The sparkly theme continues today with one of the most iconic purse designers in the world, Judith Leiber. In the late nineties, my friends and I used to spend time at the bar at One If By Land, a super-posh restaurant in the West Village. The regulars were a fascinating bunch, and two of my favorites were a handsome almost-middle-aged Italian-American couple. The two would show up on Friday or Saturday night most weekends, and they were so perfectly put together, it was like they had stepped out of a movie. And she always carried the most amazing rhinestone-covered purses. I swear I never saw her with the same one twice. I finally asked her about them, and she told me that every year on their anniversary, her birthday, for Christmas, and sometimes just because, her gorgeous (and apparently loaded) husband would buy her a new Judith Leiber purse.
After that, whenever she saw me, she would break away from her people to let me examine her purse of the night, and they never disappointed. They were true works of art. I’ve never done this before, but when I went looking for more information about Leiber for this post, I found her New York Times obituary, and it was too sweet not to quote.
“Judith Leiber, the handbag designer whose whimsical creations were prized as collectors’ pieces and frequently displayed as objets d’art, died on Saturday at her home in Springs, N.Y., a hamlet in East Hampton. She was 97. Ms. Leiber died just hours after the death of her husband of 72 years, the painter, lithographer and sculptor Gerson Leiber, who was known as Gus. He also died at their home. Both died of heart attacks, according to Jeffrey Sussman, their biographer and spokesman, and they were buried together on Monday.”
– Enid Nemy for The New York Times
You can follow the incomparable Judith Leiber’s work on her label’s website and on Instagram, and if you find yourself in the Hamptons, you can also check out the Leiber Collection Museum. I know where I’m going this summer! (I also know I got totally carried away with the Instagram posts below, but I honestly just couldn’t help myself!)
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My OBT 
May 8, 2020 at 8:46 am
Cute and very creative but…sure won’t hold much. Back in my day, way back, some of my class mates had cute carryalls that looked like lunch buckets or baskets. They were painted with scenes and dimensional things like trees or houses etc. Really cute. I never had one but really thought of making one myself.
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May 8, 2020 at 10:01 am
I like that idea! I agree that the Leibers are more suitable for a credit card and a lipstick than anything more substantial, but as art, they are truly spectacular in person! I like the idea of the painted lunch boxes.
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May 8, 2020 at 10:16 am
Wish I could come across a photo so you could see how cute they were.
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May 8, 2020 at 8:58 am
“Sweetie, it’s time for both of us to go.” What a way to go. Such talent, both of them.
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May 8, 2020 at 10:01 am
Indeed, and a wonderful relationship, to boot.
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May 8, 2020 at 8:59 am
These are amazing. I love the moon and the diamond but the camera is the one that is most “me”. I am one of those people who has to have a Mary Poppins bag as I carry so much with me. I, therefore, don’t own many small bags and don’t own any fancy ones. I probably need one for my brother’s wedding though so now I have rabbit hole to go down in my spare time. You’ve inspired me to quest for something with personality.
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May 8, 2020 at 10:02 am
The camera is the one that makes me the most wanty.
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May 9, 2020 at 12:54 pm
The camera is the one I like the most! I love the cassette as well.
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May 10, 2020 at 1:04 am
Me, too! And the boom box. So fun!
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May 8, 2020 at 12:59 pm
Beautiful bead work. When my grandmother died she left behind four beaded small purses. Seems one of them were a collector item. Anyway youth is so great you never think about tomorrow. So I all of them and spent the money fast. Today a long time later I wish that I had kept one of them. Sorry, I have seen a few but I am not into carryiing a purse or wearing one or more earrings. . Hal
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May 8, 2020 at 4:50 pm
LOL. That gels with how I picture you.
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