Haute or Not: No. 3 ‘The Bag’ in Cream by Slow & Steady Wins the Race

Wonder where can you get a Birkin for $100? How about a Balenciaga? The answer: from Slow and Steady Wins the Race. Ok, so you’ve probably guessed by now that we’re not talking real Birkins or Balenciagas. Mary Ping is the designer behind Slow and Steady Wins the Race, a clothing/accessories label, “presented as a bimonthly clothing diary, cataloguing ideas that are focused on a specific and fundamental characteristic of clothing design.” Their mission is to “push and produce interesting and significant pieces from the simplest fabrics and materials with the aim of yielding a limited number of pieces throughout the year.” The bags are all $100, all made of basic cotton canvas material and designed to look like your favorite designer bags. We spotted this Chanel lookalike No. 3 ‘The Bag’ in Cream at Revolve Clothing. It’s a cute little quilted bag but we’re not into fakes so we’ll pass. But do you like?

Fake Handbags Are Never in Fashion…

No this is not another post about Louis Vuitton bags. This is about spending your time and energy on creative pursuits only to have someone come in and steal your work. Just like fake, knockoff handbags, plagiarism is never in fashion. Lately I’ve discovered that other ‘bloggers’ - and I use that term loosely, as real bloggers, editors and journalists understand the writing code - have been stealing my images and posts (from my blog, handbag magazine and fashion/lifestyle magazine) and re-posting them on their site as fresh, new content. I know this is not a new, unique problem but it’s happening to me more and more and while some think I should feel flattered that my work is theft-worthy, it’s incredibly frustrating to me to see my hard work stolen. I understand how designers, artists and any other creative types feel when they discover that someone else ‘repurposed’ their work for their own benefit. It’s simply wrong. It’s certainly not what’s haute. Some may say ‘It’s just blogging, it’s no big deal.” But this is my work, whether or not one considers it frivolous - it’s my thoughts, my creative process, my output, and my time. It belongs to me. Now let’s see if this post winds up on another ‘bloggers’ site.

Do You Fake It?

No, I’m not referring to the big ‘O’, but to designer handbags. Do you carry fakes? Sarah over at A Fabulous Fashion Blog recently said that 99% of Louis Vuitton products sold are knock-offs. Everyone seems to have a Louis, and these days it’s difficult to spot a knock-off from a distance, as the quality of the fakes have improved drastically, while, in my opinion, the authentic Louis’ look cheaper than ever.

Mind What You Wear has created a line of fakes which are cheeky, comical and surprisingly covetable. The word ‘FAKE’ is sardonically silk-screened on top of knock-off Louis Vuitton bags. Every style of logo’ed Louis is available, from the traditional, to the graffiti, to the colorful Murakami version.

Would you sport one of these fakes?