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October 28, 2005
Closet Tips and Rental Handbags
Now even the guys are supposed to be obsessed about storage. Exhibit A: The October issue of GQ includes a one-page article called "5 Point Plan for October: Get Your Closet in Order." But that's not the big news. The big news is that there is not one but two businesses that rent handbags, according to the Christian Science Monitor. Guess it's kind of like leasing a Lexus. Why own if you can rent and trade in an outmoded model for something snazzier? Especially when designer bags cost nearly as much as autos these days.
"Bag Borrow or Steal is the more established of the two. For $19.95 a month, customers can rifle through the Trendsetter "closet," stocked with less expensive brands like JLo and Liz Claiborne. Access to the mid-level Princess closet costs $49.95 a month. And for $99.95, the Diva membership offers the latest in Marc Jacobs, Emilio Pucci, and Louis Vuitton - bags that can retail for up to $1,000. ... Prices at From Bags to Riches range from $19.95 to $89.95 per month. High-end inventory includes Balenciaga, Dolce & Gabanna, and Fendi."
From Bag Borrow or Steal staff writer Teresa Méndez rented "a small mint-green Marc Jacobs (similar bags retail around $700).To my admittedly untrained eye, it looked like the real thing. The silver hardware was substantial, the leather gently worn and buttery - presumably from previous borrowers." So far so good. But then: "The Dooney & Bourke I chose from From Bags to Riches looked to be grass green in the photo (approximately $250 retail). But the bag that landed on my doorstep was much darker. It resembled and vaguely smelled like something my grandmother might carry, and appeared unlined - unlike most of handbags in the Dooney & Bourke line."
I'm not a bag hag but my kidlet has developed a keen interest in designer bags, I'm sorry to say, thanks to teen movies like Mean Girls, in which the queen bees carry Prada bags. A shoe fetish makes sense to me but handbags? Handbags?
Posted by Deborah Branscum at October 28, 2005 06:19 PM
Comments
Shoes make sense to you but handbags don't?
This comes to mind: http://www.brunching.com/geekhierarchy.html
Posted by: Pete at October 31, 2005 08:24 AM