Courtesy of Kylie Jenner's Instagram
A new school year entails a mall bursting with new to-die-for styles. One of the essential buys for any school year is the bag. The book bag, the messenger bag, the purse...they’re all great and serve their own purpose, but there can only be one hottest bag of autumn and this year, none of the aforementioned make the cut.
It’s structured, it’s durable, it’s roomy: it’s the backpack.
This season designers including Betsey Johnson, Michael Kors, Rampage, Steve Madden and more have glitzed up the two strap tote and raised the ante with hot prints and accents to be much more than just canvas and a zipper.
Johnson has the bows, Kors has the season’s hottest pattern (studded camouflage!), Rampage has subdued tones and Madden has the sheen and shiny leather.
"Teen Vogue’s" top picks include designs by Aeropostale, Arizona, JanSport, Stella McCartney and Topshop. These bags are bringing the heat with acid washed denim, fringe, peppy pinks and patchwork.
Backpacks in the men’s department by designers such as Hurley, Kenneth Cole, Lacoste (also in camo!), Tommy Hilfiger and Tumi are also kicking the game up a notch.
When one thinks of fashion, functional may not be the adjective that comes to mind, and for some it would be an insult if it was. But with this season’s backpacks fashion and function have bred one hot item.
Sophomore Sean Cully said it is becoming more common to see different types of book bags that make a statement.
"Being functional and stylish is important," Cully said.
Sophomore Jordan Mera agrees that a backpack could be a statement of style. Mera said while she prefers a backpack to a purse for class, she would not choose a backpack over a purse as an accessory. Regardless, the designer backpack is a trend she would wear.
Sophomore Tara Curry prefers a backpack to a purse for class. Curry said she primarily looks for support, comfort and water bottle holders in a backpack. Curry said it is not likely that she will purchase a designer backpack.
"I don’t believe they would be as supportive or functional as L.L. Bean, and their return policy is amazing," Curry said.
Michelle Foti can be reached at michelle.foti@ student.shu.edu.
