Lily Satchel $1400 at Neiman Marcus; Frame Doctor Bag from 2007
Dear Bag Snob,
I love your website and use the info from it on a regular basis. My question is in regards to Dolce & Gabbana bags. I don’t see anything listed on the site about them. A sales gal at Saks told me (she thought, anyhow) that they were a step up from Prada and Gucci. What do you all think of them? I am anxious to hear your response!
Thanks,
Lisa E.
Dear Anxious,
OK, fine, you have forced me to have to feature D&G and put up obnoxious pictures of their hideous bags. This is why you have not seen anything here about them (that is not entirely true, there has been a couple). First of all, the sales "gal" at Saks must own stock in Dolce & Gabbana because it is certainly not a step up from Prada or Gucci and we don't even like Prada and Gucci. The quality may be slightly better but only because all of their bags look like tanks and so are made to withstand that kind of bulk and weight.
I am pretty sure they invented special thread and glue to get that giant logo plate to stay on their bags. The thing is HUGE, I am not exaggerating when I say it is the size of a license plate!!! I saw a lady with a tote (sorry, couldn't find a picture) that had their biggest plate in the collection, it was a good 5 inches across, not kidding. I actually laughed, not a light chuckle but had a good belly roar over it. Even if you can find one without the billboard sized placard on it, it is some leopard print or some other unacceptable safari theme. Or look at this rainbow bright zipper extravaganza nightmare (Lily Satchel pictured above). How in the world do you find anything? Can you imagine how much time is wasted opening and closing each and every zipper to find what you need? I guess you can just keep them all open but I envision this thing just falling apart like a loaf of bread if you do that. Sometimes you find an exception with a bad designer but it becomes precious and special to you because you unearthed a hidden treasure. But with a designer like Dolce & Gabbana, you really have to go with their body of work. They are known for a certain look (see pictures) that represents their label so pretty much any bag you own will reflect that aesthetic. You do not want to be caught dead in any of it. And the prices, totally outrageous and more to laugh about. These are just my thoughts off the top of my head. I am sure I can continue ranting some more but enough time has already been wasted.
Dolce & Gabbana Runway Miss Pocket Patchwork Snakeskin North/South Bag $3995; Dolce & Gabbana Miss Pocket Shoulder Bag
$2195 at eluxury
Those zips are absolutely ridiculous and the leopard print has GAUDY down to the capital G. I imagine anyone who buys that bag would also have the matching coat, belt and shoes, and look like safari roadkill.
That patchwork bag looks like Dolce and Gabanna couldn't afford a decent piece of snake skin so they went dumpster diving for scraps over at Gerard Darel.
I have yet to see a decent patchwork bag, they all seem to look tacky. Patchwork on many bags gives me the impression that they had extra material laying around and sewed it together for the hell of it.
I think D&G's accessories are completely obnoxious, although I do admire some of their fashion, though it isn't to my taste.
I love when I see people wearing the huge-ass logo sunglasses and are wearing an old souvenier t-shirt with cutoffs and flip-flops yet think they are looking fly.
The bags are too much, I agree. But.. on the contrary I love the idea of multiple zipper however the design on the one featured above it does not seem functional at all!
I agree that most of Dolce & Gabbana bags are awful, but there are some that I find actually very beautiful. I bought a pearl-grey Dolce & Gabbana bag in Vienna in March, the quality is amazing (it has the softest leather on the inside too) and I got complimented by pretty much everyone who saw it. It's very simple and very chic. And yes, it has the Dolce&Gabbana plate, but it's not that big that it would bother you. It goes perfectly with the bag. It's one of my favorite bags and I will treasure it forever.
Nonetheless, it is probably the only D&G bag that I would ever buy from their range. I agree with the patchwork ones being an absolute mess. And, by the way, I've seen a Dolce bag made of leather of different colors (green, white, pink, beige, brown...), I think it was stamped croc...and it was 9.500 pounds at Harrods. That is just crazy! And the Lily bag is the ugliest and unpractical bag I've ever seen. I haven't seen ONE person sporting a Lily bag...and I totally understand why!
I was really in a down mood, and reading this actually made me laugh. I didn't know that laughing at ugly bags could make me cheer up.But ugh they have a total rebbecca minkoff knockoff there as well- the "romina" bag.
Dear snobs,
I was offered a bag from the springline of givenchy 2009 called the "melancholia". I think it lives up to its name but i may be wrong, please share with me your expert advise before i make my decision. Thank you very much. More power to you ladies and thank you for your honest comments regarding this "addiction"
PS. I got the nightingale upon your recommendation and i think its fab!
i totally agree with you kelly! d&g is so not "one step up" from prada!
haha..i laughed the moment i saw the title and the picture of the lily satchel. LOL!!!
I feel the same way about Marc Jacobs bags. But the D & G are more for show than function, and girls need functionality as well as beauty.
hold on, are you sure DC's bowling ball bags didnt get mixed up with their purses? maybe its just a misunderstanding...
I saw that Lily Satchel in person the other day and I tell you-it's HUGE. I am 5'5 tall and certainly not skinny and I really struggled to carry this bag without feeling like a frustrated budget airline passenger who has to put all his belongings into hand luggage to avoid being charged for extra weight.
Bag Snobs,
I completely whole-heartedly agree with your conclusion about D&G. Ewww. I saw a picture of Amy Winehouse in a weekly magazine yesterday and she was carrying a leopard print Lily Satchel. The combination of the animal print and the 3 million zippers was totally heinous!
I always love these on the rag posts--they make my day! You ladies are awesome. Keep up the good work!
Ashley, Dallas
While, it's been a loooooong time since I've seen a Dolche & Gabbanna I liked a coworker of mine recently got a lovely D&G (their contemporary line) bag. It's slouchy, and kind of a dark bronze. The logo plate is not tiny, but I wouldn't call it large either, it takes up about the same space as the logo plate on my Botkier Nightfall Satchel, and it's on the front so it's not all "Look at me!"
I totally agree with this review. The Lily Satchel is just absurd and ugly and most D&G bags are very tacky, with all that animal print. Besides, I never understood how they can justify their prices. I though that a bag needed to be
1) very fashionable and coveted, or
2) very good quality
to justify a price over $1000. The D&G bags are not that special when it comes to quality (I saw a few IRL) and I never perceived them as being "IT" bags or in any way specially desirable.
Much better a Gerard Darel at a third of the price. Good quality, stylish and a lot less tacky and pretentious.
Does anyone else think the Lily Sactchel looks like a toaster-gone-wild??
totally agree with Rita
Patchwork bag is so expensive! thanks for featuring D&G!
You know what's even worse? Fake Dolce and Gabbana bags. I mean, it's bad enough when it's real, but I have seen so many awful, awful, awful fake ones. THEY STILL HAVE THE DUMB LOGO PLATES ON THEM! Awful. The Chanel logo has an aspect of timelessness about it, but D&G is kinda tacky even first time around.