Bag Lady Lea Michele

Lea Michele’s L’Oréal campaign. Click for the full story,pictures, and videos. 

Lea Michele needs better bags. Allow me to make several suggestions...

Everybody is a huge fan of at least one celebrity, right? (Or is that just me in my little superficial consumerist capitalist greedy power-hungry bubble?) When I brainstorm fashion magazine articles with my girlfriends, they always suggest a celebrity piece. You’ve seen them before: Steal Her Style, 10 Items That Will Make You Look Like Blake Lively (did I just cough?)… the list goes on.

In West Hollywood, Jan 16 2013.
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Since I’m trying to stretch myself with this blog, I thought it wise to do a celebrity style piece. But what? And on who? I’m really not that into the whole celebrity thing – I only know what I read in VOGUE/ELLE cover stories. There is a way to measure whether you're true fan of somebody: whether or not you would read a story about them going grocery shopping.

I would read a story about Lea Michele going grocery shopping. The Glee star / cat-lover / tattoo-addict / girl-with-the-golden-voice has me completely spellbound. I’m her biggest fan. Once, I thought I saw her in a Broadway theatre: I almost disintegrated on the spot.

Now that I’ve thoroughly humiliated myself, let’s move on to fashion. I’ve studied Lea’s style and uncovered the formula for a Michele outfit. The key is to keep things very basic: jeans and a casual top, ankle boots, even flip flops (I love and forgive her) – anything goes. She pulls it all together with one smart item. A great coat, jacket, or classic belted trench ensure Lea looks effortlessly chic. (Also note now she wears a lot of black and other classic colours like navy and camel – you can’t go wrong.)     

With boyfriend Cory Montheith in Vancouver, March 18 2013.
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Right now her style is a six out of ten. It’s good, but it could use something extra. Lea needs to add another number to her outfit equation to take her look from good to great. It’s easier than algebra: Mz Rachel Berry needs a great bag.

She’s got bags. She mostly carries that large top-handle black leather one, but none of them do anything to amp up her outfit. That’s the beauty of accessories: it doesn’t matter how ugly you or your clothes are, a great pair of shoes or bag can save it all. For someone like Lea who’s far from ugly, the right selection of bags can turn her into a style icon. She could become the subject of every Steal Her Style column in the world.

Of course, the bags need to be chosen carefully. They can’t be too basic, but not too over the top either. What she needs is a structured statement bag that compliments but does not distract from her personality.

 Wearing a Givenchy bag in her home town New York City, March 6 2013. Click for more pictures. 

Dear Lea,

This is your stylist, Daniël. Okay, I'm not your stylist. But I should be. And here's why: I've picked five bags from the fall 2013 collections that would suit you perfectly. Take a look... 

Céline Fall 2013. Click to see the full collection. 

Under creative director Phoebe Philo, Céline has become a cult house for cool girls. The Céline bag is the new Berkin. This little guy from Philo's latest collection is minimal, unexpected, and will go with just about anything. Now I'm not completely sure, but looks like this mag used to be an animal - something I know you strongly disapprove of. Not to worry! We will have them make you a faux one in no time. 

Fendi Fall 2013. Click to see the full collection. 

How's this for a way to brighten up your day and lighten up your outfit? "Fendi" is fashion-talk for "fabulous" when it comes to bags. This one is definitely fur. Again, I'm sure Karl Lagerfeld won't mind doing a faux. 

    

Miu Miu Fall 2013. Click to see the cull collection. 

You're a girly girl at heart, we all know that much. So a pop of pink in an oversized weekend bag like this will be perfect for your getaways to New York to shoot Glee and catch up with the family. (You never really cared for ostriches, right?)

Alexander Wang Fall 2013. Click to see the full collection. 

This Alexander Wang is three times the fun of a normal bag (for obvious reasons). It's formal enough for your business meetings with L’Oréal or the people producing your debut album, but still shows off your creative side. Okay, so this one also looks like it had a bit of a past life. Shall we say it's only two times the fun then? 

Burberry Prorsum Fall 2013. Click to see the full collection. 

This is your new day bag. It looks basic and minimal from the front, (no doubt you'll be able to fit in all your essentials) but the sides are a whole different story. The beauty is in the details: this bag has love written all over it. 

And yes, I know it's leather and the skin of whatever critters have heart-print fur. I'll just take these back to the store and find you some other options. Please don't fire me. 

Images: Vogue.it