Preface
As we all know, there are five giants in the field of luxury bags, respectively Hermes, Chanel, Dior, Gucci, and Louis Vuitton. These brands have launched the world’s most popular bags, and even some styles sold for more than half a century, and are still hot.
What are the 15 most elegant designer handbags for women? Why they can be hot until now? Well, I’m gonna reveal that to you now.
Let’s dive straight into it.
1. Gucci Horsebit 1955 Shoulder Bag
The first is Gucci Horsebit 1955 Shoulder Bag. Now the reason why I included this handbag on today’s list is I still find it to be a good everyday bag. The model is very much suitable for many ladies and it’s a perfect size if you want to wear a cross body.
It’s also a very classic model. The only thing that really does say Gucci is the Horsebit.
Now, this bag does come in all kinds of different variations. You can have it all branded by Gucci by using the kind of monogram canvas print. When you have the brown leather detailing with the Gucci monogram print, it’s a nice color combination.
The price for this bag is around $3000. But it’s definitely not a bag that I would personally wear, but I still think it’s an elegant bag.
2. Gucci Jackie 1961 Bag
The Second is the Gucci Jackie in 1961 Bag. Of course, Jackie-O did wear it back in the 70’s or 60’s. However, Gucci did relaunch this bag in 2022 by adding cross body strap to the bag.
The reason why I added this bag to today’s list is that I find it difficult to find nice shoulder bags. You have more kinds of top handle bags accessible or cross body bags, but not so many good shoulder bags.
Many people like the fact that this bag, nothing about it really does says Gucci. It can be a bag of any brand.
The price tag starts from about $2,400 if you get the mini shoulder bag. You have this handbag in different variations. You have it in mini, small, and medium.
So it all depends on how many items you carry with you every day. I personally prefer less is more.
3. Launer Traviata Top Handle Bag
Number three on today’s list is the Traviata Top handle Bag from Launer. So this is a little homage to the late Queen Elizabeth. This was her favorite bag, but also her favorite handbag brand that she was wearing all the time.
What I really like about the fact that she loved this handbag is that it’s actually very affordable. On today’s list, it’s gonna be one of the cheapest bags.
If you take a look at it, this bag looks very expensive in my opinion. It reminds me a bit of a Kelly bag. There are no logos. There’s just this little twisted rope emblem that is typical for this brand.
This bag does come in different variations, colors, and leather. I love blue, beige, white, brown, and of course, classic black is best.
The embossed croc leather comes at a price tag of $3,300. But very beautiful and looks very luxurious. And I really like the fact that you can buy a kind of fake croc leather. It looks genuine.
4. Fendi Peekaboo Bag
Here comes the Fendi Peekaboo Bag.
Needless to say, it is an expensive bag. It’s priced at around $4-5,000 depending on the size that you get. It comes in mini, petite, small, medium, and large.
Although there is very much inspired by the Kelly bag, they made their own little touch to it. You could wear it in two different ways:
- You can wear it closed.
- You can wear it half open.
And to that, there is a design element because what is so special about the Peekaboo bag, which is kind of reflected in the name, is that when it’s worn half open, you can have a little sneak peek inside the bag. And that’s why it’s a little Peekaboo.
Inside the bag you might have a different color, you can have a contrasting color to the bag. So that kind of adds a little design element.
5. Valextra Iside Bag
The next in line we have the Valextra Iside Bag.
I really like this bag. It’s a beautiful model. It feels very kind of clean-cut, perfectly aligned with exactly how we want a very sober, discrete bag. Yet it has very high-quality leather that is not easily scratched.
This bag comes in different sizes. Like the most bag, it can go from large to medium to mini to nano to micro.
The price tag is a little bit on the pricey side. If you buy the large one, it goes up to $4,000, the smallest and basically the cheapest one is around $2300.
Overall, I think it is quite a hefty price tag for a brand, it is established in the luxury market, but it’s not a mainstream brand. Meaning that a lot of people would feel, why should I pay so much money for a brand that I haven’t really heard about?
This is not a brand actually that is a newcomer. It has been around since like 1937. It’s an Italian brand, but we have probably just started noticing it recently.
Do I recommend this bag to ladies? Yes, I do.
Because I do love recommending you bags that don’t have big logos, that are discreet, that are elegant, that are classic, that are never gonna go out of style.
6. Hermes Herbag Bag
The sixth is the Hermes Herbag.
It’s a fairly easy bag to get. This bag is made out of the canvas.
But the good thing with the Herbag is that the top leather part is removable, meaning that you can mix and match different appearances of this bag. Because you can remove the canvas part and add another color, mix and match it.
You stay in your canvas, which can also be a solution for you to fix this.
You can get this bag in the smallest size at around $2,300, and then it can go up to $4,200 depending on the size.
7. Louis Vuitton Capucine Bag
Did you know why it’s called the Capucine bag? Capucine was the name of the very first street in Paris where Louis Vuitton opened their first store.
You can have a long strap for your bag, but also a top handle like this. So this bag got introduced in about 2013 and it became actually a popular bag for Louis Vuitton fairly quickly.
And now it’s one of their classics and they have it in many different sizes. However, these bags are priced between $4,000 to $7,000. If you have it in crocodile or other leathers, it can go up to like 30,000 for a bag.
I just remember back in the days when these bags used to cost $3000, it was already a lot of money back then, but it’s just crazy how the prices are going up. I am not gonna be a fool.
But don’t take my word. I might change my mind. I do still recommend this bag for ladies. It is a high-quality bag.
8. Bottega Veneta Cabat Bag
The Eighth is the Bottega Veneta Cabat Bag. It is kind of the most expensive one on today’s list.
It’s a beautiful and classic bag. Bottega Veneta has done this bag for four years, its surface basically this kind of double-faced leather, like leather strips that are weaved by hand. It’s their signature. And what makes these bags unique is that first of all they’re handmade, but also they are completely seamless.
It costs almost $10,000 if you get a large tote. Don’t you think it’s a bit overpriced?
9. Saint Laurent Sac De Jour Bag
Next, we’re talking about the Sac De Jour bag from Saint Laurent. It has a cross body strap and a little top handle. This bag logo is not very visible. Funny enough, it was actually inspired by the Birkin bag, so you can see a little bit of resemblance, but it’s like Birkin with a cross body strap.
Let us go over the sizes and prices:
- the nano size for $2,200
- the baby size for $2,700
- the small size for $2,900
- the medium size for $3,400
The good thing about the kind of medium size is that they’re large enough for you to have it as your bag for work. You can maybe bring your laptop if you’re a student, you can bring your books. It’s such an elegantly designed handbag.
And as you can see, they have crocodile embossed leather. You can actually have them in smooth leather. You can have it even in textiles. There are many different variations of this bag.
10. Hermes Garden Party Bag
The number one is the Hermes garden party bag.
I think this is the perfect classic, timeless, and everyday tote bag. It is beautiful because it’s so simple. If you are someone who is more flamboyant, maybe this might not be your choice of bag. But for someone who is into classic fashion like me, you will probably really appreciate this bag because it’s gonna last you for decades to come.
It’s priced at around $2,500 and up.
If you don’t own any Hermes bags, then maybe this can be one of your first bags, especially because it’s not like a Kelly or Birkin where you have to queue and beg to get a bag. This bag you can actually acquire pretty simply.
Conclusion
Why always go mainstream? Why always go for Gucci mochi, Prada, and Nada?
Instead, you can go for a brand that is maybe not as mainstream, not as well known, but yet incredibly classy, discreet, good quality, so good that Queen Elizabeth loves this bag.
Now ladies, let me know in the comments below which of these handbags you love the most. Are you planning on getting one of these or do you think I should have put another bag on today’s list?
