The celebrity world is something the majority of us will never be a part of – there are a chosen few who ever even get to go to awards ceremonies, never mind actually getting nominated! This morning, the nominees for the Academy Awards were announced, bringing the excitement of new fashion to the forefront this awards season. As we saw a few weeks ago, the Golden Globes were given away to actors and actresses wearing some of the newest western style trends. Needless to say, the Oscars are sure to do the same for many of the styles we discuss in this blog.

Here are some of the fashion accessories to look for on the red carpet this awards season:

Belts and Belt Buckles – One major element of this season is not that major at all – in fact, it’s usually overlooked as minor – western belts. The Golden Globes showed several actresses adding belts to their designer gowns, which may surprise some. However, the idea behind mixing dresses and belts builds on the shape of a person’s body, so cinching a belt with a nicely designed belt buckle is being seen at awards shows, movie premieres and at dinner parties everywhere. Consider this approach the next time you are wearing a flowing dress – you might like the results.

Look at the Purse – Along with belts, other accessories like designer handbags are being looked at closely by style experts and fashion critics. It’s not so much about an actress’s choice of dress as much as the full ensemble – that’s why picking the appropriate clutch is crucial at these Hollywood events.  Don’t forget that this is not only important for Kate Winslet – your choice of handbag is also a huge part of your outfit for Friday night.

Adding Sparkle – Finally, the last accessory to add to your ensemble is western style jewelry, which has always been essential on the red carpet ever year. By choosing the right wholesale jewelry, you will bring out the colors and style you are looking to embody. Don’t forget about the depth that jewelry can bring to your already beautiful look.

Jessica Simpson – Mystery Bag

Bag That Style, a blog covering everything bag related, is having trouble identifying a particularly shiny handbag that Jessica Simpson is carrying. Known primarily for her remarkably huge fashion empire (worth in the hundreds of millions), Ms. Simpson is lugging around a large tote-style bag covered in multi-colored sequins. While this is a good look for the mommy-to-be, how are we supposed to find this unknown bag?!

Taylor Swift – Fendi Anna Shoulder Bag

Expecting country megastar Taylor Swift to be carrying around a western style handbag? Well she is walking a fine line with this Fendi shoulder bag in light denim blue. The combination of colors in this outfit (at left) is pretty pitch-perfect, showing off her new adulthood and ability to blend American western color palettes with handbag selection. I guess she can string together style as easily as she writes hit songs!

Pippa Middleton – Bulgari Leoni Clutch

As the sister to new royalty, Pippa Middleton has done a remarkable job keeping up appearances since sister Catherine’s marriage to Prince William. This extends over to her impeccable fashion sense, shown in this Leoni clutch, which features a gorgeous antique gold closure. While Katie may have been the star at the royal wedding, Pippa has definitely been showing up big sis ever since!

It is standard for women to judge and assess each others’ handbags, sometimes asking, “Where did you get that?” Based on each others’ recommendations and handbag selection, the fashion industry makes a pretty penny off of new designs every year. However, this isn’t good enough for some designers – I’m referencing Tommy Hilfiger specifically. As I’ve mentioned recently, New York Fashion Week just wrapped up and the reports are flying around about the latest development – Tommy Hilfiger is designing clutch handbags for men.

Examiner reports that Tommy Hilfiger’s spring 2012 collection featured two styles of men’s handbags that were generally well-received by the crowd:

“The men’s handbag collection designed by Tommy Hilfiger for spring 2012 included the clutch which offered a men’s brief silhouette in a smaller, easier to carry size. The clutch was done in a light burgundy and also cobalt blue; both colors blended well with the overall color palette of the collection.”

Also included was a weekend tote bag for men, promoted as a suitcase of sorts, fitting into carry-on spaces on airplanes.

How do you feel about this move from designers to include men when designing handbags? Do you think that American men will ever carry a clutch bag around in daily life?

According to the piece, look for the economy to affect the way that designers are looking at their wholesale handbags, especially when it comes to making high fashion available to the consumers still wanting to pay full price:

“People are still buying designer labels with high-end department stores posting the largest gains in sales. Luxury department store Neiman Marcus, which also owns Bergdorf Goodman, reported a 17 percent increase in quarterly operating profit on Tuesday as high-end shoppers’ growing willingness to pay full price for designer dresses, shoes and handbags sent sales soaring.”

Although the event still has this evening to finish, the looks for next year have followed the same trends, with bright colors accentuating almost every major line:

“Polished sporty styles and neon citrus colors emerged as strong trends at New York Fashion Week, which ends on Thursday, for spring/summer 2012 as consumers look for more versatile fashion. Dubbed urban sport and athletic chic, the designs featured fabrics such as mesh, neoprene and parachute silk and relaxed yet refined fashion to fit with more casual and active lifestyles, and suit several occasions.”

The actual fits of the clothing seem to be moving towards unfussy, easy-to-wear clothing that not only shows off high fashion, but also doesn’t affect daily life activities like work. This goes the same for the bags being shown – they are comfortable but exhibit the same kind of fashion that people want to spend their money on.

Leather – The fabric of the fall is definitely going to be faux leather, if the looks on red carpets are any indicator. With the leather western handbags showing up on the arms of many celebrities and on runway models, it looks like designers are focusing on this style as well. Pair leather purses with other leather accessories like wholesale belts for a fully encompassing style for your outfits.

Block Coloring – Usually, the first question asked about the new trends in fashion is about the hot colors. Is pink the new black, or vice versa? Well, fall 2011 is going to be all about block coloring, possibly because of the retro looks that shows like Mad Men have made popular again. Block coloring takes several bold colors and pairs them together in sections throughout one piece. For instance, a dress may have three sections – one orange, one black and one salmon, each accentuating a different part of your form.

Draped Dresses – If the awards ceremonies of last year were the only style-making events, we’d all be wearing draped dresses everywhere. Several huge designers made this incredibly beautiful form-fitting look the center of fall lines at Fashion Week. By bringing attention to areas of gathered fabric, drapery can draw attention away from other areas that you may not want people seeing. Use draped clothing to your benefit!

Already being paraded around Hollywood by celebrities like Sienna Miller (Alfie), the western style trend is an amalgam of many different fabrics and styles. Primarily, those looking for this rodeo-style look are mixing leather, cotton and suede, with colors like beige and brown being the main elements. Major designers are also getting this style integrated with their lines – Gucci and Alexander Wang being two of the biggest.

The many benefits to the western look come in its simplicity and lack of total structure. You don’t have to completely cover yourself in western wear to get in on the trend. A simple western style handbag is one way you can always have some rodeo flair incorporated into your outfits. You can also add western jewelry and/or western belts to your accessories to any denim outfit to harness a more laidback western look for yourself.

However, if you want a head to toe western look, you may want to utilize all of these fashion pieces: checkered or plaid shirt, cowgirl boots, bedazzled cowboy hat, gemstone belts, western handbag, small jeans, leather jacket and pretty much any clothing with fringe as an embellishment. You may also want to look into leather pants, although these can be difficult to get comfortable in. If you use some of these tips, you will be a master of western trends in no time!

With so many brands and styles, one woman (Emily Blumenthal) decided to create a designer handbag awards show for independent designers in New York. This event, according to Fox Business, is entering its fifth year:

“This handbag event, her brainchild, keeps growing. There are nine categories, including  ”Audience Favorite” where anyone can vote (starting May 16), and the winner gets to sell nationally and be in the September issue of InStyle. Last year more than 200,000 people voted for the winner. This year there are 1,200-plus applicants from around the globe, astounding considering this is a completely organic process; it simply went viral.

The first handbag awards in 2007 drew approximately 300 applicants and 500 attendees. Blumenthal knew enough to hold it at a New York landmark, the Museum of the City of New York, and to have a Lifetime Achievement Award presented to Carlos Falchi.”

Leaving Blumenthal’s mastery of business academically in the background, Blumenthal actually has designed her own product, the Yasmena. The wallet/wristlet was featured on the incredibly successful show Sex and the City, putting the award show creator right in the middle of the fashion world. Thus, the article says, she started helping small fashion designers with marketing:

“She has found a niche that combines her sales expertise and her soup-to-nuts experience bringing the Yasmena to fruition. Blumenthal shines at the practical, the numbers on the page, the black and white. There is no ‘aha moment’ so much as an idea that is then studied and run through her analytical sales mind to gauge its viability in the market.”

Fashion designers are becoming savvier with how social technology can help them create and also share the handbag process with fashion fans. Thread NY has a story this week about how Donna Karen New York is working with a few heavy hitting handbag bloggers to create exclusive styles for DKNY’s fall fashion line. They actually got in touch in an adversarial way:

“The bloggers, Tina Craig and Kelly Cook, write for the popular Bag Snob blog, and apparently developed an interesting rapport with DKNY’s popular tweeter, DKNY PR Girl (@DKNY) in a way one might not expect: The Bag Snob gals denounced a popular DKNY style by calling it “a sea creature,” and DKNY PR Girl defended the bag both over Twitter and in sending an actual version of the bag for Bag Snob to review. The bloggers agreed that the bag looked completely different in person, and a friendship forged in social media was born.”

The Bag Snob collection has five styles – the Tote, the Travel, the Treasure, the Trendy and the Clutch, all of which follow the tenets of the bloggers’ fashion rules. These feature a few different takes on these classic styles, as referenced in the article:

“[The bags come] in color-block and leopard-print styles, structured-silhouette designs, with some cobalt sequin detailing on the clutch.”

Don’t think that DKNY is simply going to release these special bags in a normal way. Although you may be able to get the bag in stores this October, Donna Karen’s Facebook fans can reserve their bags starting in June.

The Examiner has a brief story looking at the handbags seen at the wedding and their overall styling, which seemed to be kept classy and reserved, unlike some of the hats seen at the event:

“The formal clutches worn by the Duchess of Cornwall, Camilla, Mother of the Bride Carole Middleton, Princess Beatrice, Princess Eugenie, Marina Fogle, Victoria Beckham and many other guests were large enough to fit a wallet, keys, lipstick, compact and small digital camera.

The formal clutches worn by the royal family and guests of Kate Middleton and Prince William’s historic wedding were generally solid in color and crafted from satin. There was a combination of neutral beige or black formal clutches as well as few bold, royal blue clutches. The appearance of the large and roomy formal clutches signals a change in the trends for formal handbags in the next few years to come.”

Obviously, as the article states, anything that was worn or carried at the royal wedding will be a harbinger for fashion trends in years to come. I’ve always wondered how celebrities have held any of their items in those clutches that they carry. Maybe the western style handbags that will be showing up at events in 2011 and on will be bigger, allowing the famous to actually have more than a tube of lipstick on them. As we all know, if the royal family decides to change fashion trends, then it’s good enough for all of us!

A story from NBC’s Today Show Style Buzz site references the Today Show’s style editor Bobbie Thomas, who chose three specific types of hot spring handbags that she feels will be large and in charge this season:

Envelope Bags - Focusing on the smaller sibling of the large tote, Thomas picked envelope bags like Valentino’s Rock Stud Satchel as a pick for space that stays stylish without the bulk:

“The smaller shoulder-flap bags of the ’70s have returned with updated designs inspired by the likes of Valentino, Marc Jacobs, Gucci and more. These demure, ladylike companions are overshadowing the oversize “bring the kitchen sink with you” totes and can add a timeless touch to your look.”

White is the New Black – Everyone is trying to pull off this traditionally maligned color – or lack of color. Try a classic, clean white bag as a minimalist addition to any monochrome outfit:

“Don’t be afraid to go for texture, as many of today’s hottest whites — inspired by designers including Diane von Furstenberg and Dolce & Gabbana — are showing details such as crochet and lace overlays, intricate weaves, etc. and come in a variety of shapes ranging from drawstring bucket bags to soft duffels and more.”

Colors, Colors Everywhere – In a surprising addition to the list, Thomas added the exact opposite of white bags, finishing her segment by talking about striped and two-tone purses, which can be obnoxious if not matched properly. I think that these colorful purses are always a risk, but may be worth taking if you have the right handbag selection.