How to dress like a grown up by Sarah Mower: A stylish bag for spring? Go LARGE

  • First came extreme shoulder pads, boxy jackets and floor-grazing maxi-coats
  • Trouser shapes have been widening by the day too
  • And now, accessories have caught it — the super-sized bag is upon us

By Sarah Mower For The Daily Mail

Published: 18:37 EST, 5 February 2017 | Updated: 18:57 EST, 5 February 2017

Ever since the U.S. economist George W. Taylor launched his hemline index in 1926 — which claims that women’s hemlines mirror the fluctuations of the economy — fashion people have disagreed over whether or not it’s nonsense.

The fact that the Sixties mini (boom-time) was followed by the sudden fall to the early Seventies maxi (oil crisis; three-day week) is often cited as proof.

I have always been dubious about the theory, particularly now that all hem lengths co-exist, but I’m now wondering if there’s a whole other style indicator that modern economists should be looking at instead — size.

Bags of style: French brand Celine shows us how it’s done

Alert the Bank of England! All around us, fashion is showing signs of inflation, right down to the bare details.

When you think about it, we’ve seen it everywhere.

First came extreme shoulder pads and boxy jackets. Then floor-grazing maxi-coats and voluminous capes. Trouser shapes have been widening by the day.

And now, accessories have caught it, too — the super-sized bag is upon us.

Practically speaking, you can see where this trend has come from — dinky bags would be swallowed up by those draping clothes on the catwalk.

It’s simply been a question of scaling up the accessories, so they don’t disappear.

Thus, when Celine’s Phoebe Philo showed her swishy, ankle-grazing, waistless shirt dresses and giant, slope-shouldered tailoring for spring, her models were carrying enormous leather sacks.

They were flat, mind, nothing in them. Had they been full, the girls would have had a job to lug them up the catwalk.

And the other propellant in the area of luxury bag expansion has been French label Balenciaga, whose Bazar bag — a chic take on the traditional zipped shopper — is now fashion’s holy grail among people who will pay £1,500 for a trophy. At least they’re getting a lot of bag for their buck.

So, is this enlargement a good or a bad thing? Well, you can hide plenty of body behind a big bag if you’re feeling fat. I’m quite up for that body-reducing illusion at the moment.

GIANT BAGS: THE RULES 

Make sure there are inside compartments — finding things in one large space is a nightmare.

Check the strap — is it sturdy enough to support a big bag comfortably?

Go for a simple, clean design. Complicated embellishment on a big bag is too much.

Don’t let it hang too low. Being repeatedly cracked in the back of the knees as you walk is no fun.

On the downside, much as I aim to put up a facade of being a calm and collected sort of person, there’s something in my base instinct that always drives me to want to carry around far too much gubbins, a habit acquired from having three children. That just-in-case part of me would find an excuse for stowing away a first aid kit, a spare pair of boots and a change of clothes on a daily basis.

The bags would necessarily get bigger and bigger until they became ridiculous.

Shoulder impact is another consideration. Chiropractors and osteopaths are either going to hate this trend, or love it for all the money it will put their way straightening out lop-sided women in distress. Go easy.

This look is a particularly High Street-friendly one. When searching online, the biggest bags are usually referred to either as ‘totes’ or ‘shoppers’.

The Unstructured Shopper by Cos (£115, cosstores.com) is good, and I also like the Richmond Large Tote by Hobbs (£269, hobbs.co.uk), as well as J.Crew’s All-Day Tote (£178, jcrew.com).

If you’re on a budget, Zara, Topshop and Accessorize have good designs for under £30.

And, as we’re reading into the financial significance of this inflationary bag trend, forecasters should note that we’re living in a two-bag economy.

Inside every ginormous tote, there is also a small envelope bag in which we can put our phones, purses, keys and passports if travelling.

Speaking of travelling, I have been noting on my recent journeys between catwalk shows that some airlines restrict you to one piece of hand luggage plus ‘one small handbag’ in the cabin.

Can you imagine the hoo-ha that would ensue if one of the fashion crowd has to put her Balenciaga Bazar in the hold?

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