How Fendi’s ‘It’ bag, the Baguette, made a comeback

First launched in 1997, the bag represents the history and soul of the brand in every way as Silvia Venturini Fendi, the granddaughter of founders Eduardo and Adele, designed it. The bag was created during Karl Lagerfeld’s long reign over Fendi as artistic director.

“I feel that this bag is really a New York bag, because it’s both an evening bag but also a day bag, and in New York you see how night and day often blur. For me, the bag embodies the spirit of New York,” said Silvia Venturini Fendi in a previous interview with SCMP.

The inspiration for the bag is unsurprising, given its name. Silvia Venturini Fendi saw something beautiful in the way Parisian women would carry loaves of baguettes under their arms as they strolled through the city. While the house is known for its furs and leathers, the bag took on many different personalities, with the house’s double F monogram being one of the earliest iterations.

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The bag’s been given different fresh touches over the seasons, including one of the most iconic, Carrie Bradshaw’s blue sequinned rendition.

The rise of the Y2K trend puts the Baguette under the spotlight once again as a new generation of fashion lovers embraces the practicality and aesthetic of underarm shoulder bags. Gigi Hadid, Kim Kardashian, Lily Collins, Zendaya and, of course, Sex and the City’s Sarah Jessica Parker all got their hands on one of these bread-inspired bags.

The design proves to be incredibly versatile. Accented with crystals, the mini versions make the perfect evening bag, à la Kim K at the Baguette’s 25th anniversary party.

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Parker, meanwhile, took a page from Bradshaw’s fashion playbook and paired a purple sequinned bag with bold splashes of turquoise. It was also one of the Baguette’s newer iterations with a thick crossbody strap.

But the brand didn’t stop there: Fendi also incorporated details from the Baguette into its ready-to-wear collection, such as the emblematic double F buckle and the rectangular form of the bag.

From adding micro Fendi Baguette pochettes to biker boots to incorporating utilitarian elements by way of little Baguette pockets and belt bags onto safari jackets, boiler suits and skirts, Fendi’s most iconic “It” bag has become an inseparable part of the brand’s identity.