If you purchase an independently reviewed product or service through a link on our website, WWD may receive an affiliate commission. Straw handbags might feel like a buzzy new trend — appearing in the hands of everyone from front-row Fashion Week attendees to your favorite style influencers for the past few springs and summers — but the boho haulers actually have a long, rich history to their name. Per WWD’s resident historian and archives editor Tonya Blazio-Licorish, they “rose to prominence in the 1940s,” with “leather-trimmed straw basket bags, lacy openwork styles, and oversize totes in natural tones [becoming] staples for fashionable vacation spots in California, Palm Beach, and the Hamptons.” Notably, fashion muse Jane Birkin catapulted the accessory to new heights in the ’70s, taking it from protests to parties. Suddenly, everyone had to own one, and fashion houses from Ralph Lauren to Fendi started putting their own spins on the silhouette to turn it into a veritable colle...
Bonhams is curating a collection of fashion-forward pieces and memorabilia for the auction house’s forthcoming “Diane Keaton: The Architecture of an Icon.” Curated in collaboration with The Fine Art Group, Bonhams’ collection will span a series of four sales across New York City and Los Angeles beginning this June. “Diane Keaton was not simply a collector, but a consummate editor,” Anna Hicks, Bonhams head of private and iconic collections, said in a statement. A Ralph Lauren houndstooth two‑piece suit and overcoat ensemble, left, and the original untitled script for “Annie Hall.” (1977) Courtesy of Bonhams “Each piece — whether it be art, fashion, decor or personal object — was chosen by her with remarkable precision and clarity, reflecting an innate instinct for composition, restraint and meaning. Together, these four sales offer collectors and enthusiasts alike a rare view into a life shaped by creative author...