Reasons we love Botkier bags:

1. Most importantly, we’re obsessed with the Sophie, at left.

2. Almost as importantly, they come in every size possible, so you can carry one whether you’re packing for brunch or an 18-hour workathon.

3. Soon to be important, they’re going to look really cute with the new line of Botkier shoes out later this year.

So we wanted to chat with the photographer-turned-designer behind the name, Monica Botkier, who leads the pack of designers making a killing on the huge statement bag craze. We’ve been wondering about her ever since we started seeing her designs sold in what seems like every store possible (Barney’s, Harvey Nichols, Neiman Marcus, ShopBop…) and hanging from the elbows of the Angelina/Lindsay/Kate B/Heidi Klum type.

But despite the visibility of her bags, it doesn’t seem like anyone really knows Monica. So we thought we’d facilitate a little introduction.

Monica, Readers. Readers, Monica…