So Charming! How Bag Charms Became Fashion's Favourite New Hobby
Last October, Miuccia Prada sent out a collection of handbags in her Miu Miu AW24 collection that were tied and tethered with lengths of ropes and keychains that spoke of a life well-lived. By contrast to what we usually see on the catwalk (the prim and the pristine) these bags were styled with all things spilling out and over in a way that was relatable to how the majority of us exist in our day-to-day lives. In doing this, Mrs Prada essentially said: it's okay to not be perfect, to relax into your life and its wardrobe.
Nearly a year on and the dressing-up of our handbags in such a fashion has become less a by-product of life and instead an intentional design detail. Piling on keycharms, characters, beads and ribbons is the new crafting and we're all captivated.
On the street, at the shows, in the bar, even in the office, you'll now spy all sorts of bags adorned with sentimental treasures that speak of personal preference and interests. Slogan pin badges dangle alongside Disney character keyrings, with designer charms for your bag are offered by Loewe, Hermès and Louis Vuitton. Wearing your Marc Jacobs Tote layered with, well, a Marc Jacobs tote is one such novel way to wear the trend, too.
The more eclectic or knowingly humorous the better. Colour coordination is best forgotten as you earnestly collect things from all parts of your life. A scrap of ribbon pulled off a birthday gift sits well alongside one of Coach's viral keychains (the Cherry Bag Charm has become an instant sellout at just £95), while a tourist chain from one of those shops in the West End finds a fresh context hooked up alongside a Mountain Warehouse carabiner.
What adding charms, and keyrings, and ribbons and carabiners to your handbag is is leaning into the TikTok trend of 'Birkinifying' your bag. This isn't about upgrading it to the five-figure sum of Hermès' most famed style, but instead borrowing from the approach that the woman it's named after, Jane Birkin. The British actor launched a thousand trends in her lifetime, but her legacy here is not about how she carried her handbag (usually piled under one arm) but how she wore it. Like, really wore it.
Birkin wasn't precious with her namesake bag. Instead, she used it for life, adding little ties and stickers to the leather bag over time to bring a true sense of personality and irreverence to it. Even though it carried her name and was originally made for her, the actor still added-to with creative abandon to amplify that sense of self.
Keeping your bag neat might be sweet, but it's the stealthiest of moves to invite your bag to live life with you.
For us much as this trend is about personal preference, those wanting to sit right at the front of the band wagon should choose a handbag that finds itself living within that same bracket as a Birkin, where it's prim and poised in stature, in a classic shape with room for slouching over time. The Row's Margaux is a classic example, but then so too is this Marks and Spencer option.
If you're not someone who has a box of random pieces procured over the years, or even a ribbon drawer then you're going to want to know how to honestly, earnestly curate your bag's collection. Start with a designer bag charm, perhaps, and go from there. Using it as almost the opposite of a guide to use it to clash against in opposition.
It's time to start you're very own charm offensive. Don't delay.
The Best Bag Charms To Shop Now
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