It seems as though there are few animal-derived materials from which a designer has not attempted to make a handbag at some point. We’ve seen a zillion different versions of leather and fur, comprising almost any animal you can somehow raise on a farm, plus eel and stingray. Missoni makes a bag partially comprised of the skin from chicken feet. There is nothing new under the sun. Except for maybe horsehair. It’s been used for centuries to make bows for string instruments, but Akris appears to have cornered the modern market on luxury horsehair purses with their line of Akris Ai Tote Bags . As far as I’ve been able to find, other brands have used horsehair to accent their designs, but this is the first bag in a while to use the material as the main attraction. The upside is that using the material doesn’t harm the animals in any way; the downside, unfortunately, is that the medium version costs a whopping $4400. Horsehair is an interesting material for sure. I played classical strings for the better part of a decade, so I know how even and uniform it can look when treated and pulled tight, and it’s more or less endlessly renewable.

Just in time for National Breast Cancer Awareness Month, Coach introduces the 2010 Coach “Think Pink” Breast Cancer Awareness Watch with a portion of the proceeds going to the cause. Coach will donate 20% of the proceeds from each watch sold from October 1, 2010 through December 31, 2010 to the Breast Cancer Research Foundation,

Can I just tell you all that this picture made me want to run over to Bottega Veneta and buy every single wallet shown?! The kaleidoscope of colors and materials makes me feel like a kid in a candy shop. Only this is a luxury leather goods candy shop, the best kind of shop in my opinion. We leave out the PurseBlog men way too often. These Bottega Veneta Wallets are just for you guys, as the dimensions are a bit larger. Materials include intrecciato leather, ayers, stingray, ostrich, and crocodile. There are many color options (as shown above). There is a reason why a wallet is an amazing gift for a man in your life. Every man carries some form of a wallet with them everyday. While personal preference comes into play, Bottega Veneta offers so many options that you can not go wrong. And I mean, look at the picture above! Are you drooling?

Who’s that girl carrying an ostrich Hermes Birkin walking to the set of her hit TV drama in NYC? If you guessed Kelly Rutherford , you are correct! This bag is a Lily Van Der Woodsen favorite, as Kelly has been seen carrying this bag before . In fact, Kelly Rutherford is known to use her personal Hermes collection as part of her Gossip Girl wardrobe. We all know Kelly is a huge Hermes fan, in fact her first son is named Hermes (though she states her love of the brand is not directly correlated to his being name). The gold ostrich Hermes Birkin is and always will be a classic. With Gossip Girl filming in full force, my excitement for the return of the show is building. Check out BagThatStyle for a peek at what your favorite Gossip Girl characters are wearing!

What should every bagista have in her handbag collection? A classic black leather tote, of course! And when I stumble across one that sells for an unbelievably low price, I am literally on Cloud 9! But who could really resist? It’s like indulging in a guilty pleasure, without all the guilt! And when you find

For this month’s giveaway, we here at BagBliss are teaming up with handbag boutique StefaniBags for a Rebecca Minkoff Pointy Stud Rocker Clutch in Aquamarine Giveaway. That’s right, one lucky BagBliss reader will receive this fabulous Rocker clutch / shoulder bag in her bagdrobe within the next few weeks, and all you have to do to

One of our favorite clutch designers is Lauren Merkin. Her designs are unmistakable and completely chic. The most recognizable Lauren Merkin Clutch is the Louise. Good news for all of you is that we are giving three away Lauren Merkin Louise Clutches ! How to enter: 1) Follow Lauren Merkin on Twitter and PurseBlog on Twitter . Also, tweet this: RT & Follow @PurseBlog and @LaurenMerkin to win one of 3 Lauren Merkin Clutches! Info how to enter: http://bit.ly/bihm6f 2) Like Lauren Merkin on Facebook and PurseBlog on Facebook . 3) Comment on this post telling us why you want to win a Lauren Merkin clutch! What you can win: 1 Louise Natural Patent Embossed Python, 1 Louise Gunmetal Metallic or 1 Louise Black Honeycomb Suede. More information: There will be three separate winners. One will be a Twitter follower, one will be a Facebook fan, and one will be from the comment section below. Contest ends September 13th at 10 pm EST. Good luck and thank you to Lauren Merkin !

In case you haven’t noticed, Tory Burch has undergone some changes lately! Big changes! For the most part, I have really been liking what I’m seeing. And, judging from the increased coverage of this designer lately, I think my fellow bloggers agree. Personally, I really love the new shapes and less conspicuous logos. But this

I didn’t get an invitation (lost in the mail somewhere, surely) to the 2010 Emmy Awards , so I’m just going to show you a life-size picture of the Alexander McQueen Crystal-Encrusted Skull Clutch and imagine it in my hand. Because of that lost invite, I was also forced to give back my Marchesa dress and let Heidi Klum wear it, but she didn’t have the clutch to pair with it. So, in that regard, I still win. Except that she’s Heidi Klum, and I’m a blogger who doesn’t actually own this clutch either, technically speaking. Ok, so maybe I don’t win. Either way, you can keep up with our coverage of Emmy fashion and weigh in on your favorites (and least favorites, because that’s way more fun) over at BagThatStyle.com! Buy through Alexander McQueen for $2215.

It might be a bit early to declare box bags as a trend, but the sight of Victoria Beckham carrying one a little while back and now the appearance of fall’s Alexander Wang Tai Dopp Kit Bag make it seem as though more such bags will come out of the woodwork in the near future. Boxes certainly fit with the emerging trend of petite, streamlined, slightly retro handbags, and if you want to hop on this look before all of your friends know about it, we’ve got a few suggestions – one that plays up the bag’s grey tone, another that accents the creams and beiges. The Bag Alexander Wang Tai Dopp Kitt Bag – It comes in both embossed natural python and black leather, but since mixing patterns is also a fall trend, this seems like a perfect time to wade into those waters a bit and see how things go. The black version, of course, could be mixed into a wardrobe in a similar way to a large black clutch. The closure and structure of this bag make it easily more interesting than any clutch in my closet, though, and I’m betting the same is true for you. That the short handle must be held by hand will make it unwieldy in some daytime situations, but it’s such a cool, different bag that it would be worth the tradeoff. Buy through ShopBop for $795. Daytime – Edgy Helmut Lang Raven Top – This silk and jersey asymmetrical top is full of color inspiration for any number of different outfits, but pairing it with neutrals in different textures allows the subtle pattern and draping to shine. The traces of cream and beige tie in with the bag, and combining the two gives you a relatively safe way to mix prints without looking like a crazy person. Buy through ShopBop for $320.