Bag Whore: Michelle Williams x Louis Vuitton

Everyone’s swooning over Michelle Williams as the front-woman for Louis Vuitton‘s autumn campaign (and rest assured, she looks beautiful in those Peter Lindbergh shots and has inspired me to rock the vamp lip, pale skin, and dark nails once the temperature drops below 50) but I’m having a moment with this new bag, the ‘W.’

I get it. Louis Vuitton’s reputation has spiraled downward from its once pristine pedestal. The upsurge in counterfeits, leading to the mass “democratization” of the logo, has played a large part in its falling brand equity just as discreet labels are becoming the new “it” sign of status (Celine, Alexander Wang, Phillip Lim, anyone?). I’m easily turned off by logo monograms of any kind, but somehow this new Vuitton just works. 

It’s largely in part to to the silhouette, a classic tote updated by way of mixed materials pieced into a ‘W’-shaped graphic design. Instead of drowning the entire handbag with monogram, the iconic print just makes up the wings. It’s true to Vuitton heritage with a nod to this modern idea of luxury, i.e., as if in tribute to Phoebe Philo and the Celine legacy. Celine did, after all, make wings (on handbags, the Phantom and Luggage specifically) a thing, and popularized the subtle logo stamp in the center of the handbag.

If Marc Jacobs continues to move Louis Vuitton’s handbags in this direction—back to its roots as a luxury luggage couturier—I sense a brand revival in the near future. But for now, I suppose subsisting on Speedy and Neverfulls will do. (I’ll do my best to contribute to the economy in the near future: I don’t care what you say, I have always loved the Damiere Ebène Bandoulière since I was 12 and had my first encounter with a Vuitton on The Royal Caribbean.)

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Shop the ‘W,’ here.

xx

(images via)