Balenciaga Giant City
Balenciaga Giant City in Charcoal Grey
Over the weekend Vlad and I made the journey up the state of Florida to Tallahassee, home of Florida State University, where my brother goes to school. It was family weekend, and we went up to visit him and go to a Florida State game. If you know me, Vlad, or my family, you will know that we are rather obsessed with college football. This was my first FSU game and we had a great time, who wouldn’t? Even better is FSU won. I did not own a FSU tee-shirt and had to head to the school store to FSU myself, Vlad, and my mom out. We got shirts and finally fit in with the rest of the school population. What worked out perfectly is that I took my Rebecca Minkoff Wine Nikki and my mom had her Linea Pelle Dylan Croco Shoulder bag in yellow. Perfect bags that showed off garnet and gold and we didn’t even plan it.
When I went to Ohio State I had a hard time finding the perfect red bag to wear to the games. Red bags are not always my cup of tea as far as the color goes, too bright, too dark, not enough oomph. So why not skip over the red and carry a grey bag to an Ohio State game (colors are indeed Scarlett and grey). I figured out the perfect college football game day bag, the Balenciaga Giant City in charcoal grey. This is the precise bag I would buy from Balenciaga, and next week while in NYC, we will most likely raid the Balenciaga NYC store. This Balenciaga bag is designed with soft vintage lambskin and accented with large palladium plated metal hardware. I have been a fan of the oversized hardware from its inception, so here it is, the ideal college football game bag. It is young, hip, funky, stylish, and comes in a plethora of colors that can suit your college team needs. Of course it would work for NFL, MBA, NHL, NBA, etc. And even if your school looses, a la Ohio State vs Penn State this past weekend, at least you will be cheering and feeling lousy over the loss in style. Buy through Balenciaga online for $1595.
I had the privilege of meeting one of the most powerful figures in the fashion industry, Julie Gilhart- Fashion Director and Senior VP of Barneys New York, last month in Dallas. I was invited to attend a breakfast with her and although I was inexcusably late she was kind enough to spend an hour with me after breakfast to talk about fashion (and by the way, talking to Julie about fashion is like talking to the Dalai Lama about buddhism!).
As with all the uber fashionable, Julie has a thing for bags. The classics she loves are Balenciaga (which Barneys was the first to carry in the US) and Givenchy. For Spring she has chosen the Lanvin clutch/tote, the white Balenciaga with gold grommets and the Givenchy Clarabelle. Currently, she has been toting around her fave - the Bottega Veneta beluga tote in black (which Bottega has renamed “Julie”), other than the braided handle, it is non-recognizable as anything but a beautifully made bag. As for the “it bag” phenomenon, she thinks it instantly makes a bag non “it” when it’s being marketed or called “it”. Either you got it or you don’t. When asked if there were any bags to watch for, she had a couple immediately in mind; Valextra, for their beautifully made structured classic lines and Paula Thomas for Thomas Wylde.
Anything simple and easy. Functional clothes that you don’t have to think too much about is important to her so that she can focus on family, her job and the state of the world. She says that fashion has a way of infiltrating every aspect of our lives so it is important to be in conversation about it and understand it but she marches to her own beat and does not follow any trends. As Julie said, “Vogue put it best, ‘Intelligent clothes allow you to be intelligent about everything else’. For me that is it, clothes need to make you feel beautiful and confident so you can think about everything else.”
The Barneys approach to fashion is very simple. They ask two basic questions: Is the product good? And is the designer behind the product interesting and talented? Barneys does not subscribe to marketing tricks, hype and the red carpet. They are firm believers that it is the product and the designers that create the energy.
. Besides looking like Jack next to the Beanstalk and having dry ends in need of trim and deep conditioning, how do you think these junior high style icons look? Snob or Slob?
Balenciaga Hobo (similar to the played out Motorcycle Le Dix but hobo shape) in Olive Green. Love the color and it is very light.
Miu Miu Coffer bag (on your top 10 list), in brown or white leather.
Hi Irena,
