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Shopping Mar 31, 2009 @ 10:19am

The It-Bag Antidote

by Natalie Hormilla

il bisonte backpack.jpgHere’s what a lot of people seem to be looking for in a bag:

1. Amazing, and yet no-name, or at least a name that’s too small for the person across the subway platform to read without binoculars

2. A great quality, preferably handmade, and hopefully not constructed in a sweatshop

3. And if it’s expensive, the guarantee that it’ll last longer than at least a decade

So we propose a solution in case you haven’t heard of it: Check out Il Bisonte on Sullivan Street (or on Camden Drive in Beverly Hills) for incredibly supple leather bags, all handmade in Florence, that, yes, cost quite a bit, but should last long enough for you to one day say, “You know when I got this tote? 2009!” The only down side? Every single item has the Il Bisonte logo stamped front and center - but at least you can’t read it more than a few feet away.

PS Is anyone else feeling the mini-backpack right around the corner for S/S?

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Posted in Shopping and Bags, Il Bisonte, Leather

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Comments

1

posted by darcykins

Mar 31, 2009 10:52AM

'the mini-backpack right around the corner for S/S'
i hope not.

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2

posted by guest

Mar 31, 2009 1:03PM

I also do not hope to see mini-backpacks as a trend again.
Il Bisonte is ok, they should work on their leather colors.

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3

posted by guest

Mar 31, 2009 2:18PM

Did you skin a collie to make that backpack should never be uttered again outside Clueless. I lived through the first round of mini-backpacks and lived to tell the tales.

Any suggestions for a really cute leather cross-the-body bag for summer? Under $500.

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4

posted by guest

Mar 31, 2009 2:24PM

Ode to Bisonte
I love, love, love my Il Bisonte.

I have several items for different shapes and uses (the cigar case is a great disguise for storing tampons).

But the best part is tanning them.
I hang them up in my brightest window, rotating my treasure to get the shade I want.

I've been a fan for many years, and my earliest finds look even better today.

I love, love, love my Il Bisonte.


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5

posted by guest

Mar 31, 2009 4:42PM

mini backpack? be serious. that's hideous.

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6

posted by rockferry

Mar 31, 2009 4:52PM

The mini-backpack: not so hot.

The bags: okay, but when there was Botkier on Gilt for less last week, I'd so rather have that.

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7

posted by guest

Mar 31, 2009 5:20PM

i love mini backpacks. i just bought a couple on ebay. yes i am feeling it!!! i wish i could afford one from il bisonte.

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8

posted by guest

Mar 31, 2009 5:23PM

First mini backpacks, then fanny packs....gross.

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9

posted by guest

Mar 31, 2009 6:16PM

OH GOD NO!!! Please no fanny packs!!! The mini-backpack cute on these little scene girls I see walking around.

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10

posted by guest

Mar 31, 2009 10:46PM

funny that commenter 6 just mentioned gilt... I just got an invite to that today, as well as rue oh la la or something like that. i don't like the mini backpacks, but I got a great red leather purse in this cute shape in Florence last summer that I absolutely adore. I'm a big fan of Italian leather/Florence men who sell it.

11

posted by Malibu

Mar 31, 2009 11:07PM

oh yeah i can so see it being the next thing. it may just be time to dust off those nylon pradas!

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12

posted by guest

Apr 01, 2009 12:03AM

fanny packs first,then not so mini back packs. I pursonally(pun intended) would like something convertable cuz if I overdo the walking heavy bag on one shoulder thing i gets the sciatica for 3 months.pain in ass.mono makes a really simple cotton drawstring one that you could put over one shoulder.it would be lovely in soft leather too.I'm not sure I feel like dusting of the nylon prada and I usually would love to shop my archives! thinking i still need my giant sack.life in a bag.

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13

posted by guest

Apr 01, 2009 1:54AM

No mini backpacks. I had one exacty like that leather one in the photo. I was eleven.

14

posted by fashionursta

Apr 01, 2009 12:30PM

I wore them in the 70s! They are really well made, get better with age, and last forever. My daughter is now using my old ones.

http://styleobsession.typepad.com

15

posted by fashionursta

Apr 01, 2009 12:32PM

I meant the Il Bisonte bags, not the backpacks in the 70s. But I was just thinking of hauling out my black nylon Prada backpack that I wore in the 90s. I wanted to do an experiment that if I am seen all over NY with it, could I start a trend? I guess I'm too late!

16

posted by kelleyd

Apr 01, 2009 2:44PM

I can see it: utilitarian, nostalgic, with a non-shallow reputation...isn't that what people are looking for these days.
And there are so many ways of doing them, you don't necessarily have to look utilitarian, but the functionality is still there.

I'd like to make one alteration, though. I bought this bag
http://cache.wists.com/thumbnails/2/f1/2f1bc875a9035f2e0161734e5b661d66-med
from Anthropologie last summer, and I am still completely and unconditionally in love with it.
It's supposed to be a purse, but I like it more as a backpack. It's a little vagabond-y, a little Tom Sawyer-y, but mostly just cute as shit. Like, RIDICULOUSLY cute. And ridiculously perfect for walking down the street on a hot summer day, going to the swimming hole, eating snow cones, etc.

Anyway, I'm betting/hoping to see more psuedo backpacks like mine this summer, because--pardon my enthusiasm--but whenever I stop to appreciate it, I always get a little serotonin high.

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17

posted by guest

Apr 01, 2009 4:42PM

Please. No backpacks. They are just too ugly. What are you doing with that leather backpack, mountain climbing? If not, you have no business carrying one.

Even if I were to go mountain climbing, I STILL don't think I'd be caught dead with a backpack.

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18

posted by guest

Apr 02, 2009 7:02PM

all of you that think mini backpacks aren't coming in will be giggling when you look back at this post in 6 months on the iphone you just pulled out of your mini backpack

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