Fashion houses are constantly trying to break the mould when it comes to trendsetting. Catwalks are getting more and more extravagant, with brands constantly battling to go viral online.
However, times have hugely changed when it comes to leading the way in the industry - we’re no longer talking Mary Quant and the mini skirt, and more Balenciaga and the bin bag. No, really.
Last week the designer brand went viral after releasing a ‘Trash Pouch’ that looks just like a bin liner. And do you know how much people are paying for them? $1,795. Or, £1,470.
The bag, made from calfskin leather, is ‘inspired by a garbage bag’, and aims to emphasise ‘reuse and alternative materials’ according to Balenciaga. The piece was first spotted at the brand’s Paris Fashion Week runway in March, and comes in black, white blue and yellow, Business Insider reports.
Of course, stars like Kim Kardashian have already got their hands on the must-have accessory, with the TV star sharing it on her Instagram story and writing: “Look what I got. I got the 'trash bag' bag from the show. I am so excited. How cool is this?”
Kim, we’ll have to agree to disagree.
I haven’t seen Primark or Aldi rushing to make a dupe, and we all know how fast Boohoo are when it comes to replicating designer styles. Not a single similar purse to be seen. It made me wonder whether the trash bag look would catch on, but I wasn't going to hold my breath.
Even if I loved the design, you’ve got no chance of me dropping what would be most people’s rent for two and a half months on a handbag, so I decided to have a go at making my own without having to spend a single penny.
I scrambled under the kitchen sink and pulled a single black bin bag from the roll before digging out my sewing machine from the car. I’ve not stitched a single thing for around three months - and before that, the best I’d done was some dog bandanas - so it’s safe to say that if I could do it, anyone could.
The Balenciaga pouch really does appear like an ordinary bin bag, only around 14000 times the price. It features a crinkled leather body and smooth strap, with a drawstring closure to keep your belongings secure.
I pottered around the house grabbing everything I might need, including a bin bag, scissors, my little pink sewing machine, pins, and a leather dress I bought and never wore - I knew it’d come in handy for something… Little did I know I’d also need two hours and a lot of patience.
Looking carefully and the scandalously priced bag, I noticed it was a little shorter than your typical kitchen bin liner, so I shaved about six inches off the bottom, flipped it inside out, and stitched the bottom of the bag back together. You wouldn’t want to be losing your phone or keys now, would you?
I was really surprised at the fact my machine made light work of stitching the material, seeing as I’ve only ever worked with cotton blends, so perhaps recreating the designer look was going to be quite easy? Erm, yeah… no.
I pondered for a moment on how best to attach the handles, and like many of my life choices, I decided to wing it. I chopped up my pleather dress and stitched them right sides together to create two tubes before turning them the right way so the seam was neatly tucked away. This took a great deal of time and I questioned what on earth I was doing approximately 174 times in the 42 minutes it took me to get them both ready to attach to the bag. From photos, it’s difficult to tell if the Balenciaga bag has one or two straps, but I opted for two to make my life easier.
Here, I had to gently pull the yellow bin liner handle from its casing, chopping it in half and feeding it through each of its new, elevated leather handles. Another tricky and patience-testing task, and if I had a penny for the amount of times it made me use some colourful language, I’d have enough money to buy the real thing.
Yellow strap threaded through leather, I restitched the handle to the part I’d cut, nearly catching my finger in the process, but it was at this point I really started to see the bag take shape.
I pushed the leather straps into the casing and stitched two straight lines down the tube to attach it to the yellow strap inside, but so that it would still allow for the drawstring to close, and et voila - my Balenciaga dupe was complete.
While slightly more transparent than the high-fashion leather pouch, it held my phone, purse and lipstick pretty well - though I’d be cautious about putting my keys in it. Paired with leather trousers, a white shirt and red vest, I’ve definitely made worse accessory choices in the past - remember those layered bead necklaces popular in the noughties? In all, it didn’t actually look that bad.
However, I am hugely concerned that if I took this to Piccadilly train station with me, popped it down and turned my back for two seconds, someone with a litter picker would have snagged it for the waste bin.
Balenciaga may be known for their controversial designs, but this may be one I’ll pass on. Though it is handy to know that with a little ingenuity and a plastic bag, you could get the look cheaper… if you really wanted to.
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