We’ve already explored the slightly more, uh, tactile elements of Prada Fall 2011, but what about the everyday bags that the brand does so well, year in and year out? Too many pre-orders have sprung up across the Internet for us to feature them all, but here’s a selection of four bags of different styles and leathers that we heartily recommend for purchase in the upcoming months.

 Fall 2011 is all about maximalist texture, and nothing made that case more convincingly than the layers upon layers at the Prada show. The Madaras line didn’t make it to the runway, but the tightly woven bicolor leather is a continuation of that idea that can be carried every day, unlike most runway bags.

 Love the City Bag style and there is no doubt Balenciaga uses the best leathers and their colors speak for themselves. Yet, I will stick to my City Bag in taupe suede with the original gunmetal hardware. Talk about a year round, go with everything bag…

   So if you’re looking for a bag that will make you look like a veteran of the brights bandwagon and won’t look dated once the trend is over, you’d be hard-pressed to make a better choice than a Balenciaga City Bag. And naturally, all of Balenciaga’s bags are just about as lightweight as any you’ll find on the market and very easy to carry. But you guys already know that I’m an inveterate Balenciaga fangirl.

 I’m in my mid 30s (yikes) but I do think the either one of these bags would work great in my wardrobe without coming across as “she’s too old for that” look (granted I wear a lot of neutrals). The key is just one pop of color.

   I’ve never seen a mulberry bag in person, I’ve been eying the alexa for quite while and probably would have gotten it if they had it in a reddish hue. The satchel’s pretty cute tho…but in something else than neutral perhaps?

  I’m going to let you guys in on a little secret that you’ve probably already figured out about me, if you’re a regular reader: I was never a prep. Sure, I dabbled in it in middle school when we all went through the phase where we tried our damnedest to look like everyone else, but by age 13 I was putting ill-advised burgundy streaks in my hair and listening to punk. If you know me, you know that I never really grew out of the “putting ill-advised things in my hair” phase.

   But because trends are endlessly shifting and the lines between “looks” are getting blurrier by the day, I no longer feel the kind of automatic resistance to preppy, classic designs like the Mulberry Polly Push Bags that I likely would have felt a few years ago. As long as I could get one that’s not brown, that is. A distaste for brown is another thing that I’ve yet to outgrow.

   But if brown and tan are your preferred neutrals (I have nothing against them, they just don’t look quite right on me), then you’d be hard-pressed to find a bag that looks as heritage-rich as the Polly Push tote and satchel. Mulberry has been leaning more heavily on its British roots for the past few seasons, and to much success – the traditional look with a quirky touch here and there is very relevant to what’s going on in fashion at the moment, and bags like these will look current for years to come because of the design’s root in classic leatherwork. Buy the tote via Net-a-Porter for $1400 or the satchel for $1300, also via Net-a-Porter.

  It’s a very alluring ad. She is really a stunning person inside and out. The ad speaks to LV’s long history of travel and exploration. Of course it is geared toward those with money but they are usually the ones who chart the path to the newest places.

  It’s nice to see Cambodia being treated as a desirable location for tourism and investment. Cambodia has been through hell and its people deserve a chance to shine and prosper.

   The latest installment of Louis Vuitton’s Core Values Campaign features actress and UN Goodwill ambassador Angelina Jolie. Angelina agreed to be captured by famous photographer Annie Leibowitz for the campaign in Cambodia, a country which she first visited in 2000 for her role as Lara Croft and later returned on humanitarian missions, raising awareness of the dangers of landmines. She subsequently adopted her first child, Maddox, from a Cambodia orphanage. The striking capture shows Jolie sitting in a traditional wooden boat in the province of Siem Reap, alongside her vintage Louis Vuitton Monogram Alto Holdall, a bag she has owned for many years. I love the simplicity and calm nature of the photograph, the setting was well chosen to depict the travel theme of LV’s Core Values campaign. PurseBlog applauds beautiful Angelina for donating her fee for this campaign entirely to charity! For more on the Core Values campaign, visit www.louisvuittonjourneys.com.

  Why hasn’t Marc by Marc Jacobs done more neon bags before now? The world may never know. It seems like the brand’s young, hip client base would have been the perfect people to embrace the trend early and often, but MbMJ has so far relegated its fluorescents to trim and accents. But no longer – Marc by Marc Jacobs Resort 2012 looks like it’s going to be full of Day Glo neon goodness.

We only have a couple of pictures to show you, but they’re worth a look. The clear winner of this small group is the black and highlighter yellow clutch at the top, and I’ve already mentally moved $350 from my checking account to my savings account to wait for its debut. If only it weren’t going to be six months. Two more shots after the jump.

When everyone thinks of Hermes, Birkin is the first thing that comes to mind. Truth is, Hermes is an amazing leather & bag maker, and the Birkin is the not the only work of art Hermes has created. I love the Constance, and its gorgeous but i feel like its not gonna get the respect and prestige it deserves.

I love the Birkin, but I feel like it steals all of the light from all of the other great bags Hermes makes. The Birkin is like the popular, beautiful older sister in the Hermes family & and all of the rest of the siblings are left out in the cold.

 With all the thinking I’ve been doing today about Hermes, it seemed particularly serendipitous that I would come across this utterly lovely photo of a very fashionable lady carrying the Hermes Constance on photographer Tommy Ton’s Jak & Jil blog. While this design doesn’t have the ardent and ravenous following of the Birkin or Kelly, I think we can all agree that its lines are elegant in a way that only Hermes can pull off. The curve of the gussets, the sharp corners of the handle attachement – it’s all perfect. And what’s even more perfect is that the Constance costs thousands of dollars less than a Birkin. Maybe this is the Hermes bag for me.

It’s easy to love a bag when it’s caught by Tommy Ton’s camera, but this design is striking in real life as well. The shape and structure are almost deceptively simple, which calls even more attention to the bold H closure and spare, austere details. This is the kind of handbag that you could use day in and day out for the rest of your life and it will never, ever look dated. For more information, visit Hermes.com.

 You wont agree that it s a bag for grandmom!Structure can be a great design element when implemented properly. In fact, some of the most timeless bags feature a bit of structure to their design, like the Hermes Birkin and Chanel Classic Flap. Yet there are times when a structured bag simply does not work, and this may be one of those times.

The Jimmy Choo Catherine Leopard-Print Satchel uses soft yet structured leather which is offset by leopard-print calf hair. There are double shoulder straps which appear long enough to fling over your shoulder, but because of the bags structure it may sit awkwardly against your body if carried that way. Many pockets make this bag functional, but all the functionality in the world does not help a design that is missing the mark. Oh Jimmy Choo, your shoes have fallen down the rabbit hole as of late, and your bag designs are so hit-or-miss. Buy via Neiman Marcus for $1,795.

 I’ve heaped a lot of praise on Reed Krakoff recently, and all of it is genuine; every time I see one of the man’s bags (and increasingly, his shoes as well), my credit card runs and hides. It just knows. I’m still trying to coax it out from under my bed after laying eyes on the gorgeous Reed Krakoff Boxer Leather and Wool Tote. This shape has become the young brand’s signature, and this mixture of textures and shades might just be the best one so far, particularly when you consider the price.

“my credit card runs and hides. It just knows. I’m still trying to coax it out from under my bed ”

Oh this line just made my day! And so did this bag! I have a major thing for leather with felt and this bag is just amazing! Someday she will be mine!

 Rarely do I feel my heart flutter when I set eyes on a handbag rendered in grey and black, but the mixture of leather, wool and suede in this one is just too good to pass up. And that’s been something of a hallmark of Krakoff’s success so far; he does an excellent job mixing colors and textures in such a way that his pieces are still neutral but not at all boring, which is a difficult feat for even the most seasoned aesthetes.

That he can do those things on top of making a functional, roomy bag at a somewhat achievable price point is the real news bulletin here, though. Other designers likely could have concieved of this design, but I’m having a hard time thinking of one that could do it for less then $1500, let alone the three-figure price tag that Krakoff is offering. Ladies, meet you new fall work bag. Buy through Net-a-Porter for $990.

The bag is pretty enough, but it is not terribly remarkable. Although Burberry may have found its way back from “dreckitude”, it is still long way from recapturing its identity. What does Burberry stand for these days?

 I think the light grey gives it a little bit of mystique. The leather in this photo looks “squishy soft”, which I love. I’d have to see it in person. The only Burberry I have is a smaller gold leather bag with a stiff handle that you could hand hold or sling over the shoulder. If you didn’t see “Burberry” on the hardware you wouldn’t know the brand. I’m SO tired of the Burberry plaid bags. Like any brand, Burberry has created bags that I’ve both wildly loved and totally hated over the past few seasons. There have been moments of both happiness and confusion at the brand’s accessories, but based on the success of the bags in the Fall 2011 runway show and the beautiful Burberry Buffalo Tote from Pre-Fall 2011, I’m feeling nothing but optimism about Burberry handbags. Plus, I’ve seen a few shots of the brand’s Resort 2012 bags, so I have it on good authority that the dog days are over.

Sometimes when I write a post about something that I think might be a burgeoning trend, I feel as though I’ve participated in a bit of fashion-industry magical thinking. I speculate on something – shape, a color, or in this case, a pattern – and suddenly, I start seeing it everywhere. And that’s exactly what has happened since I recently wondered aloud whether Gucci’s zebra resort bags were an indication that fashion would be playing more heavily with an animal print other than leopard.

This morning I came across pre-orders for these two Dolce & Gabbana Miss Sicily Satchels in sequins and calf hair, and they have me more convinced than ever that we’re going to be seeing more zebra over the next few seasons. Like leopard, the pattern is versatile and has the potential to be used as a neutral, and it feels a little bit fresher because I haven’t seen it everywhere for the past year.

 The problem with zebra is that it tends to look cheap compared to other animal prints, so fabrication and attention to detail are of utmost importance. On the other hand, a designer can choose to fully embrace the campy, kitschy qualities of the print and find themselves with an equally fabulous product, which is what Dolce & Gabbana did with its Fall 2011 collection. I had forgotten that the show included so much zebra because Dolce is much more commonly associated with leopard (and what a fine stable of leopard prints it has), but for fun, I would carry either of these bags. What I’m not so sure of is whether or not I’d be willing to actually pay for them. Buy through Luisa Via Roma for $1407 or $2805, respectively