All stories about "Handbags"

Rackage is a look inside recently-opened stores around town. Today, let's gaze upon Lambertson Truex's fancy UES flagship.

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After hitting the Whitney Biennial last week, Racked meandered down Madison Avenue and peeked into the new flagship for American luxury house Lambertson Truex at 692 Madison between 62nd and 63rd Streets. Opened back in September, the chic bi-level store features women's handbags and accessories on the first floor, and women's and men's shoes up-and-around the spiral staircase on a second level. The outpost marks the brand's foray into the New York market; they have one store on Melrose in LA and a forthcoming shop scheduled for Vegas, but, locally, shoppers previously could find them only at high-end retailers like Berdorf Goodman.

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There hasn't been too much buzz around the marriage of high-end brand Gryson and Target. That's surprising, because the luxe accessories company turns out some really fantastic handbags. Target's just released eight images of Gryson's budget-priced collection (slated to hit stores April 6th), which is comprised of black, white, pine green and slate blue-hued purses. Of course, there's the whole PVC matter, but if you're cool with imitation leather, some of the totes look really promising. A full gallery with pricing is above.
· Designer Joy Gryson Partners with Target for Limited-Edition Handbag Collection, Gryson for Target [Target]

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S. Sung dresses

Three weeks ago, we reported findings from the midtown sample sale scene, including those from the Kooba, Ben Sherman, AKA, and Tocca sale. So we were a little surprised to see these labels selling again in the same space at 261 West 36th St. We ventured over to observe what's changed this time around. The answer: they've lowered prices and added a few new labels to the roster.

The AKA dresses we recommended in December have been knocked down from their earlier $100 sale prices to $75 instead. The brand is also offering skirts for $35, shirts for $45, and sweaters for $45. Still standing from December is a circular rack of assorted Tocca skirts, but prices have been slashed from $65 to $45.

The sample sale scene is swinging this holiday season, and there are several designer handbag listings in our Dealfeed files. So many metallic totes and beaded clutches…so little time! This week’s schedule of top indie handbag designers makes it particularly difficult to choose where to head on your lunch break. For your convenience, we've compared the findings among a few of our faves.

Bags galore at Rafe

Rafe: Sample sale done right! We dropped by their sale last December (awesome) and this past spring (blah), so we weren't really sure what to expect today. We are pleased to report that this is a major winner. Their amazing fall collection is heavily discounted. Bold, beautifully-crafted totes, clutches, shoulder bags, and even yoga bags are priced between $50-300, although most are around $100-200. Rafe offers a spectrum of styles, including beaded, patent leather, suede, linen, soft leather, and fur...and that's just the bags! There are boatloads of shoes priced at only $50. If you are a (Euro) shoe size 37, you've really hit the jackpot. The flats, pumps, sandals, boots, and mules are particularly abundant in this size. This is Rafe's best sale ever.

We're in Red Hook, we're in SoHo, we're all over the map today!

We not so much returned from the M Z Wallace sample sale as survived it. We arrived at 11:15 this morning, and there was a line about 20 people long. Women were exiting with garbage bags full of purchases. After about a 20 minute wait, we made our way inside. It was in full sample sale swing with lots of grabbing and looting. We are disappointed to report that there were not many of their leather bags we covet, but there were a lot of cute canvas and cotton bags. Costs range from $30-100. The line has since dissipated, and if you are interested in a cute summer tote or carry-all, you should stop by during their extended hours today and tomorrow.

The evolution of the West Village into a mall took a grand step forward yesterday, when the Coach Legacy Store at 372-374 Bleecker Street quietly opened for business. We peeked inside and noted that it didn't look too different from regular Coach stores, aside from an abundance of Coach trinkets and jewelry artfully positioned on table tops and in window displays. The interior is rather posh, with a zebra skin rug atop marble flooring and tapestries in the Coach striped pattern. Because it only fits 27 people, literally, the atmosphere is more chic dressing room than sterile showroom. It's charming, but we're basically looking at a lot of accessories, some sweaters, and, of course, big leather handbags. The "grand" opening is today; photos to come.
· RackedWire: Best Buy, Coach Legacy Store Opening Soon [Racked]
· Coach's Bleecker Street Store: An Artist's Rendering [Racked]
· Storecasting: Coach's Stripe Show On Bleecker Street (Or There Goes The Neighborhood, Again) [Racked]

Why, exactly, do ladies travel everywhere with handbags? Radio talk show host Brian Lehrer delves into inane "men are from Mars, women are from Venus" territory with a recent radio show on purses, asking "Why do women need handbags when men get by with pockets?" He posits that the "one-word answer" is makeup. Instant access to beauty products doesn't seem to be the main reason ladies tote massive pocketbooks: most of the females who call in to the show lug Blackberries, workout gear and books around on a daily basis. Lehrer gets a chiropractor to weigh in on the physical harm that heavy bags can cause; he states that women should only carry 10 percent of their body weight in a bag (otherwise you could have back problems) and that backpacks are best for distributing the load. Not that anyone will be ditching their Bottega Veneta for a Jansport any time soon.
· The Weight of the World on Her Shoulder [WNYC]

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