The Real Thing

A friend/client is smitten with a particular Miu Miu bag that she can't find. She sent me a request to keep an eye peeled for it and a link to an eBay auction of one so I'd know what it looked like.

(It looks like this. Cute, huh?)

I did a little research and wound up talking to a lovely gal named Renée at the Miu Miu boutique in Soho. Since I didn't have the style number for the bag, she asked if I could forward the photos of the bag to her via e-mail. A little later (big points for Miu Miu customer service, by the way) she phoned me back to give me some details about the bag and another really interesting fact: Miu Miu never produced that particular bag in red. What that means is that the bag in the photo above is counterfeit.

So, yeah, the counterfeit thing. I think many of us know that a big percentage of what goes for genuine on eBay is counterfeit. And I guess a lot of folks don't care. Apparently enough people don't care that the counterfeit market is a huge and ever-growing one. I'm not going to spend a lot of time here lecturing you with all the specific reasons why counterfeiting is not a victimless crime. I'll leave the economic arguments to wiser and pointier heads than mine. Suffice to say that along with generally frowning on ripping off other people's ideas & intellectual property, I don't want to carry a bag that was made by a little Chinese girl whose legs had been broken so she couldn't escape from the factory. I don't know about you, but I don't think my karma is sturdy enough to withstand that sort of assault.

But people do buy these fakes, squillions of 'em, and some of the reason, I think, can be found in little bon-bons like this:

(Yves Saint Laurent -- the Muse.)

Oh, I love this thing. I cannot tell you why, there's just something about it that resonates with the harmonics of my aesthetic soul. (That's fancy talk for "Preeeeeeetty!!") I'm not the sort who often falls prey to the It Bag Syndrome. I think we've firmly established that I am an Olympic-level Shoe Ho, but handbags do not usually inspire this sort of palpitations in me. Of course, I like a good handbag. I am one of those folks who feels that the old saw about accessories being the place to put your money is true. But some of my very favorite bags are little vintage sweeties I've picked up for less than 20 bucks.

(Candy-apple red patent. Oh, the love...)

But that Muse bag... oh, that's a beauty. I've seen them in person. The same stroll through Neiman's that unleashed the Want Monster I talked about a while back also gave me a chance to introduce myself to this lovely. It is a beautifully-made bag, it hung perfectly from my shoulder, it was surprisingly light for its size. Very, very nice. I really love this bag, and if I had scads of spare cash I'd buy it in a minute. "Scads" is the operative word here, because this baby costs $1300.

Plus tax.

Ya know what? That is crazy. It is crazy that they are selling $1300 handbags and it is crazy that we are buying them and I'm just as crazy because the truth is I lust in my heart for that thing and I know that if I had $1300 just lying around (under the coffee table, maybe, or in the sock drawer), I'd buy it! So for all those people with Want Monsters more persistent than mine, who also don't have that kind of scratch to throw at what's basically the glorified descendant of the saddlebag, suddenly the $199 version available on the 'Bay might not look like such a bad idea. Hey, ya know -- it's leather, it's nice, it looks real... What the hell, right? There are even websites devoted to them where they make no bones about them being counterfeit -- only they call them "replicas" so it sounds nicer. (No, I'm not giving you any links to any of those sites! Little Chinese girls, remember?? Broken legs!!) So at the risk of playing Blame the Victim, I have to ask -- are the companies making the $1300 bags in some way contributing to their own problem? I'm well aware that there are some design labels whose financial foundations are built on their accessories lines, especially their bags, and so those companies are going to work those bags for all they are worth. But. Is it possible that if the real things were a little bit more accessible there might be less demand for the fakes? I dunno. Maybe.

Now, I am a big believer in "you get what you pay for." I do believe that there is a noticeable difference in quality between that Muse and the $30 vinyl number you can buy at the big box discount store, but I don't know if it's honestly $1270 worth of difference. And I'd like to think that even if I had the means I wouldn't fall prey to this sort of outlandish consumerism, but I don't know if that's true, either.

I'm the sort of person who's never going to be happy with the "replica" version of anything -- every time I looked at it I'd remember that it was a fake, and it would rob me of all my enjoyment -- and this means it's not really a decision I have to make. I'm never going to buy the counterfeit. But for those of you who might not feel that way, those of you perhaps perusing eBay stores that promise you genuine designer goods at a fraction of the price, I'm going to just say it one more time:

Little Chinese girls. Broken legs.

Answered Prayers

Oh. My. God.

I can learn how to make my own shoes.

I ordered this book so fast it would make your heads spin.

So I guess in a couple of months I'll be able to crank out a pair of these:

(Bottega Veneta)

or these, that I've been crying over for months:

(Manolo Blahnik. Called the Pangala, I have since discovered.)

I know, I know... But think of the money I could save!! This is a definite step up from tying flowers to my shoes. I'll let you know how it goes.

Literature for Sniffers

I know most folks don't tune in to a style blog for book recommendations, but hey -- I'm a rebel. (And if it's good enough for my BlogHero, it's good enough for me.) What I'm reading now:

(Totally delighted by the design of this cover. Did you get the perfume reference?)

This was a delightful and unexpected Christmas gift from my darling friends Ben & Mike, who know I'm a big ol' Frag Hag (Sniffer, Perfumista, whatever) and love me anyway. I'm about halfway through it and it's probably unprofessional of me to review a book before I've finished it, but A) I'm not a professional book critic and B) I just like it so much I want to tell you about it.

It really is a delightful read. Turin is a biologist by training who fell in love with fragrance many years ago, has written professionally (and beautifully) about perfume quite a lot, and some time ago turned the considerable powers of his scientific mind to the question of How Does Smell Work? You may not know this, but while there are pretty ironclad theories on how our senses of sight, hearing and even taste work, a Unified Theory of Smell has yet to be agreed upon by the scientific community. Turin has his ideas, and he's pretty convincing.

In the interest of full disclosure, I will tell you that there have been several paragraphs on the chemistry of smell that I've had to go back and re-read, but I must stress that this is due more to my own poor scientific education and habit of reading in bed before I go to sleep than Turin's abilities as a writer. He actually explicates this stuff with remarkable clarity and humor. Even more fun, his writing about perfumes and smells is so lyrical and descriptive that I'm half-crazed to find & sniff the ones he talks about that I haven't tried (seriously -- someone pleasepleaseplease send me a sample of Nombre Noir before I run mad), and to re-sniff the ones I have.

You don't have to be a Perfumista to enjoy this, though, just a curious person who enjoys finding out new things. (If you mis-trust my literary judgment, you can check this review from a more reputable source.)

Treasure

There are people who turn up their noses at vintage. Their punishment is to go their whole lives and never find unbelievably beautiful, mint-condition, Schiaparelli-pink velvet raglan-sleeved coats that make you feel elegant, beautiful, and definitely one-of-a-kind.


For thirty dollars.

Oh, it was a goooooood day.

Photos: Style Spy
Click to enlarge.

Be True to Your Boots

A reader writes:

I just bought a pair of boots that a few people seem to have taken issue with. I adore them. I just wanted to know your thoughts on the subject...

(The boots in question.)

My thoughts on the subject are: Robin, those are some bitchin' boots. I love 'em. I myself have a pair of black square-toed Justin harness boots that have been with me for some years and that I just love. They make me feel all tough and take-charge.

Judging from Robin's website, she probably has plenty of cool stuff to wear with these boots. I myself would like to see them with a really slick, fitted suit -- cigarette pants (or maybe cropped flares) and a close-fitting shrunken jacket. Something like this:

(Balenciaga S/S 2007 -- M. Ghesquiere's usual razor-sharp pants.)

Or, if you were feeling really adventurous, this:

(Alexander McQueen Fall 2007 -- this whole collection blew me away. But then, almost everything he does blows me away.)

The color & pattern of the suit are less important than the shape in this instance.

I'm also really in love right now with a knee-length skirt worn with mid-calf boots, especially if the skirt has a little volume to it:

(Who can resist Anna Sui? Certainly not me. S/S 2007)

(Nathan Jenden Fall 2006. I think I'd want the hem a couple of inches shorter with the boots, but the shape is great. Also, an excellent example of my hypothesis that the sleeve is a key fashion element right now. We're having a major Sleeve Moment.)

As for people "taking issue" with your boots... Of course, when I read that I rolled my eyes so hard that I may have sprained an ocular muscle (if there is such a thing). I am more than a little familiar with this phenomenon, and after long years of raised eyebrows and disapproving glances at my more adventurous fashion choices, I've worked out a thorough position on other people's "issues" with my clothes and it is this:

So what?

We can fall back on the High School Rationale (They're just jealous!) or the Superior Attitude (Philistines. They just don't understand.) to deal with other people's disapproval. But after a lot of probing over a lot of time, I've come to realize it's often just a matter of people being uncomfortable with something new & different. Simple as that. Now, as someone for whom novelty is one of the cardinal virtues, being threatened by it is a little mysterious to me, but a lot of folks are.

Most of us, whether we admit to being Slaves to Fashion or not, actually do have a good deal invested in our personal styles. That doesn't mean we all spend hours trolling the stores and style sites, but on at least a subconscious level I think most people realize that the clothes we wear out of the house are our uniform and our armor and reflect who we are. Even people who claim never to give a single thought to what clothes they throw on every day can look at a style radically different from what they usually sport and say, "Oh, that's so not me." It's not "you"? Why isn't it "you"? Why couldn't it be "you"? Maybe, just maybe, that thing that "isn't you" bugs you so much because deep down you want it to be you and you're not convinced it could. But this is not true! Every single one of us can be anything we want, which is the really wonderful, fun, transformative thing about clothes and fashion. If you wake up feeling like a Fairy Princess, you can put on a skirt with a tulle underlayer. If you wake up feeling like a Hollywood Goddess, you can put on a bias-cut charmeuse dress. If you wake up feeling like an astronaut... well, okay, I got nothin' there, but you understand what I'm saying.

Of course, there is another, simpler answer: They just don't like the boots. That's okay, too. You like 'em, they're your feet, you wear what makes you happy. Life, my friends, is hard enough. Some days are a battle just to get through, and I don't know a single person who at some point or another in any given week doesn't feel like they want to crawl in a hole somewhere.

You should at least get a kick out of your own boots.

Photos: Style.com

Real Style

We lost Molly Ivins yesterday. She had a sharp tongue, a fiery spirit, and an immense and fearless heart. She was usually the smartest person in the room. She made me proud to tell people I was from Texas. She was a warrior and a truth-teller, and the world is a poorer place without her.

That, my friends, is the kind of style that lives forever.

We'll miss you, Molly.

Wherein Style Spy Admits a Shameful Secret

Oh, I fear I am a hypocrite.

Why is it that I can look at this

(Vivienne Westwood Fall 2006)

and clap my hands with glee and cheer and shout, "Amen!" and plot to make the world safe for Grand Fashion Gestures; but when I see this

(Jean Paul Gaultier. I'm going to go out on a limb here and declare for the record that leggings are not going to catch on with men who are not vying for a yellow jersey.)

I think, "Ummmmm... not so much."

Don't get me wrong. I would really, really love it if most men spent a little more time and effort on the way they look. I just don't want them to spend more time than me. (And don't worry folks, that still gives them plenty of leeway.) I am not proud of this ugly little Fashionista hypocrisy and I struggle with it. It's frivolous in some senses, but what I really fear is that it reveals something important regarding my deeper prejudices about gender roles and definitions of masculinity.

I wish to be enlightened and fair, even if I'm only talking about pants.

If I permit -- nay, encourage -- women to tie flowers to their shoes and wear tulle tutus and footwear that looks like it arrived on Earth in an extraterrestrial craft, then men should be able to wear shimmery leggings or skirts or horned hats. And theoretically they can, of course, and I would even applaud them. But I'd be unlikely to give one of them my phone number.

So there you have it. The Style Spy has feet of clay. I'm a stodgy old fuddy-duddy -- I want men to look like men and not characters from a weird Vincent D'Onofrio movie. I hope you can forgive me. To make up for it, I'm going to show you some handsome men's clothing from the Paris collections this week.


Ooooooh, the velvet topcoat (from Gaultier, who did actually have many beautiful and wearable things in this show). I loveloveLOVE a man in a velvet topcoat. When I was in Paris last February I saw lots of fabulous French men in them. They all looked so sexy and sophisticated and elegant and... well, let's just say it's a good thing my French isn't any better than it is or girlfriend would have gotten herself into a few international incidents. Ooh-la-la.

Yves Saint Laurent -- I love this monochromatic (all one color) look. The slouchy trousers are so Gatsby. Girls love Gatsby. He's romantic.

Raf Simons -- This is such a great parka -- so much more sophisticated than the big puffy down one with the Green Bay Packers logos all over it. (I will cut you some slack if you're actually going to a Packers game. But how often does that happen?)

More YSL. Love that loose turtleneck.


Hermes -- Colored trousers are not easy to pull off without looking like you're at a frat house mixer (and no, that is not a good look for a grown-up), but these work. The color is beautifully muted and it's paired very simple, low-key basics in a neutral color that doesn't clash.


More Hermes. Okay, this is advanced fashion, but I'm here to inspire. Three mis-matched patterns -- fraught with danger. It works because all the colors are neutral and of a similar intensity, and the patterns are all of the same scale and fairly muted -- no one of them stands out from the others. It's tough to pull off, but it's beautiful.


Louis Vuitton. Fantastic lightweight jacket. Why would you ever wear a hoodie sweatshirt when you could be wearing a jacket like this?



Hermes. Again with the monochromatic, and note how the sweater fits him. He's not swimming in it, it's not three sizes too large. (Lots of extra room in your sweaters or shirts makes you look sloppy, not cool. If you are a size medium, embrace your medium-ness and put down the damn extra large anything!) Note the tied scarf at the throat. It's very subtle -- a small knot tucked into the collar in a color that blends with the shirt and sweater. You wear this, you're not Thurston Howell. No sir, you are the guy I assume spends a fair amount of time flying first class to various European cities. At a party, I sit next to you. I offer to get you another drink. I coo.

There was lots more great men's fashion this week, I'll bring you some more in a few days.

Photos: Men.Style.com