Brand Focus: Lulu Guinness

If a stranger where ever to walk up to me in the street and put the question to me “what is your style?”

As hard as it may be to pin it down exactly, my wardrobe majorly consists of pieces that are quirky, feminine and totally individual.

That is also exactly how i’d describe the bags made by the fabulous British designer “Lulu Guinness.”

Lulu Guinness has been a bag designer since 1989 and even received an OBE for her service to fashion. Her bags are also a permanent part of one of the Victoria & Albert Museum.

Lulu Guinness is known for her cutting edge, individual designs worldwide, for there are retail shops in both the USA and Japan.

The thing that I love most about Lulu’s bags is that they are all so tactile and therefore great for anyone with a sight impairment. You like lipstick, vintage style, British icons, girly things and just the feeling of being a 50s starlet?

Yes then I declare you will definitely contact the “Lulu Guinness” bug it’s very contagious and I’m afraid to tell you that there is no cure once you get it.

Like any leading designer Lulu Guinness has a trademark that has become the icon of her designs. The signature is a kiss mark (that was actually taken from a blueprint of her own lips) in a luscious red. The kiss mark is made to look like when someone wearing bright red lipstick kisses you on the cheek and leaves a imprint of their lips.

This icon is used on all of her bags in some way and she has even utilised the Lips symbol for (in my opinion) one of the most iconic bags ever designed…‘The Lips Clutch”

A bag to wow anyone with a flare for style. Sported by celebrities such as Emma Watson and Alexa Chung. I love the lips clutch bag as it can be bought in a range of colours, materials and finishes.

I myself own the lips mock croc lips clutch, but the icon of all the bags has to be the classic patent red lips clutch.

They are priced at from £295 pounds, but they are fashion classics and will see you in from season to season. There are also options o having one with an added chain, again perfect when your sight impaired and need to have your hands free.

Lulu Guinness has a wide range of designs, shapes and sizes in her wonderful bags and fashion accessorise for anyone to enjoy.

One of the most collective and anticipated bags of her collections are the “Shop Front” bags. Lulu releases a different one every season.

This seasons latest shop front is the “shoe shop bag” which features a cute little shop with two windows displaying a range of shoes. The door is in a vibrant red and the shop also displays a row of box hedging beneath the window.

Last seasons bag was a beautiful (and one of my favourites) Book Shop front bag. The bags come in a range of sizes the Medium edith is of a fair size (big enough for an iPad) with two handles that can fit on her shoulder.

There are also a selection of cross body bags to chose from from designs such as the “Shop Front” bag and other designs such as a quilted lips print material. The bags are prominently in colours of red, black, navy blue, stone and pink.

A majority of the bags are cross body via a detachable strap, so the look can be changed to suit your lifestyle.

The tote bags also come in a range of designs depending on the theme of the shop front bags as well as more classic designs such as the lip designs.

One of my favourite bags in the tote collection is a book print tote bag from the bookshop range. Some of the bags can also be folded small into a lip shape. So perfect for a shipping trip.

Now to clarify the lips clutch bags are not the only bags up for grabs. There is also a range of bags that again are classic pieces or correlate with the theme of the shop front.

My absolute favourite clutch (and the one I would kill for) is a clutch bag in the shape of a book with the words “Dare to be different” on the front.

I love this bag as it is so personal to me and whats more my other love aside from fashion is books.

Santa Baby, bring a Lulu Guinness clutch for me and hurry down the chimney tonight…PLEASE.

If that all wasn’t enough for you Lulu Guinness also offers a gorgeous range of luggage so that you can travel in style!

The range of luggage has been spotted on TOWIE and is mega popular with holiday goers. The main range is three different colours of the lips quilted pattern in red, pink and, black.

There is also the newest range of luggage in black with a white cartoon pattern of all the famous land marks from around the word such as the Eiffel tower and Lady Liberty.

And what would go with my new bag?

You may well ask that question, but never fear there are many trinkets to go with your lovely bag (which you can hint for for Christmas might I add.)

Lulu Guinness offers a range of umbrellas in small sizes and in large to keep you sheltered from the pelting rain whilst looking ultra stylish.

There is also a range of purses brought out with each new shop front to compliment your bag whist holding the notes.

Lulu Guinness also offers a range of adorable jewellery including bracelets, necklace and rings. The jewellery consist of a lipstick and lips charm in a range of colours including pink, red and a union jack theme.

Here is my collection, to give you at taste of what sort of of bags I love to collect.

One of the first bags I was ever given was my pink mock croc lips clutch. it is great to spice up a little black dress or to wear for a lunch date.

I love black cats, so when this adorable handbag flashed up on the Lulu Guinness site I could hardly not indulge. I had saved for three months for this bag and it is worth eery penny. This wonderful suede/ patent mix bag with a black cats quizzical face on the front and a cute embroiled silver mouse on the inside. Was what I found very endearing.

This bag has previously been featured in my “Outfit of the night” blog post and it is perfect for day and night. The bag is a cross body black “Emily” style bag, no literally that is what the name of the style is. Lulu has a different name for every style bag she uses. The irony! The bag again has the lips quilted patent material and the tag (like all of them) is a cute little silver mirror charm with the initials LG on them.

The first ever shop bag I got was when I tore the wrapping off on Christmas day to find the bag shop front Edith bag underneath the paper. I love bags,, as you probably gathered from this post. So, it was a lovely surprise when I had a bag to finally show it. Out of all the shop front bags I love, the bag one is the most tactile. In the window there are many of Lulu’s iconic bags displayed such as the lips clutch, the birdcage clutch, and the most amazing abstract bags such as the clutch bag which is made to look like a basket of flowers. There is also a spiral tree next to the door, which is very tactile. This bag is still available to buy from Lulu Guinness. As it is again a classic.

Another bag that I have in my collection is the eclectic antique shop bag. This bag features about every single antique that you can think of hat is iconic. Such as the Staffordshire dogs, the pile of vintage suitcases, the clocks, the china. The bag has it all and the bag is in a mixture of lighter colours. With a long chain strap that can be adjusted. This was one of my favourite 18th Birthday presents.

The most recent bag that I have added to my collection is my all time favourite Lulu Guinness  Bookshop front Edith tote. The bag is in the colours of red, black and green and it feels like being in a warm bookshop with the smell of books all around you.

The bag features a women standing on a ladder to get a book and a little cat sitting next to a pair of specs in the shop window. The bag has so much detail such as writing on the shop door such as “Established in…” and the sections of books that the shop has to offer such as “Romance,” “Travel,” and “Biographies.’ On the back there is also a brick wall detailing and an old fashioned bike leaning up against the wall next to a victorian style lamppost. Which looks as if it’s alight. There is also a street sign saying “Charing Cross Road” on the sign in the classic street sign writing.

Lulu Guinness-Online and In store

QVC-Via telephone and online (there is occasionally a three easy payment plan available for certain bags.)

House of Fraser-Online and in Store

ASOS-Online