By Bag Snob Tina

February 13, 2012

Shearling peacoats, leather shells, cocktail-sparkly boucle blazers: Derek Lam’s Fall 2012 ready-to-wear collection is as practical as it is luxurious (save for a pair of very covetable white-leather pants). The same goes for the bags, which were a perfect match for the clothes – some quite literally. Lacquered floral tops received the gift of a boxy top-handle in the same sweet print, showing us that the deliberately matchy look is staying strong and looking cooler than ever for Fall 2012.

These rigid bag structures also gained interest courtesy of flashy gold stripes – just the thing to go with metallic-gold oxfords and contrasting platform Mary Janes. Convertible shoulder mini-bags earned the pizzazz of a leather-covered buckle so wide it would fit right in on the belt of an eighties jumpsuit, but it looks far better on this little satchel. Chain-strapped envelopes also evoked 1980s flair, while the smooth leathers and muted colors (forest green, deep burgundy) ensured their modernism. Downtown and uptown, trendy and classic: Derek has it all wrapped up into one neat (but not too neat!) package, and his bags, possessing a balance of a businesslike framework and good-time edge, are just the packages to finish off his latest looks.