I’m declaring the small chain-handle shoulder or crossbody bag THE bag of 2017. It’s extremely popular across a range of age groups, style personas, and dress codes. Dress it up or down, and create interesting juxtapositions. It’s as versatile as you want it to be. 

The ensembles here were inspired by street style I’ve seen recently. Very different vibes, but with the bag in common. Choose any colour palette and wear the chain-handle shoulder bag your way.

Faded Jeans & Cognac

Combine a pair of casual jeans with a boxy shirt and semi-tuck the front to create a hint of waist definition. Finish off the look with cognac sandals and optional belt to match. Choose a chain-handle shoulder bag in any colour. 

Fab Frock

Choose a fab dress and finish off the look with sandal booties, sandals, pumps, wrapped styles, loafers or oxfords. Add a chain-handle shoulder bag in a colour that works with the outfit. 

Cheeky Shorts

Combine a pair of short shorts with a fluid blouse. Finish off the look with a chain-handle shoulder bag and matching flat shoes, or throw on a pair of fashion sneakers that works with the palette. 

Skirt & Sneakers

Combine a casual or dressier skirt with a top that works together. Create a complement of white sneakers and chain-handle shoulder bag, and a scarf that pulls together the look. Or leave off the scarf. Add jewellery, eyewear and watch as desired.

Save

Save

Save

Save

If you are looking for a weekender bag that is both functional and fun, then have a peek at this round-up.

Versatile good-quality backpacks can be hard to find. Racked shows us five brands that go the distance.

Here are 9 up-and-coming handbag brands that could very well become the new “It bags” on the block.

Did you sport a bright-coloured Kipling bag in the ’90s? The brand has teamed up with Urban Outfitters to bring back favourite styles from their extensive archives.

Fab Links from Our Members

According to this article, “athleisure is not just a trend, but a fundamental shift in how Americans dress.” Lisa confirms that she is seeing this where she lives more, and more often.

Shevia wanted to share this article about how plus-sized fashion can no longer be ignored. About time too, she says.

Sally is an excellent body image enthusiast and Angie thinks this is a great article. 

Fashiontern happened upon an ongoing discussion about sexist school shoes, and The Guardian reporting that a parent recently shamed Clarks for selling “flimsy” footwear for girls.

Two days later the newspaper announced that Clarks was withdrawing a school shoe called ‘Dolly Babe’ “although the equivalent boys’ shoe, ‘Leader’, is still available.”

I’m a satchel and clutch gal, and generally not into crossbody bags. I like the visual vibe of the crossbody, but I normally find them uncomfortable on the neck and shoulder. They bruise my hips and feel cumbersome to carry on my side. But I’ve changed my mind about the crossbody after finding a very specific silhouette that works for me. 

Two years ago I came home with a darling little crossbody from Amsterdam because I loved the tomato red and the dressy gold chain-handle shoulder strap. I realized that I do like crossbody bags when they’re relatively small, structured, somewhat classic, and have some glitz factor.

Unless I’m traveling, my bag’s contents are minimal. This makes it easy to swap out my bag to suit my outfit. As long as I have my wallet, lipstick, tissues, keys and large iPhone — I’m sorted. The lightweight, small crossbody doesn’t aggravate my neck, shoulder or hips like larger styles do. It adds a relaxed urban touch to my outfits, and I enjoy being hands-free. 

Since I reached for that little red crossbody from Amsterdam a lot more than I expected (creating an effective complement with red shoes and scarf), I decided to add a couple more small crossbody bags to my handbag capsule. A dear little pet in blush to match blush loafers and belt, and a rock star in olive with guitar strap to incorporate into an olive capsule I’m creating for Fall. The exact items are represented in the collection below. 

Amsterdam Bag Company

BRADLY – RED

View Info

Top Pick

18

Custom Find

by Angie

View Info

Nordstrom

Rebecca Minkoff Leather Camera Bag with Guitar Strap

View Info

Top Pick

20

I’m enjoying my wildcard crossbody bags. It feels good to sport something fresh for my style after years of satchels and clutches. I was in Salt Lake City for ten days earlier this month, and the small crossbody bags with dressy chain-handle straps were very popular there too. They were styled into dressy and very casual outfits, and looked fabulous. Some were sporting them with a work tote, satchel or case as their second bag. 

Who else is celebrating the small crossbody bag with me?

As a pale-skinned Nordic teen in the ’80s, I envied the girls at school who were tanned because that was perceived as attractive. Thank goodness that dated way of thinking is history, and protecting your skin against the sun has become a priority. 

My Mum was ahead of her time when it came to protecting your skin from the sun. When the rest of the world slathered themselves in coconut oil, baking their skin in the sun, she went in the opposite direction. She told me as a teen that it’s not about what you look like now, it’s about what you will look like decades from now. If you want healthy skin, you have to start protecting it from a young age. Yeah, yeah, I thought. It IS about what I look like now, and how could Mum not care about that? None of this made sense to me. 

In the ’70s I was the little child slathered in white sunscreen who never got burnt at the pool or on the beaches of Hong Kong. My little tanned friends sometimes made fun of my bright untanned skin, and on some level, that did affect me. 

As I got older, Mum had less control over my skin protection because I went to the pool and beach without her. Before I left, she would remind me in a not so gentle way to make sure I put on sunscreen. I dutifully yet doubtfully complied, until one day I decided to defy her.

It was a glorious hot and sunny Summer’s day in Cape Town and I was 15 years old. A friend of mine and I decided to spend the day at the beach. My Mum dropped us off at 10 a.m., and we spent the day sunning, swimming, and hanging out until my Mum’s friend fetched us at 4 p.m. I deliberately left off sunscreen because I wanted to tan. By 1pm I could feel that my skin was burnt. By 2 p.m., I put my clothes back on and went to find shade while we waited for our ride.

For the first time in my life, I had bad sunburn. 

When I got home my Mother took one look at me and shouted in Dutch: “WHAT HAVE YOU DONE?!”. “Oh, it’s not that bad,” I said, but the mirror in the bathroom revealed otherwise. It was very, very bad. 

My Mum couldn’t speak to me for two days, she was THAT angry. She did take me to the doctor, where I got some after-sun lotion. I lay on my bed with slices of cucumber over my body to help sooth the sting. I was very uncomfortable for days, unable to sleep, and had to stay out of any type of sun for weeks. My skin blistered and peeled TWICE. I also felt terrible about how I had disappointed my Mother.

It took my Mother a couple of days before she could speak to me calmly. I didn’t get sympathy for my sunburn. Instead, she implored me to use sunscreen in future. For a while she made sure my skin was extra moisturized, because sunburn chronically dries out your skin.

I learned the hard way, but I’ve been vigilant about protecting my skin since that day in 1985. I’ve had a few minor burns since then, but nothing serious. At age 47 my skin is in good shape, and according to my dermatologist, I have minimal sun damage.

I’m so grateful to my late Mum for instilling her skincare and protection and discipline in me. I wish I could thank her in person, but I’ll have to be content with her looking down on me from her big fluffy cloud in the sky knowing how thankful I am.