By Rina Raphael
It’s a far cry from their usual boho style.
Mary-Kate and Ashley Olsen – who once graced NYU grounds in oversized shawls and tattered granny outfits – have taken a luxury approach to their fashion line, The Row. Their new handbag collection includes a crocodile backpack for a cool $39,000, essentially the price of a year's college tuition.
How does it measure up to other high-end accessories on the market? Even Kanye – Kanye! – spent only $15,000 for a backpack!
“I think if you were every going to spend $39,000 on a bag, that’s the bag you should buy because I think you’d wear it for a really long time,” said Barneys’ fashion director Amanda Brooks, reports Fashionista. “There’s enough design to make it interesting and beautiful, but they truly are classic bags – and I think you also might be the only one who has it.”
The "Gossip Girl"-worthy status symbol – available at Barneys New York in August – already boasts two pre-orders, proving once again there’s always a market for high-priced fads.
“There are important style contributions from almost every era. Drawing on the right references at the right time is the key," Mary-Kate said at the Row’s handbag launch event. "My problem is not with the trends themselves, but the fact that trends are constantly repeating themselves."
Backpacks got the adult style makeover in the past year, with designers fashioning the middle-school staple in leather, studs, crystals, and now – dead reptiles. Rihanna is quite the fan, having been spotted in several expensive styles, including those by Chanel, Louis Stewart and Gucci.
Are you fan of the trend? And would you shell out a pretty penny for a pricy backpack?
More: Jessica Simpson gets $15,000 bag for birthday