Cheap designer handbags

So after a long time off I have another post for you guys. What better way to come back than with a review of a cool new DKNY handbag that I just spotted on houseoffraser for £155. It’s called the Scarf tote bag and it should be obvious why from the picture.

I think it’s great that designers like DKNY are starting to try new things with their totes and the accessory route they seem to be going down is a neat little departure. One Idea they don’t mention though is that you could potentially add your own scarf to the bag (if it’s the right size) which opens up a whole world of colour options.

I also have to mention that the price is quite reasonable for a genuine DKNY as I have noticed that the trend in recent years for totes has be the £300+ range which for me is way too much. Still you do always get a certain level of quality from Donna Karan which you don’t get from some of the smaller bespoke designers.

I really love the look of the cream pattern on the front and the brown leather strap on the top. Although part of me wonders what the whole bag would have looked like in brown as the texture of the leather on in the inside of the bag is amazing. If you’re looking for a DKNY bag to add to your collection this autumn then you could do a lot worse than this beautifully accessorised bag.

So somehow this seems to be the first time I’ve had a coach handbag here on the blog. I’m not sure why as they’ve really grown in reputation over the last few years but at the same time they are not to everyone’s tastes. For example I just noticed this Floral Audrey tote which is definitely allot to take in at first glance as the floral design does anything but fade into the background.

I suppose it also has to be mentioned this isn’t really the season for flowery prints so it could be just me looking at it with wintery eyes. I do like the top clasp and gold handles which remind me of wristbands from the 80s though as somehow they still fit into this outrageous colour scheme. I suppose it’s one of those bags you either love or you hate, though usually they are the best ones. There seems to be so many designers playing it safe these days so it’s great coach are out there creating something memorable. One plus is it does look quite cheap for a Coach as its around the £200 mark on the official site although I could only find the standard Audrey bag.

Valentino isn’t well known for their cheap handbags and this floral tote really is no different as its well over the £2,000 mark. Still it is cheaper than his last few offerings so maybe this is progress after all?

Obviously the first thing I or anyone else is going to notice is the petal ruffles that seem to have just landed on the bag from a nearby tree in autumn (ok I don’t know many trees with pink leaves but you get the idea). I suppose the main selling point is it makes a difference from tall the faux animal skins we get in the designer handbag world month in month out, there is a limit to how much leather any one girl needs (i think). Also its very season appropriate which is a rarity for a tote and since autumn is my favourite season by a mile it wins on both on counts for me.

Only thing that does scare me just a tiny little bit is how hard will this handbag be to keep clean? I mean it just looks like it will be a magnet for spilt coffee and chocolate? Maybe I need to be a little bit more optimistic, it is my favourite time of year after all! Check out the official site for more…

So Fendi is one of those designers that can slip by quite unnoticed a lot of the time and I suppose when you’re in the business of fashion that’s not generally a good thing. Maybe it’s the down to earth style or the grown up tones but they rarely seem to ripple the handbag world pond with anything even slightly weird, then again there’s plenty of designers doing that already so why crowd the market?

Still I wouldn’t call this Fendi Peekaboo Tote that I just spotted conservative as the pink/violet leather really jumps out at you from a distance, yet it does seem dark enough to fit with a good range of trousers and belts. At the Fendi site it actually says the bag is made from goat and calf skin which is strange as it looks more like lizard or python to me, though at the same time all that really matters is that it looks great right? I also have to note another worrying pattern in the form of this tractor beam attracting me to handbags over £2,000 of which this is one (price will vary a lot though). Sometimes it’s hard to remember that this blog is supposed to be about cheap handbags lol, though as I keep saying what’s expensive to some is cheap to others. The thing is everyone’s range seems to be different these days (apparently there’s a recession on) so for some anything over £200 in the bag market is going to be out of reach. Still I do think there are lots of great bags in the “discount” range (apart from this one) eg DKNY and also Breadcrumb at only £15.

With all that being said if you do have a spare grand lying around doing nothing and also a passion for deep pink then check out the latest Fendi collection for some grown up bags!

I do want to at least try to be positive about this latest handbag from Stella McCartney as I think she comes up with some really off the wall ideas when it comes to fashion, and for that she should be applauded. However you will quickly realise after forking out £600 for this “python” bag that it is not python at all but full lovely nylon instead. Yes while it really is great and noble that Stella refuses to use any animal skins in her work I really don’t think this comes anywhere close so some of the python bags I’ve reviewed here by Nancy Gonzalez and Carlos Falchi.

Even if you put aside the aesthetics (i don’t know why you would) the feel of 100% pure nylon sends shivers up my spine every time I think about it. How a bag feels is just as important as the look and I know that python and some leathers really mould to your body with use and if you are using your bag for practical reasons and not just for show then this is essential.

On the one hand I could understand Stellas stance if it were fur she was against as that bandwagon has been going since the 90s, but python isn’t an endangered species (according to Wikipedia which hasn’t lied to me yet) and cows as far as I’m aware aren’t going anywhere soon. Besides if you where a cow (stay with me) would you rather end up as a lovely Crossbody from Donna Karan or a big mac in McDonalds? I think I need to stop writing posts late at night lol

So been a while since I’ve posted about a new bag here but sometimes it can be hard to find anything particularly inspiring to write about. I suppose maybe your favourite designer has the same problem when trying to come up with something new, different but most of all great! As we all know its not hard to create something unique in the fashion world but creating something that people want to actually pay £100s for is not easy.

So with all that being said i wanted to post about this new Yves Saint Laurent tote bag that’s just been released as while it is on the practical side of the bag market it does look quite good. One thing to note that this isn’t full leather as you can probably tell from the picture but even with that being said you’re always going to get great material with Yves. The price point is quite low for a bag in this range at £400 but it does seem like good value.

I mentioned at the start that this is a practical bag mainly because of the size you could easily fit a laptop inside and a lot of other valuables. I suppose it could be the ultimate day bag for many people as its going to work for most purposes and anything you want to carry, If you’re interested check out the official Yves Saint Laurent site.

So i think its been a while since ive had a post about a new Prada handbag so thought i might write something short about this new Saffiano tote that has just come on the market. I suppose its a bit of a weird bag to start with as looks like some wallpaper left over from the 1970s. Still its a pretty interesting print bag and it does have a very retro look about it which i think will appeal to alot of you ladies.

One interesting point about this bag is that the pattern is that it is from the Prada archives and has been used before in other designers from them. I suppose its great that they are reusing stuff but at the same time id like to see Prada focus more on new stuff as lately i haven’t been too excited about their latest offerings.

One thing i do have to point out is that this isn’t exactly a discount handbag (by my standards) as its going to cost you at least £1300. Now for Prada this isn’t actually too bad but in terms of designer bags in general its definitely at the expensive end of the scale. I suppose it raises the question of how much you are willing to pay for that real designer look that you can only get with the top designers like Prada and DKNY.

Ive never really got ethical green clothing to be honest, i mean its nice and all but for most of us the No1 priority for any designer item is that it looks good and not how many polar bears it saves. Still this new bag from Ascension has another quality going for it and that’s that it actually looks quite good. On both sides it has this cool mosaic tile effect that seems to remind me of someone’s bathroom (cant remember who).

The best thing about this designer tote bag though has to be how practical it is as you going to be able to carry alot of you essentials around in it, and it looks really comfortable too. Also another big factor has to be the price as this is truly a budget handbag because its only around £50 online. Im not sure if its cheaper because its eco-friendly or because its made from recycled material but i don’t think it matters as its really hard to get a good bag for under £70 these days. So if your looking for something kinda casual but also on a budget then this could be the bargain you are looking for!

Ok so anyone who is looking for a cheap leather handbag needs to pay attention to this post especially as this is the first time i have decided to feature an Armani. Now this is also a first given the fact i have never had an Armani bag on this blog yet. The main reason for the absence or Armani on this blog is due to the price of your average handbag from the Italian fashion house. Its not that im against really expensive bags in principle but i do want to cater mainly for cheaper bags on this blog.

Now one thing i do have to remind myself of is that everyone’s idea of “cheap” is not the same and when i tell you that this new bag tote leather bag is going to set you back around £350  you may scream at your PC “thats not cheap!”. However prices are all relative and when you compare this to the price of your average bag from Armani then this really is a steal. As you can expect the leather is top quality and so is the finish but then again you would expect this wouldn’t you. Check them out at the official site if you want to see more from this bag or also the rest of the famous collection. http://www.emporioarmani.com

So i may be a little late on this one but i wanted to post about this new Fendi spy tote bag that i just spotted for the first time. It was released during the summer but for some reason is only coming to my attention now.  Now this bag is very high end at its going to set you back over £1000 in designer outlets but it really is an work of art.

The sequins look really great and i like the way the violet refects in the soft light. One thing i do have to critize about this Fendi bag is that it is quite small and you could almost consider it a clutch its so compact. On the one hand it is easy to carry but you have to keep in mind your not going to be able to carry alot around with it. Its truly an act of style of practicality in this case but this has often been the case with many of todays (and yesterdays) high end designer handbags. Still its a very interesting bag, check out the main site for a closer look.