Mini Bags are Big news
MANILA, Philippines — Do not belittle mini bags. They’ve been around longer than us. And they convey big statements.
Small bags were in fashion in the mid 1900s and were the standard accessory for women during the New Fashion years when all women needed to put in their bag was their wallet, lipstick and handkerchief — which was then a must-have. In fact, women often carried just a small purse with their lacey handkerchief.
From the 1950s, small bags expressed femininity, elegance and grace. Yes, Princess Grace had them, and so did much of royalty. The mini bags matched the bob and the miniskirt of Mary Quant during the 1960s. Audrey Hepburn had breakfast, lunch and dinner carrying mini bags. They looked ladylike.
What did the use of mini bags mean? That the ladies then were ladies of leisure, certainly not working ladies. It bestowed some kind of status then for the users. With the rise of equal rights and women power,it was so liberating for women — especially multitasking women — to use bigger bags. The bigger the bag, the bigger their responsibilities.
In recent years, mini bags made a comeback. Is this a desire to return to minimalism which came and went swiftly? Design houses even recently created micro bags which could hold only a lipstick. “You can use two microbags and let them hang from your waist or shoulder,” one designer quipped.
With bigger cellphones came reality versions of the mini bag, some hanging from the shoulders. These days, Longchamp places mini bags at the heart of its present collection. Its endorser Kendall Jenner reinvents French elegance not only in bags, but in ready-to-wear collections, shoes, eyewear and luggage. Longchamp started in 1948 as a leather sheathed pipe manufacturer. The brand, still owned and managed by the Cassegrain family, has more than 300 stores in 80 countries.
Long live Longchamp mini bags! They are now fashion classics.
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Longchamp is distributed by the SSI Group, Inc. and Rustan’s and is available at Rustan’s Makati, Rustan’s Shangri-La, Rustan’s Cebu and Greenbelt 5.
