STATUS HANDBAGS capture our attention, even when we don’t like to admit it. But this giant Ricky bag by Ralph Lauren will make you stop in your tracks and maybe share a giggle or two.
A luscious orange version of this behemoth began a journey last year, starting at Saks Fifth Avenue in New York and continuing on to Tokyo, Paris, London, Miami, then Kuwait, Qatar and Saudi Arabia, according to blogger Kim Castro at Le Paper Doll.
Well, what seems to be a different version–black with white “ears,” the better to accommodate your yoga mat–has landed at Tysons Galleria. You can view the 5-foot-wide 6-foot-tall Ricky outside the mall entrance to Neiman Marcus until October 15.
What will they do then with a 150-pound leather bag? Perhaps after a few more “personal” appearances, they will recycle the nappa calf skins so those cows didn’t make their contribution just for a publicity stunt, instead of living on the arm of someone who truly values the material and detail.
Not all the Ricky bags have those ears (the original “harder” version doesn’t seem to, but the new Soft Ricky does), and they come in a wide range of colors. The Soft Ricky also provides a slightly slouchier take on the satchel. The price range seems to be from $2,250 to about $4,000 (of course you can pierce that canopy easily by special-ordering a version in alligator). And if you want to hold out for an Hermes Birkin, Ricky’s inspirational ancestor, we understand completely.
BTW, Little Bird Janet and I spotted a Georgetown University student walking away from campus last week with what looked like an Hermes Evelyne bag on her shoulder. But as she passed we noticed it had an open pocket on one side (the side that doesn’t have the Hermes H punched out with what look like bulletholes). Gotta be a fake, we agreed, hoping this 18- or 19-year-old had feet of clay (she also was clacking along in darling kitten heels and tight pants, her glossy mane flowing behind her–I mean, how much can a Little Bird take?).
Sad end to the story: A quick check of the Hermes website confirms that there is an Evelyne III bag and it does indeed have that rear kangaroo pouch. So much for a style inspired by a feedbag; since when does My Little Pony need compartments to keep the oats from the hay? Oh, never mind.
–Nancy McKeon
One day…..