It's the latest Miu Miu fashion show, presented in Paris on March 5, that sets the tone.
Presented in the heart of the very chic 16th arrondissement, the fall-winter 2024-2025 collection by designer Miuccia Prada reinterprets Jackie Kennedy's great classics.
On the catwalk, the archetype of the bourgeoisie is represented through long double-breasted coats, knit cardigans and almond
shoes
(shoes with a tip similar to an almond, long adopted by Lady Di
, Editor's note
).
The models all carry their bags in their hands or, very delicately, under their arms, as you would a puppy.
And never over the shoulder.
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At the Miu Miu fall-winter 2024-2025 show, the handbag is worn under the arm.
(Paris, March 5, 2024.) Imaxtree
Three days earlier, same look: at the Hermès show, the cross-over was not to be declared.
The leather bag was held by the arm, placed on the hip, slipped into the fingertips, thrown over the shoulder, carried on a belt... In short, everything except adopted over the shoulder.
Same thing at Loro Piana, the favorite brand of big tech bosses: the lookbook suggests placing your bag against your waist, or carrying it in your hand.
It seems that the fashion houses favored by the ultra-rich have agreed to avoid the shoulder strap next season.
Unless this has always been the case?
Rigorous protocol
Among the powerful, the bag is never selected thoughtlessly, and is often imbued with messages.
We think here of the English royal court and its strict dress protocol, which sends some coded messages.
For example, when she wanted to conclude a conversation, the late Queen passed her famous Launer London from one arm to the other.
Woe to those who defy the rules, like Meghan Markle: in 2018, Prince Harry's wife broke with tradition by adopting a shoulder bag during a visit to Edinburgh Castle.
If royal specialist Victoria Arbiter explains that she is not breaking “any royal protocol”, the eccentricity is making headlines in the British press.
“This is why Kate Middleton always wears a clutch,” pointed out Good House Keeping
magazine
.
Meghan Markle during a visit to Edinburgh Castle.
(Scotland, February 13, 2018.) PA Photos / PA Photos/ABACA
Danielle Mitterrand, Carla Bruni, Bernadette Chirac... Throughout history, the handbag has played an important role among first ladies, but has never been worn cross-body by one of them.
Even Brigitte Macron, who very often favors long chain models, stops at shoulder wear.
To differentiate yourself, instead set your sights on a model from the start, and stick to it.
Reason why Bernadette Chirac opted for the timelessness of Chanel bags, or why Jackie Kennedy owned several versions of the Gucci shoulder bag... Which would later bear her name.
Don’t “hide” the look
“I don’t wear a bag, I don’t like bags,” reveals Carine Roitfeld, former editor-in-chief of
Vogue France
magazine , on October 8, 2023 on the set of the show
Quelle Époque!
hosted by Léa Salamé.
And to continue: “I think it hides the look.”
Because beyond the protocol, there is the aesthetic aspect.
Worn diagonally across the torso, the shoulder strap hides clothing, marks the chest, turns around due to movement, creases coats and shirts... Overall, it easily spoils a silhouette.
Brigitte Macron and Queen Camilla during a ceremony at the Arc De Triomphe.
Carried in the hand, the bag does not disrupt the cut of a designer outfit.
(Paris, September 20, 2023.) Chris Jackson / Getty Images
But if the crossover is still required in the street, it is mainly thanks to its practical side.
You put the essentials in it, and your arms are unloaded all day long.
Difficult to understand for the ultra-rich, who generally spend more time in a taxi than chasing the metro, and for whom the notion of “clothing functionality” is different.
A concept deciphered in the famous essay
La Distinction
(1979) by Pierre Bourdieu: the sociologist opposes so-called “scholarly” taste, which includes the notion of distance between the aesthete and the work of art, to “popular” taste intended for those who adhere to the work proposed to them.
A speech that fits perfectly with fashion: the clothing choices of the middle classes would be more practical and less intellectualized than those of the wealthy classes.
For an ultra-rich person, what's the point of carrying a shoulder bag if it's to hide a designer dress?