What's Next: Accessories Designers Find Inspiration in New Niches
What’s the next big thing in accessories? It could be muscle car nostalgia, Far Eastern handcrafts, the rugged glamour of the Old West or Grace Kelly’s effortless chic. In fact, several Los Angeles accessories designers are finding inspiration in some of the most unlikely places these days. California Apparel News recently tracked down a few of these designers to discover the inspirations for their latest collections.
Big Buddha Bags
Jeremy Bassan did not launch his floral handbag collection as a final project for business school. And the 20-year-old college student had not been planning a career in fashion before launching his handbag line, Big Buddha Bags, three years ago. Starting an accessories line was purely happenstance, the designer said.
After graduating from high school, Bassan took a year off and traveled around the world. During a visit to rural China, he met a local villager who operated a small family-run silk factory out of his home. Bassan said he felt sorry for the aging man and bought 300 bags to help him out. When he returned to the United States, he had no job and no money, but he did have 300 bags sitting in his garage.
“I went around to boutiques and sold them to buyers,” he said. “I sold out really quick, and stores started calling me, asking me for more. That’s when I decided to go back to China and design my own styles.”
The nascent designer said he launched the bag line because he saw the growing popularity of contemporary-looking plastic bag accessories—from vintage records pressed inside plastic to opaque-colored bags in modern silhouettes. “I just wanted to add my own twist to that scene,” he said.
In the 15-piece collection, dried tropical flowers, roses and frangipani leaves are laid out in mini floral arrangements and then pressed inside a clear plastic material. Big Buddha Bags are chic and fanciful, and their silhouettes are sleek, not bulky.
After getting positive feedback from buyers, Bassan joined the Resource Showroom in the California Market Center in Los Angeles.
Currently, Big Buddha Bags are sold in 15 doors throughout the Los Angeles region, including the Jacqueline Jarrot and Elisabetta Rogiani boutiques, and Bassan said he hopes to expand his accounts within the better specialty market. Other retailers that have placed orders for the line include the Mandalay Bay Resort and Casino and the Bellagio in Las Vegas and the Four Seasons Resort Hualalai in Hawaii.
Originally, Bassan geared the line toward young women between the ages of 18 and 35. But the line has appealed to a wider customer range, said the designer.
Jan Lehotta, owner of Details in Pacific Grove, Calif., said the popularity of the line stems from its uniqueness. “The line offers different sizes and patterns that appeal to women of all ages—young girls and women love them, and senior citizens are buying them, too,” said Lehotta, who recently sold more than 40 bags in less than two weeks.
With wholesale price points starting at $20, Big Buddha is on track to reach the $25,000 mark for Spring 2004, Bassan said.
Next season, the line will feature plastic clutch bags, cosmetic bags and spherical tote styles. For more information, call (213) 955-0055. —Claudia Figueroa
Aimee Capobianco
Handbag designer Aimee Capobianco is always amazed when someone recognizes her handcrafted, ethnic-inspired bags.
“It isn’t easy to establish brand recognition for your accessories line, especially when your label is inside the bag,” the humble-yet-ambitious designer said.
Capobianco puts her labels inside her bags so they don’t distract from the designs, which come in several styles with beaded embellishments and hand-stitched embroidery.
The 70-piece collection is made with suede, silk and satin fabrications. Some bags are embellished with semiprecious beads—such as goldstone, tiger’s-eye and jade—while others feature intricate hand-stitched embroidery. Produced in India, the line features customized details, such as silk lining, engraved frame closures and interchangeable chain handles.
Capobianco designed four groups: Western, Asian, Spanish and Vintage. A red-and-black caviar-beaded handbag with a rose pattern and beaded tassels is reminiscent of the Old West, while a cream-colored satin bag with an embroidered floral pattern and rose quartz beading has Asian influences.
Delivery dates started at the beginning of 2004, and wholesale price points range from $65 to $110. The hand-beaded bags are currently sold in more than 100 better boutiques across the country. The next step will be finding department store channels, Capobianco said, adding that the line is on track to grow its distribution by 50 percent in 2004.
Previously, Capobianco worked downtown as a belt designer for Streets Ahead before getting a job as an apparel representative at the Mindy Lubell Showroom in the California Market Center, where she worked for seven years. Three years ago, she moved with her husband to the Bay Area and launched her first accessories collection. The designer said she recently moved back to Southern California to be closer to the Los Angeles apparel district.
“The idea is to put all of my efforts into growing the collection and the brand,” she said. “Being closer to the marketplace is really important from a resources standpoint.”
For more information, contact Ruby Press at (510) 437- 1399 or melissa@rubypr.com. —Claudia Figueroa
Moss Mills
In 2002, retailer Moss Mills launched a collection of silver and brass necklaces, earrings, rings and bracelets. More recently, he launched a line of casual novelty T-shirts to complement his eponymous jewelry line.
Mills’ jewelry collection offers unique silver and brass castings, as well as reworked vintage pieces. Mills, who considers his work a hobby, said he creates castings by replicating the one-of-a-kind vintage pieces he has collected from yard sales and vintage swap meets over the years.
Fun and whimsical, the 64-piece retro-bohemian collection features still-life pendants of birds, butterflies, chrysanthemums and does made with sapphire, tourmaline, coral, ruby, jade, pearls and ivory beads. Some of the silver pieces have a matte finish; others are polished or oxidized. Each piece comes with a sterling-silver chain, leather strand or beaded chain.
A large silver-link butterfly bracelet ($92 wholesale), a Gloria Vanderbilt–inspired sterling-silver double-swan choker ($112 wholesale) and a sterling-silver double-swan buckle on a ruched leather belt ($98 wholesale) are just a few fashion-forward pieces in the collection. Wholesale price points range from $24 to $180.
Recently, Mills introduced a collection of onyx, lapis, carnelian, tourmaline and bloodstone “mod balls” that dangle from sterling-silver chains. With retail prices starting at $62, the “balls” come solo or in colorful clusters of up to six pieces. “The look is very clean and geometric and was inspired by the mod fashion generation,” he said.
Mills teamed up with fashion stylist Estee Ochoa to work on designer Sue Wong’s Spring 2004 runway show at Mercedes- Benz Shows L.A. He designed large hoop earrings, decorated with bird feathers, and made hand-strung bracelets with semiprecious stones, seashells and mother-ofpearl. The look was inspired by ’60s youthquaker Edie Sedgwick, Mills said.
Next spring marks the official debut of Mills’ novelty T-shirt collection. The seven-piece collection comes in small and medium sizes that wholesale for $22. Silhouettes include sheer cotton jersey long- and shortsleeved shirts, cap-sleeve cotton shirts with scoop necks, and long-sleeved cotton shirts with crew necks. Mills chose screen prints of fawns, horses, squirrels, swans and other animals in tranquil poses for his collection. Colors include pale pink, white, black, cream, baby blue and chocolate brown.
Currently, Mills’ jewelry line is available at several Los Angeles– based boutiques, including his own, Mushi Mushi, on Fairfax Avenue; Atmosphere in Los Feliz; Noni in Larchmont; and Aero & Co. on Third Street. Shoppers at Mushi Mushi are already snatching up early production samples of Mills’ T-shirt line, which he hopes will sell at least 10,000 units in 2004.
Mills plans to continue expanding both lines and open a separate Moss Mills store to house his collections. For more information, call Kathy Walker Sales at (213) 489-3055. —Claudia FigueroaJelly Kelly Handbags
Eileen Ellis and Dennis Cronk knew a good idea when they saw one—and they knew they had to act fast.
Last July, the two were discussing the possibility of launching a line of handbags modeled after the famous Hermegrave;s “Kelly” bag but made from a plastic jelly-like material. As Ellis tells it, at noon they found out the name “Jelly Kelly” was not trademarked, and by 2 p.m., they were in their attorney’s office signing a check that would secure the rights to the name in the United States and 15 European common market countries and Japan. .
By August, they had launched Jelly Kelly Handbags and opened about two dozen high-end boutiques, according to Cronk.
The two set up the company’s headquarters and warehouse in Chatsworth, Calif.
Ellis and Cronk steered clear of any legal issues with Hermegrave;s by modifying thecompany and popularized by Grace Kelly in the 1950s.
There are eight handbag styles: the standard handbag in small, medium and large; a tote bag; a saddle bag; a hobo; a backpack; a diaper bag; a doctor’s bag; and a pouch. There are also wallets in two sizes, checkbook covers and coin purses. Jelly Kelly will soon add key rings and agenda covers. And all will come in the Jelly fabric, a proprietary rubberized material Ellis and Cronk found in Asia.
The bags and accessories are available in eight standard colors: black, crimson, light blue, bright blue, light pink, bright pink, gray and orange. For Spring, the company will add white, yellow and green.
Some of the styles are trimmed in leather, and Cronk said he and Ellis plan to expand the collection to include other fabrics. “The name is very catchy, and we’ve had such a good response to the logo, we want to develop the business beyond the jelly material,” he said.
Ellis said they also plan to expand the Jelly Kelly brand beyond handbags and accessories. “Our goal is to do licensing and to expand into other areas,” she said.
Wholesale prices range from $49 to $90 for the handbags and $24 to $55 for the accessories. Orders for the bags and accessories can be filled in two weeks, according to Ellis and Cronk, who also set up a Web site, www.jellykelly.net, to fill orders.
For more information, call Norman Silverman at (213) 623- 6141. —Alison A. Nieder
Gem Gear
A few decades ago, button covers became a fashion phenomenon. The evolution of trimmings continues with Gem Gear.
Designer Corey Rubin has added her two bits to the growing trim-embellishment craze that has taken over novelty dressing. The Southern native studied art and glass sculpture at Tulane University in New Orleans before moving to Carlsbad, Calif., and launching her first jewelry line in 2001. She came up with the design concept for her line while thinking about ways to add novelty accents to basic styles.
“I’ve always wanted to do something fashion-related,” Rubin said. “But it wasn’t until I sat down and began to create my first Hip Clip that I just knew this was an idea to pursue.”
Gem Gear comes in two styles, Hip Clips and Loop Jewels. Designed to accent outfits, the pieces can be worn on belt loops, camisole spaghetti straps, bikini straps, purse straps, belts and flip-flops.
Rubin’s sterling-silver and crystal accessories add a touch of pizzazz to aging wardrobes. The versatile collection comes in 30 different crystal combinations. “We think of Hip Clips and Loop Jewels as little rays of waistline shine,” Rubin said.
Hip Clips are rectangular-shaped, silver-plated clips embellished with Swarovski crystals in a bouquet of colors, including jet black, white opal, sapphire and light rose. Loop Jewels are sterling-silver lariat chains with two miniature pendants that dangle from belt loops and shirt straps. Jeweled pendants include hearts, antique crosses and floral designs. Pieces with oval, faceted gemstones are very popular, Rubin said.
With retail price points starting at $40 for a pair of Hip Clips and $30 for Loop Jewels, the line is sold at a handful of specialty boutiques, including Ooh La La in San Diego, Savvy and Fabreana in Las Vegas, the Stacey Rhodes boutique in Nashville, andEcstatic in Honolulu.
Retailers say the line uniquely dresses up ordinary jeans.
“It’s for the customer who doesn’t want to pay $200 for a pair of jeans with rhinestones but wants the same look,” said Kristi Hastings, co-owner of Savvy women’s boutique in Las Vegas. “They also make great gift items.”
For more information, call Loft 809 at (213) 236-9421. —C.F.
Kim White Handbags
What would one do after discovering a warehouse with 10,000 yards of more than 200 different vintage automotive fabrics? Kim White decided to launch a line of handbags.
White said that when her eight-year stint with a major fashion label ended after the company went out of business, she decided to return to her lifelong hobby and passion of making handbags. When she met a man who was looking to sell a warehouse full of dead-stock vintage automotive textiles from the ’70s and early ’80s, she bought the entire stock and launched her company, Kim White Handbags.
White built the theme for her line around the automotive industry and tags each bag with the year and make of the fabric and car. For example, one design sports fabric from a 1983 Camaro while another bag’s textiles come from a 1978 Ford Mustang.
For Spring, White has added a line of bags that combines a “collision” of fabrics, including automotive fabrics, vintage florals and bright silk duppionis. The line includes 10 fashionable, comfortable, classic styles with chrome hardware in a minimum of seven different colorways. Styles include three different clutch versions, a large hobo bag, an eyeglass case, and “tried and true sellers” that include a cosmetic bag, a tote bag, and small and large shoulder bags.
Wholesale prices range from $12 to $100. Cosmetics bags sell for $12, small shoulder bags for $45, large shoulder bags for $55, totes for $65, clutch styles for $50 to $70, and Camaro bags for $100.
The line is currently in more than 60 stores worldwide, including Ships in Japan, Harvey Nichols in London, Sharon Segal at Fred Segal Santa Monica, Villains Vault in San Francisco, By George in Austin, Texas, Fragments in New York, and thePetersen Automotive Museum in Los Angeles. For more information, call (323) 937- 2541, or go to www.kimwhitehandbags.com. —N. Jayne Seward
Kimberly Faith
Los Angeles native Kimberly Green was inspired to create Kimberly Faith, her line of charmed metal jewelry, after viewing a Paco Rabanne exhibit at The Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York. The designer— already known for her nameplate necklaces and belt buckles, Western-inspired belt buckles, and one-of-a-kind scarves with vintage ties—launched her new jewelry line in early 2003.
Green combined vintage brass findings or chains with vintage plastics and glass to create a trendy, colorful and fun collection of earrings, bracelets and necklaces. One popular style is a teardrop with a hanging crescent moon.
Green manufactures limited numbers of each style and is always changing the line to create something new. Her latest group features the German vintage plastic leaves and feathers that graced the runway during Tree’s Spring 2004 show at Mercedes-Benz Shows L.A. during Los Angeles Fashion Week. Earrings wholesale from $15 to $40, bracelets from $20 to $70 and necklaces from $20 to $75.
Green’s designs have been seen on the television shows “Friends” and “Angel” and will appear in Quentin Tarantino’s upcoming film “Kill Bill: Vol. 2.” The line is carried at Traffic, Dari and Jack Henry in Los Angeles; Fred Segal, Tiara in Santa Monica, Calif.; and Intermix and Henri Bendel in New York. For sales information, contact EM Productions at suite 216 of the CooperBuilding in Los Angeles, or call (213) 614- 9292. —N.J.S.
