Not Katie Holmes of course. Mrs. Tom Cruise wouldn’t be caught dead with any old fashion on or near her. That’s why she was seen out the other day carrying daughter Suri while wearing this: a Louis Vuitton Pre-Fall 2010 Aviator. The Vuitton Pre-Fall 2010 Aviator is a truly beautiful and functional handbag that may even be considered a tote. Fellow celebrity mother Gwen Stefani has also been out with this bag, possibly storing all different kinds of kid’s entertainment inside. Holmes’ has a dark maroon bag with paisley style designs and long straps for easy carrying and comfort. You can’t currently get one of these in a Vuitton store, but there are similar celebrity style handbags available at Best Handbag Wholesale which are comparable in size and color.

Accessorizing her way into the fall and winter seasons, Jessica Simpson was seen at LAX with a whole set of Louis Vuitton luggage. Now although this blog is all about handbags, we should at least admire the dedication that Jessica shows to her favorite brands. She goes as far as to match her Vuitton duffle bag with a safari-print dress and bright orange earrings, which is a fashion feat to behold and envy. Appropriately enough, Jessica matches her luggage with an across-body Vuitton bag that brings her whole matching ensemble together.

Once we get closer to the fall season, we’ll begin to see which celebrities are really game for changing fashion styles along with the weather. Jessica and Katie have already begun – I wonder who is next?

• Large-oversized bags – Oh, man. It seems like the oversized is never going to go out of style. Year after year, handbags get bigger and bigger. This may not seem like anything new, but don’t be surprised if the bags get even larger in the next few months. Now Paris Hilton will be able to fit two of her dogs inside!

• Soft embellishments – 2009 saw the implementation of huge additions to handbags, like hoops, chains and other large items, but 2010 is being dominated by softer add-ons. These range from rouching (the gathering up of fabric to create a ruffled style) to pleating and weaving of exterior fabric to give handbags a lighter look in color and texture.

• Studs – As mentioned in a previous post, studs are making a comeback, courtesy of Lady Gaga, who loves to adorn her fashion accessories with little metal touches. You’ll see more and more of this in the fall and winter.

The hot colors for winter (reds and grays) have already been popping up this summer on the arms of some of the biggest celebrities and fashion icons in the world. Judging from this slow roll out, these colors and the aforementioned styles will begin to permeate the fashion world and the department store closest to you in the next 4 or 5 months. Get ready to hop on the newest trends in handbags!

The latest western fashion collection from Marie Claire. Photo from Marie Claire.

But, although shades of coral stone and cowboy hats are seen on the models (and the horses), the collection of western fashion from Vogue appears to be a bit of a compromise. First off, much of the western fashion on the models isn’t necessarily cowgirl chic but, instead, horse-riding chic with some western embellishments. Many of these looks would be appropriate for spectators at a prep school polo match and not at a rodeo. Although the ostentatious nature of many western fashion pieces, especially those at Best Handbag Wholesale, is too overwhelming for high fashion, a compromise of high and western fashion isn’t always a bad thing – especially when traditional western styles get noticed.

What’s missing from this particular collection is the bling, from turquoise to large belts, associated with western fashion – and particular rodeo gear. For an updated western fashion collection, however, Marie Claire’s recent collection of western-inspired high fashion gets it right. Not only are large turquoise stones, belts, and western stone colors, particularly coral, a significant part of this collection, but many of these items would be appropriate for a rodeo and for high fashion.

In general, the crosses are merely part of western fashion, particularly cowgirl style. Whether it’s a pair of silver-cross earrings or a cross-shaped pendant without religious connotation, this style is pervasive across all western styles and retailers. The cross, however, does have some sort of religious significance regardless of how you wear it, but how it’s designed makes it more or less a western symbol and not directly religious.

Crosses are found on many BHW handbags. These cross handbags may be adorned with a metal or black cross, often one that’s flared or rounded at the ends. As this is the main ornament for the bag, the cross is often depicted on a solid colored background. But the cross itself isn’t solid and on many of these handbags, it’s embellished by the material used – such as cowhide or metal – or with rhinestones like turquoise or quartz.

This symbol also appears on many pieces of jewelry and decorative accessories like belts. Rhinestones shaped like crosses, for example, decorate the sides of many western-style belts at BHW looking to stay western but adding a little bling. Similarly, many of the jewelry pendants take this cross shape, as well. In addition to being metal, many of these pendants designed with a combination of cow hide, rhinestones, and traditional western stones. To accentuate one of these pendants around your neck, couple it with a solid color chain or leather cord.

What is western-but-modern fashion? In general, this means that the clothing still takes a basic western template – think of a western shirt or chaps – but is given the modern fashion treatment. At BHW, this is often done by incorporating modern patterns and embellishments. While our hats have such a style, so do our belts and handbags.

The belts, in particular, are feminine but anyone looking for a bit of a rhinestone cowboy-meets-bling look should check them out. In general, the belts follow the same trends as the handbags. At the moment, this means many of our belts have an animal print pattern and are covered in various types of rhinestones. As animal print and the bejeweled look are both popular at the moment, they’re combined on all of the belts at BHW.

The animal print options include cow hide or jungle animals. For the latter, tiger and zebra stripes are common, as well as leopard spots. Aside from an actual print, the texture of the cow hide may be dyed a solid color. Added to all of these belts are rhinestones and studs in many sizes and shapes, including square-shaped conchos and rounded clear gemstones. Traditional western stones, such as turquoise or onyx, are also incorporated, either onto the belt itself or the large buckles accompanying many of these. Pair one of these with a matching handbags and a solid color pair of pants.

Best Handbag Wholesale carries similarly designed wholesale handbags and wallets. While we’ve covered the patchwork handbags at BHW before, a new product this past month has been patchwork wallets. As seen under the link above, one of these patchwork wallets combines several varied materials stitched together on the same wallet. For example, this particular wallet uses faux suede, snakeskin, and cloth in differently shaped cut outs sewn together. While this particular wallet focuses on grey tones, similar wallets focus putting black or brown materials together.

How do you wear a patchwork wallet? One option, especially at BHW, is to pair it with a matching handbag. As patchwork handbags are part of the selection of products, a similar patchwork handbag can be found easily. But if you don’t want to be limited to one pairing with your wallet, another option is to wear a matching solid color handbag, either in black, brown, or grey, so that the wallet sticks out.

Necklaces are some of the newer pieces of western jewelry at BHW. One notable style is a chain necklace built like a thicker bike chain. These chains come in traditional silver, as well as pink, purple, white, and other colors. Aside from chains, more new necklaces at Best Handbag Wholesale combine western stones. Whether large or small stone beads, these necklaces all use a combination of turquoise, onyx, crystal, and coral beads – often two or more on the same necklace. One of these can be worn by itself or paired with one of the various western themed pendants at BHW.

Aside from necklaces, Best Handbag Wholesale has many new pendants. These pendants vary in shape from stars to crosses to stars. While all of these pendants have a magnetic closure, they all incorporate different western stones, particularly turquoise, with rhinestones. The rhinestones either line the pendant or are the centerpiece to the pendant. Whether you’re looking for something flashy, casual, or to just wear to a rodeo, any of these pendants are appropriate. For a full selection, browse through the new western jewelry at BHW.

With the exception of western shirts, many pieces of western clothing and designed from suede and leather, including chaps and cowboy boots. Even ten-gallon hats are occasionally designed with leather. For Best Handbag Wholesale, many of the handbags are designed from leather or leatherette to resemble the natural material. But leather isn’t the only western-appropriate material used, and cowhide, or cowhide-like material, is used on many products, as well. Sometimes, both leatherette and cowhide are used on the same bag.

Especially for women’s western fashion, stones are important. The typical western stones are turquoise and crystal, but onyx and coral are used commonly, as well. This creates a diverse color combination with staid and bold shades from turquoise and coral stones in use. In general, these stones are used for women’s western jewelry, but, for others, they’re used for other accessories. In fact, many of the handbags and belts at BHW are decorated with turquoise and crystal-like stones, often on the same fashion. For bling, these traditional stones are incorporated with small to medium-size rhinestones. The resulting product is bright and showy but not antiquated like a rhinestone cowboy.

How did this trend come about? In the summer of 2008, brand Ed Hardy – by Christian Audigier, the designer behind Von Dutch trucker hats from 2004 – appeared on the scene and seemed to be snatched up by teenagers and twentysomething club kids everywhere. What makes Ed Hardy different from Von Dutch gear is that all designs are tattoo-based and have more character. Although that character may be more pseudo-punk than rocker (would anyone wearing an Ed Hardy cap get a real tattoo like that, for example?), it goes with the brightness and gaudiness seen on other pieces of fashion as various ‘80s styles come back. Other designers since then have picked up this style and added it to their products, with some more successful than others.

Although the trend is fading somewhat and the brand Ed Hardy, like Von Dutch, is almost synonymous with “douche bag,” the tattoo style can be seen on various products. If you’re into this trend, more affordable options can be found on websites like Best Handbag Wholesale. Hats, handbags, and other accessories are designed with this style which, for women, has a tattoo pattern embellished with several small rhinestones or studs.

Aside from the myriad of stone and silver combinations available for these belts, leather pulls of design element of all of these western belts together. The options at Best Handbag Wholesale for leather western belts include standard solid leather bands. The leather can appear in a natural color like brown or black but, in some cases, the leather is dyed pink or pale blue. Other options include lining the outside of the leather with animal hairs, such as cow hairs, to give the belt the appearance of cowhide with rhinestones. Accompanying the leather is a large silver belt buckle and, on some designs, a horseshoe.

For style options overall, some belts use a darker color and brighter stones, such as blue or turquoise to stand out, while others line the outside of the belt with clear rhinestones. Although many of the rhinestones on these belts are small, larger rhinestone or stone conchos come on some of the belts to give it a jeweled, shimmering appearance.