch, Dooney and Bourke or a bag that looks SO SIMILAR TO FAMOUS STYLES. MK, Tory Burch, and Dooneys all look like those designs by Prada, Chanel, Vuitton which to me is disappointing. Why would you buy their version? Really? Just don't. What I like about Givenchy pandora is that these designer have yet to copy it. If you want the Chanel 2.55 then buy that. Not, the MK version, not the Rebecca Minkoff version. I have yet to see an original design from MK or Tory Burch or Dooney. At least Minkoff has that Morning After bag that looks original (for me)
6. There are brands that produce leather bags in original designs. There are brands like She + Lo, Foley and Corinna, Elliot Lucca, etc. that produce original designs and they're made of good quality leather and they're like under $200. Some are even under $100 in 6pm.com. Also, I want to point out that Isaac Mizrahi has a collection in QVC and some of his designs are original or tweaked versions of noticeable styles. And what I love about it is that the branding is super subtle. There's branding on the lining and that's understandable but the leather part usually doesn't have much.
As for moi, I really wanted a leather bag right away so luckily here in the Philippines, quality cowhide leather is quite cheap because there's lots of leather here. I bought mine for less than $100. YAAASSS!!! Also, it's green. hehe. I'll show it in later posts. So, after I had that, I was so confident in myself hehe. And I saved up for the Givenchy one.
7. Know that limited edition bags are limited. Can you believe it???? So don't fall in love with a limited edition bag. Well mine was lucky but know that wasn't the style I had my eye on. Hahahaha.
8. COLOR? Do you want a color? I suggest buy a black one for your first one. Usually colored bags can stain. It won't stain your clothes but your clothes will stain the leather.
9. HIGH MAINTENANCE? Leather handbags should be maintained and they can be pricey. My bag is a little more than a year and I have yet to have it conditioned. It's a soft lambskin leather.
10. READING IS FUNDAMENTAL. Read about leather in general. So you know about leather, duh. But to tell you, croc and ostrich leather are super limited and need a lot of care. Lambskin and goatskin also needs care but not as much. Cowhides are the one that is usually very sturdy. But, cowhides are made of 3 layers. Some "genuine leather " bags like JOY & IMAN in HSN (Yes, Joy Mangano and Iman the supermodel) use split leather which is no good. It's like faux leather. They used the 3rd layer which is basically not good. But, I'll tell you about that bad decision in the coming posts.
11. DETAILS. Chanel 2.55 bags have gotten more expensive than say, last 2010. Yes it has. But guess what, Chanel now uses YKK zippers. Yes, YKK. I went to a Chanel boutique and the zipper is YKK. You'd think they'd customize their YKK zippers with Chanel embossing. So, that can turn you off.
12. CLASSIC, OVERRATED, and UNDERRATED. The classics are the Chanel 2.55, Birkin, Kelly, Gucci Boston, LV Alma, Speedy, Neverfull, I am also including the SC (Sofia Coppola) satchel with it. So, those styles that have stood the test of time. Overrated bags are the Balenciaga Motor Bags,Mulberry Alexa, Proenza Schouler PS1 (but if I had the money, I'd buy all three in a heartbeat lol) and those bags that are on every celeb that is very trendy and might be of the moment. Underrated bags are the bags that are not on everyone but the quality is good. Any bag from Tod's for me is underrated. Quality is amazing. Enumerating some are Balenciaga Le Dix, MCM Milla, Max Mara Whitney, Mulberry del Rey, Loewe puzzle, Loewe Amazona, Tom Ford and Akris bags as well. These are bags that have amazing designs and might go borderline classic but not a lot of people have it so you're sure to get compliments. ;)
So.... did that kinda help? I can tell you my next purchase is Mansur Gavriel Lady Bag. I am ready for the price. It is more than $1000 and I'm good to go. I also bought an Isaac Mizrahi, Elliot Lucca, and Aimee Kestenberg bag. And those 3 cost me around $200. YAAASSSSS!!!! I bought it on eBay. So you can check eBay. 2 of them are pre-owned and the Elliot Lucca has a scuff in it but I think I can have it repaired. I'll post what they look like in the future. :)
So, toodles.
