For the more conservative among us, Fendi also makes lovely sueded snakeskin

When we wrote about Fendi’s colorblocked clutch and what it portends for spring’s trends last week, your reaction was predictably split. A strong point of view will always divide people, even if all the people responding have great taste (and, duh, of course you do). For those of you who thought that Fendi veered into stank territory with that clutch, we present you with the Fendi Forever Mamma Anaconda Shoulder Bag.

I like this design for a couple of reasons. First, charcoal is my favorite neutral. The people at Bergdorfs apparently think this bag is black, but I reject their reality and substitute my own. Second, it’s made out of anaconda skin instead of the standard python, which simultaneously reminds me of “Baby Got Back” and that horrible Jennifer Lopez movie about anacondas that came out while I was in middle school. And, I mean, who doesn’t have positive associations with the days when your parents used to have to drop you off and pick you up so you could see a movie with eight of your closest twelve-year-old friends?

All J.Lo hackery aside, this design has a lot going for it. The “Mamma” shape that Fendi has been pushing for a while is functional and useful, and redoing it in a lush exotic only makes it better. My favorite part, though, is the hardware. It would have been completely reasonable for Fendi to do a gold-on-black-enamel logo clasp and leave it at that, but the tortoise shell background (and links in the handle hardware) adds a special and unexpected detail to the design that made me look twice when I probably would have scrolled past it otherwise. Oh, who am I kidding – the sueded snakeskin would have stopped me in my tracks by itself. Buy through Bergdorf Goodman for $2710.

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Vogue gives as a closer look at a piece of multicolor heaven from Fendi Spring 2011

You may or may not have liked Fendi’s Spring 2011 handbag collection, but you can’t argue that it was what fashion industry people call “directional.” Instead of merely designing safe, pretty accessories, Fendi’s handbags gave us a new way to think about combining color, structure and texture.

Vogue.com chose this Fendi Multicolor Woven Clutch to illustrate spring’s colorblocking trend in its Accessories Blackbook, but upon close examination, the design is interesting for more than just its use of color.

Which is not to say that this clutch’s bold color statement isn’t important; it is, and combinations like this one are what make Fendi’s spring accessories so timely. Not only is the clutch made of five different colors of leather, but the enamel-covered logo closure adds even more visual interest to the equation.

On top of that, though, Fendi clearly thought about how to take your average flap clutch and elevate it beyond the mundane. Instead of just using straight leather laces to create the woven pattern, the designers chose pieces of leather with a zig-zag edge pattern to make the weave even more intricate and detailed. It shouldn’t work, but somehow, it does. In spades.

Bags like this can be difficult to work into an existing wardrobe because of their clear personalities, but if you’ve got the extra cash and some patience, figuring out a way to add this bag (or any of Fendi’s other Spring 2011 options) to your personal collection will be well worth your while.

Image via Vogue.com.

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Fendi adds some whimsy to its iconic zucca logo

Perhaps I’m merely willing to indulge Fendi’s recent logo-bag silliness because of the beautiful runway collections the brand has given us over the past few seasons, but first I liked Fendi‘s slightly bizarre horse-head tote, and now I find myself enjoying the flowered-but-not-frilly Fendi Roll Bag Tote.

I think the more likely explanation is that these recent bags show a brand that’s not taking itself too seriously, which is always worthy of applause. The double-dipped logo patterns of this tote could easily read gaudy and dated, but the somewhat delicate way in which they’re combined creates an oddly pleasant visual dissonance for which I’m willing to set aside my general distaste for logo bags.

For me, the thing that makes this tote work is the fact that the lighter and darker patterns don’t line up. If they had, it would just have looked like one sheet of pattern was dyed with a flower pattern; instead, the mismatched Fs give you a better impression of the topstitched fabric flowers (the yellow thread even adds some detail to the flowers, but you have to zoom in to see it), which looks far more interesting than just a regular pattern. In fact, the only think I don’t like about this bag is the price – for a simple fabric tote, no matter how whimsical, the price should be under $1000. Buy through Saks for $1010.

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