Above: Image from Bottega Veneta
Welcome to the third installment of my “luxe-inspired” series. As mentioned in my pervious posts (one and two), I use the term “dupe” here a bit facetiously. These are not true dupes, but rather contemporary alternatives (read: a bit more affordable) to popular luxury brand styles.
Hermes Kelly
Starting off with the most expensive style on the list – the Hermes Kelly retails for $9K+, with special editions and leathers exponentially more than that. And realistically, the true cost is much higher, given how you often have to spend thousands first, for the opportunity to get offered a bag to purchase. If you’re not down for the game (and luck is not on your side with the Paris lottery system), secondhand options are easily $15K+.
The closest contender to the Kelly, is Tory Burch’s Lee Radziwill line. There are several sizes and styles, with the Petite version running $598. These are on the pricier end of Tory Burch’s line, but look to be well made and still considerably less than their H-brand counterpart. This colorful option with whip stitching is giving Fendi peekaboo vibes.
Chanel Mini Top-Handle
The mini (or micro? nano?) bag trend is still going strong, despite larger silhouettes coming into the scene in recent shows. Chanel’s mini top handle always comes to mind first when I think of cute and dainty micro bags.
Thankfully, Tory Burch provides an alternative at 10% of the cost, which is a much more reasonable price for an admittedly trendy (though very cute) style
Bottega Veneta Sardine Bag
The Sardine bag first caught my eye when Matthieu Blazy launched it as part of his first collection for Bottega. It’s fun, yet elegant, and certainly makes a statement as a standalone accessory piece.
Cuyana’s Sculpted Handle Bag provides a very similar silhouette at less than 10% of the price. While it doesn’t have the lovely intrechiatto woven leather of Bottega, it checks off all the key features: sculpted curved gold handle, small-medium size. Unfortunately, it lacks the sardine – but to me, that’s a trade-off well worth it for this price. I’ve owned some of Cuyana’s other leather goods, and have been happy with their quality thus far.
Boyy Wonton & Luna Bag
The Boyy Wonton Bag has been on the scene for several years now – I like to think of it as the sleeker and cooler sister to the Hermes Lindy bag.
Songmont’s eponymous Song bag looks incredibly similar to the Wonton Bag and the Lotus Tote lines, at about one-third of the cost. I love that it comes with a small leather coin/cash pouch, making it an even greater deal. I reviewed their Luna bag here a few weeks back, and have been pleasantly surprised with both great quality and functionality.
Prada Re-Edition
While the Prada Re-Edition has been around for several seasons now, I added this last combo-style to the list due to the new alternative below. I included the Celine Romy shoulder bag as a reference as well, given its slouchiness in shape and “foldiness”, if it makes sense.
Baggu’s Mini Nylon shoulder bag is almost a hybrid of the two, with the silhouette of the Re-Edition but the slouchiness of the Romy. At $44, it’s by far the most affordable alternative on this list!
Celine Romy
Speaking of Celine’s newer silhouette, the Romy is an elongated, flexible shoulder bag that has a distinctive bend in the center. While there’s no perfect contemporary dupe of this style, there are two bags that come close and are a fraction of the $2,900+ price tag.
First is Cult Gaia’s Hera Shoulder Bag, which ranges from $395 – $495. Unfortunately, this does not come in leather – but there is a very pretty suede version and several fun rhinestone variations. Because of the material, the Cult Gaia bag is likely more malleable than the Romy.
On the other side of the spectrum, there is the Polene Umi bag for $450. This is a well-structured bag with little flexibility, but has a similar enough shape with the dip in the top middle.
I hope you enjoyed this list. As mentioned at the beginning, this has been put together in the name of good fun. If you spot any other alternative that I should have listed here, please let me know in the comments!
Partnership Disclosure: This blog post was not sponsored by any of the brands listed above. As always, all opinions are my own. This post may contain affiliate links, in which I earn a commission on purchases.
