CV: 3 Cities in 3 Days

Busy week! We've moved studios and finally have room to breathe - we were literally being engulfed by bags at our old place. (To give you an idea - a friend visited the studio a week before the move and said it looked like a tsunami had washed through our quarters. Nice.) I will post pics of our new space asap, but until then I wanted to make sure everyone knew about the fun things we're up to in 3 different cities over the next couple of days.

In SAN FRANCISCO tonight:

We are so excited to be headed to Steven Alan's Fillmore shop tonight! This marks the first stop in our monogramming tour that continues throughout summer - we're heading to Connecticut, New York City, Sunset Beach and maybe even Hawaii!! We'll keep you posted. Did I mention Walker's services are free with purchase tonight? Complimentary monogram with purchase of CV bag! Rad.

Then tomorrow: NEW YORK

This is the second trunk show we've done with BG* and I can't describe how thrilled I am about this. 

I mean, being a die-hard fashion junkie from a very young age, scattering my ashes at Bergdorfs would be perfectly fine by me. 

 Then Saturday and Sunday: LOS ANGELES

This is our 'hood and these are our peeps so we're thrilled to be again taking part in this growing social market - The Echo Park Craft Fair*! Amazing group of wildly talented people sell their wares at this bi-annual event, you can literally buy everything you would ever need.

*Please note: not a monogramming event, but full of gift solutions for any mama in your life - or you. :)

It's a goop day!

Today we launched our collab with Gwyneth Paltrow's lifestyle site goop.com.

It's been in the works for a while but we couldn't talk about it which has been killing me - I've been so excited I've wanted to tell everyone. When the email arrived from someone at goop.com, I thought it was a joke. I've wanted to do a collaboration with them since day one of goop. 

So I guess it's kind of a dream come true. Good to stop and take note when good things are realized. Thanks goop! What makes the timing of this collab even more special is that it coincides with the opening of my very dear friend Simone's art opening at my very dear friend Heather's gallery this Saturday night and she also got a lovely mention on the site/newsletter.

Simone's in town from New York for the opening and we had just finished a hike this am when we saw the goop e-newsletter come in and we didn't know if we'd both be in it, so we were thrilled to share this moment together. We've each gotten a lot of emails and texts from friends congratulating us on the mention, it's fun when it's from mutual friends of ours who are happy we're both in it. One thing we've learned: a lot of people read goop. :)

Style.com wrote a nice piece about it and we made a headline with Beyonce on elle.com so that was enough to make us scream. :)

Tokyo Chic

Last week, I went to Japan for my very first time.

This view of Tokyo from up high was taken from my home for 5 days on the 36th floor of the Cerulean Tower Hotel.

The trip was planned so I could visit my store accounts in Japan, so of course I had to bring a good representation of CV bags. Usually I'm a quick packer, no big deal. But for some reason, packing for this trip to Japan had me intimidated and perplexed: The Japanese are extremely stylish, I was visiting accounts for the first time, I'd be walking a lot, what was the weather going to be like? All of it threw me.

But these CV pieces made the trip with me: a blue weekender, a creamy large duffle - which was made as a sample and doesn't exist on the line yet, the red Madeleine bag & a black Louise bag, both of which debut in the Fall 13 collection, a plethora of clutches, monogrammed and not and...

the CV fanny pack! OK, the bum bag, waist sack, call it what you like, I wore it almost everyday and it was perfect. 

Maybe not as perfect as these school girls' bow ties, but still...not much is that perfect.

Tokyo men across from me in the subway. Creepy that I'm taking sly pics of men on trains? Nah. 

These boys were sitting on a street corner of a very busy street. As a mama, I was slightly shocked and wanted to grab them away from the street but they were so relaxed, like they do it everyday, I figured cars must not come that close to the curb in Tokyo...I know(?!)

One of the highlights of the store visits was strolling through the incredibly beautiful Isetan department store. It just about puts all American luxury department stores to shame and, believe me, I love a luxury department store.  

It's such a privilege that they carry our bags there. We made these rose-colored bags special for Isetan. (I know, my name is spelled wrong on the little sign, but this store is so beautiful I don't care!)

Purchases at any store merit lovely wrapping in Japan, but this packaging from the beautiful shop Arts & Science was particularly aspirational for the CV store.

I loved the cafe and the cute girls in the kitchen at Arts & Science, too.

These adorable enamel pots were from the United Arrows store in Harajuku.

I had the good fortune of being in Tokyo the weekend that the Steven Alan store opened there. It was a handsome and giant Tribeca, New York-esque space downstairs from the Beauty & Youth store in Shibuya.

We debuted these quilted leather versions of our favorite CVs: fanny pack, flat clutch and overnighter - exclusive for Steven Alan.

The Tokyo crowd was so dapper and chic it was incredible people watching.

The night before the SA opening, another New York store opened in Tokyo - Freeman's Sporting Club. 

Known for their bespoke suits, at the FSC Tokyo store they have their own state-of-the-art sewing room. This room was pretty much a dreamspace for me. 

Speaking of dreamspaces: the view from my room was so gorgeous at every time of the day, particularly at sunrise, which almost made the jet lag worth it.

The Prada store in Aoyama by architects Herzog and de Meuron was so phenomenal, it's an absolute must see when visiting the city.

From giant impeccable stores like Isetan, to architectural feats like Prada, to small boutiques like the Haberdashery in Shibuya near Ometesando where they sell a thoughtful mix of lines from around the world, I think the shopping in Tokyo cannot be beat. 

I'm still kicking myself for not buying these indigo-dyed linen jeans with a button-on apron from A Seed on Cloud at Haberdashery.

A last look from my window at night. 

REBONJOUR

We revamped our website. Have you seen it? 

Take a look! And a version of the Rebonjour clutch (real one below) is a available for a limited time too!!

Other side:

Here are a few screenshots I grabbed from Instagram: a few favorite ladies snapped their Hello Again clutch. 

Fanny Mania

I wrote about our Fanny Packs (bum bag for you Brits) a while back - back when we were selling the Spring Summer line - and  we are so excited because they're now in studio and in store.

They came in yesterday and I made Greta put them on for an impromptu photo shoot - we were dying over how cute each one looked. 

The whole fanny pack idea started for us because of one I got from my Parisian sister-in-law. She had a vintage red leather one by an old French label, and she took it off her waist and gave it to me one day when I complimented her on it. (Mental note: always be generous.) I've loved it ever since, but we knew we could update it a little. 

Greta cannot decide which one she's getting: red. 

Or jaguar.

I got the blue and am wearing it now.

But green with a little summer dress will be sooo cute. 

Ultimate-undeniably-best-Coachella bag: Krystle, here at the studio, is getting white. She's braving that sweltering, desert music dust bowl cluster, and I feel better knowing that she'll have this strapped to her waist. 

Speaking of white bags for hot times. I think this white cartable will be my work bag of choice this summer. 

What I saw: London+Paris

London, Regent Street. Here was the line to get into the new store & Other Stories the day after the opening party last week.

Stories is the newest addition to the H&M family- a grown up, but not conservative sibling.

I am so thrilled to announce (a little late) that I designed a bag collaboration with them - a 15 piece collection ranging from keychains to overnight bags. And this exciting opprtunity was the reason for much of my travel in 2012.

Here's my display wall. It added a very nice pop of color to the whole store.

The collection is only available in Europe - online and in 6 cities.

I like these colorful tassels! Wish I'd have bought more for gifts. 

I geeked out at the opening party and asked if I could take photos of girls buying my bags. These two adorable Londoners said that they bike to work and were both buying my backpack. I was so happy because that's exactly who I designed it for - stylish girls who bike to work!

And these two girls - Abigail Lorick of Lorick and Nikki Dekker of Lake and Stars were two of the other designers they included in the collab and they were each buying the backpack too!

The other side of our wall - merchandized with colorful Nikes.

I love the paper bags - I wanted to keep them, but I'm trying to curb hoarding tendencies.

Bat for Lashes looked stunning in her Stories outfit.

DJ Misty Rabbit in her Stories Ocean print suit.

A photo of me with the purple weekend bag taken by Jeana Sohn on my front steps was sitting on the shelves.

I was introduced to this beautiful woman, Claire, and she was buying 3 CV pieces. I chatted with her for a bit and turns out she's a very talented designer of a line of loungewear called Aloe.

While in London, I was able to take in a few lovely places with my friend Juliette - for example, lunch at the Wolseley, which was just so divine.

The Conran's store in the gorgeous old Michelin tire building was dreamy.

We had cocktails at the posh Savoy.

Went shopping at Liberty's. Look at the interior of this place?! Why did I feel like eveything was out of Harry Potter? 

Or buckingham Palace, aka, the dinning hall at the V&A museum.

Before London, I spent 5 nights in Paris, where I went to the atelier Cacharel and adored these biscuits.

Had a crush on this Merci shopgirl and had to buy a plethora of these aprons to try to recreate this outfit. Still trying.

I love the light and exposed ceilings in the home section of Merci. I want it to be my home.

Running late into Jardins du Palais Royal for an appointment, I couldn't help but stop and snap this pic of the little red coat in the royal courtyard.

This is what I looked like everyday in Europe running out the apt in a flurry, (and, yes, with clothes everywhere) - that Vanessa Bruno coat with flared sleeves and my APC hat purchased at Mohawk General Store. I get so sick of things I wear while traveling I never want to see them again. Lucky for me, I live in LA where it'll be a long time before I need to see a coat and hat again.

I saw Steven Alan in Paris at his brother's wonderful juice bar/cafe - Bob's Kitchen. Steven's brother, Marc Grossman, has been living in France for a long time, and along with Kitchen he has Bob's Juice Bar, and is the author of multiple cookbooks as well as this great blog. For tasty, fresh pressed and cold pressed veggie juices, delicious muffins and wraps this is the place to seek out in Paris. Why does even health food taste better in France??