Happy Friday! There is absolutely NOTHING like a September Friday with a surprise blog post from me! I am THRILLED to put this particular post together for you all. I recently discovered that one of my favorite Insta influencers, Kathleen Post, did a wrap-up of all of her favorite designer pieces. I found it incredibly helpful and interesting, as I am always trying to figure out my next investment piece. I am also constantly raving to everyone about which pieces I find to be the most valuable of my “collection”, so what better idea than to make my very own designer purchase guide?! Today I will be sharing and explaining my top designer pieces, in no particular order.
I am obviously extremely lucky and grateful to be able to put together a post like this. These are all a combination of special gifts and things I worked hard to save up for! <3
If you like this post and are interested in more, I could do a full designer collection post or even just a part 2! Lmk in the comments if anyone would be interested? But for now, let’s get into my top 10 designer pieces!!
If I had to choose my most used item, it would probably be my Prada sunglasses. I have already done a full blog post on 5 Reasons Why Prada Sunglasses are the Perfect Splurge. I love my Raybans to death, but am always a little worried about how fragile they are. I needed a good, sturdy, plastic pair of glasses that I could wear on my head without yanking out my hair. I love the aviator style, but I am 100% a sunglasses on the head girlie. I wear mine like a headband. So although I love the look of my Raybans for most occasions, if I am running errands, throwing my glasses around in the car or a bag, and going to be sliding them on and off my head every half hour... I reach for my Pradas.
Not only that, but they are the most stylish and chicest pair of glasses ever. They MAKE every photo I wear them in. I feel like they complete almost every outfit and I use them every single day. I always have them with me, and I don’t have to be *as* gentle with them as wire glasses. I see them all over Pinterest and TikTok constantly and will never be over how classy they look.
Some people are now purchasing the more oval shaped smaller ones, but I would recommend this style more. I don’t think I would go any smaller than these frames unless you are going for the look over the practicality. The ones I have are a perfect mix of both. I do think I want to invest in another pair of sunglasses that are super big for that oversized look as well. Because of how much I use these glasses, I have easily made up for every penny I spent on them and have no hesitation to buy another pair.
My second most worn item is definitely my Gucci belt! Since I began working my corporate job this summer, I wear my thin GG belt almost every day. I bought the thinner belt in black with the white pearl details on the logo. I was OBSESSED when I bought it in NYC a few summers ago, but didn’t wear it as much until recently. But even when I would wear it, I was able to elevate simple outfits by 10x the amount just by adding the simple accessory.
I feel like part of the world deemed Gucci belts “cheugy” and I just could not disagree more. I definitely don’t think I would wear the super think belt as much as I wear the thin version, but I think this item is so classic that it couldn’t ever be cheugy.
I completely recommend investing in a Gucci belt if you are frequently dressing up for work. I wore it almost every day with dress pants, and have also thrown it on over a silk dress under a blazer. It’s such a fun but useful accessory and I couldn’t be more obsessed with mine. Plus I love the pearls!!
Although I don’t wear these shoes ALL the time, they are such a fun summer staple that I always reach for. Last year when my work dress code wasn’t as professional, I wore these shoes all the time to show off apartments and received so many compliments on them. I know they aren’t as popular now as they were 2 years ago, but I still think they are the cutest shoes ever. I want them in white!! I have the Barbie pink color and it actually still goes with almost everything. My parents got these for me for Easter during my freshman year of college because my mom knew I was DYING for them. <3
I always wear these shoes on vacation and become more and more obsessed every time. They are just so FUN. This pick was definitely a little out of character for me, as you all know I never gravitate towards pops of color!! But— I am so glad I did with these.
Unfortunately, the pink ones don't seem to be on their website anymore but they are available in black and white still!
My mom bought me the Gucci heart ring for my 20th birthday and I love it so much. I had been eyeing this ring for awhile. I am a silver jewelry girl besides my earrings, so it's always rare to find a designer brand that has silver pieces that I really love. I knew I would wear this ring every day, which I do. It is such a staple and timeless piece of jewelry that I am totally obsessed with! I am pretty sure mine is a size 6, and it fits my left hand middle finger perfectly.
The other nice thing about this ring is that it isn’t THAT expensive for a piece of designer jewelry. I believe it’s in the $200-300 range, which is not bad for a brand name item that you’ll wear daily. It does scratch a little which is always sad, but I think mine just needs a good clean.
I saved up a portion of my money from my job last summer to buy the Burberry Olympia bag and matching card holder. I had been obsessed with this little bag for months and I was lucky enough to buy it on Rodeo Drive while I was visiting Andrew in LA. I hadn’t originally planned to buy the matching card holder, but the sales rep convinced me! I still had money left to spend, and the idea of having the little set was too good to pass up!
I don’t think this exact bag is available for purchase anymore :(, which makes me so sad because I recommend it to everyone. It was under $900 and the perfect every-day bag. I use this bag at school a ton because it perfectly fits the cardholder, my sunglasses, phone, and lip gloss. I find that it is also a great “going-out” bag and is the perfect small size for the night out essentials. I also love that the strap is detachable because you can carry it as a clutch. I had someone tell me once that they ordered a chain strap on Amazon so they could also wear it crossbody, which I love! I still have to do that.
The Burberry plaid is also just too good to pass up. This bag truly goes with everything and is definitely one of my favorite and most-used items. It also is special to me because I saved up from my first internship and bought it on a special trip! 😊 It is definitely one of my most sentimental purchases!
Another birthday gift incoming because I am a spoiled gal (shoutout to my lovely parents)… I got the famous Kira bag for a birthday gift and am so obsessed with it. First of all, the color is to DIE for. And the pattern and texture!!! But the best two things about this bag are the size and the strap. This is the perfect size bag for me. I can fit as little or as much as I want in this bag without it ever feeling “big”. The straps can be worn singular as a crossbody OR doubled up as a shoulder bag. It’s giving Chanel for a FRACTION of the price.
I just love this bag so much. It is so perfect and is sentimental as well because it was a gift. I ended up going to the store and getting the matching card holder because I loved it so much. I used this combo constantly for a year, which is also why the Burberry sales rep so easily convinced me to get that matching card holder!!
Tory Burch is such a great affordable luxury brand that is just so cute. All of their bags are so practical and timeless, you couldn’t go wrong investing in any pieces from this brand.
In conjunction with that, my Tory Burch Tote bag is also another item constantly in use. I have been using it as a school bag for almost 2 years now, and it also doubled as a work bag this past summer. I love the classic and sleek look to this bag. It has just what I need inside: the padded laptop sleeve, zipper pocket, and magnetic closure. It also has buttons on the side so you can keep it smaller or unbutton it to expand if you’re really filling it up!
I also love that the logo on the front is actually a secret little button pocket. Because of it’s easy access, I use this to hold my ID card at school that I need to get in and out of my building. Similarly, at work I used it to stash my clip-on entry card.
I have received a ton of compliments on this bag at both school and work and definitely recommend it for both. It’s reasonably priced and the perfect bag for whatever you need it for.
This past Christmas, Andrew surprised me with these Tory Burch hoop earrings. He SHOCKED me with this selection (even though I think he had my mother’s assistance😊 ) and I was immediately in love. I had just been wearing a cheap pair of gold hoops from the mall or Target, and had been wanting to invest in a nicer pair. Because of all of my ear piercings, I have nicer gold earrings that I never take out. They are all tiny fitted hoops or just gold balls. These earrings were the perfect way to have quality hoops to match the rest of my earrings.
They also look kinda like the Cartier love pieces, which I immediately noticed and loved. I wear these earrings every single day now instead of the gold balls and they are so easy to pop in every morning when I throw on my watch and rings.
Andrew also bought me the classic Tiffany & Co heart necklace. He bought this for me for our first Christmas (3.5 years ago!!!) and I only ever take if off if I’m self-tanning. He SHOCKED me that December when he pulled out the Tiffany blue Tiffany bag. To this day, this is one of my favorite gifts from him. It was so special to receive on our first Christmas together and I just love wearing it!
Because I don’t really take this necklace off, it is obviously one of my “most worn” items. This is just such a classic and special piece of jewelry that I have always been so happy to have and wear. It is so beautiful and dainty and special. I am still so obsessed to this day. I have 3 of the little heart bracelets (graduation gifts from my parents! <3 ) that I love too and match perfectly. The necklace has also held up really well over the last 3.5 years, especially considering that I shower and sleep in it almost every day! I did take it to Tiffany’s once for a free cleaning, which is a great service to be aware of.
I have SUCH the story with my LV Palm Springs Mini. I have been wanting this bag for FOREVER. It has always been all over my Pinterest boards and something I was aways obsessed with. While I was in Milan, I went down a rabbit hole of TikTok and YouTube videos about how many ways you can wear this bag. You can obviously wear it as a backpack, but also as a crossbody, hand bag, AND fanny pack. I had visions of me throwing this bag in my passenger seat on my way to get Starbucks (ask Olivia, Brenna, Andrew, my mom, or my sisters... I talked about this fact way too much!).
I was trying to decide between getting myself this bag or the LV Keepall while I was in Milan. I knew I was going to make one big purchase while I was over there because it is cheaper to buy luxury items in Italy AND you receive a tax refund when you go back through customs in the airport. I ended up deciding to go with the LV Keepall because I didn’t feel like I NEEDED another purse-type bag. Also, I had heard that the Palm Springs Mini was super hard to get your hands on. It’s always sold out online and never in stock in stores. You almost have to have a special connection to get it OR stalk the LV website for a restock. However, things just fell into place.
My dad called me while Brenna and I were in Rhodes to tell me that I was getting a tax return from my paychecks last summer... and it was a hefty amount! Then, a day later, I happened to check the LV website in the airport to Santorini only to find that the Palm Springs Mini was IN STOCK. I immediately attempted to buy it online and get it delivered to me in Milan, but the website would not accept my US card. I wanted to buy it in Italy for the price and tax return, AND because it wasn’t in stock in the US. I frantically called customer service, and the girl basically told me that there was no way to buy it from the Italian website with a US card (probably because of the price difference) and that I would have to buy it in stores.
I gave up hope that I would get this bag because it was not going to be in stock for long. She also told me that it wasn’t in stock to begin with in any of the Milan LV stores. I decided to enjoy the rest of our spring break without worrying about the bag, but to maybe check when I got back to Milan. The morning after we returned, I randomly went to the main Milan LV store to see if maybe they could order it for me online from the store. I was totally expecting them to still say no. When I got there, I waited for an available sales associate, who then asked what item I was looking for. I said, “I'm just here to see if I could order the Palm Springs Mini online to get it shipped, but I assume you guys don’t really do that in stores”, and the guy said “well no, but it looks like we have one here.” So basically it was a sign from God Himself that I needed to own the LV Palm Springs Mini!! I almost hugged the Italian LV man!
I have already used this bag SO much since I bought it. I wear it as a crossbody a ton, I carry it a ton, and I’ve worn it in the airport as a backpack AND fanny pack. And, as in my dreams, I have popped her in the passenger seat for a good ol’ fashion Starbucks run. :’)
Sorry for the long story, but it’s too good not to share!!
So I couldn’t stick to just 10 items, I HAD to throw in my new LV Keepall. This is a newer piece, as I just mentioned I bought it this spring. I had the privilege of making this purchase in Monte Carlo on a weekend trip! It was so much fun to get my LV duffel in the GIANT orange bag and then head to the Monte Carlo Casino! Like how made-up does that sound? But I swear, it was real!
I am quite the little traveler, so I knew I wanted something like this for all of the traveling I do throughout the year. I frequently fly to see Andrew, for work, or just vacations. And I obviously just spent an entire semester traveling every weekend! In addition to traveling by plane, I also am going to and from school a lot throughout the semester for my laser hair removal appointments. This bag is the perfect long weekend bag. It fits a sh*t ton of stuff in it. I just used it for the first time on an airplane during my trip to Charlotte to visit Andrew, and it was the perfect size for everything I needed. It would be hilarious for me to do a post about everything I can fit inside of it!!
I knew I wanted the classic LV browns, even though I was tempted to get the one with black trim to match the Palm Springs Mini. It comes with a LV leather luggage tag and a LV lock and key that you could actually use to lock the zippers closed!! How freaking cute?! This is a collector piece that I have always wanted and that I will have and use forever and ever.
I got the size 55, which is the largest size you can take as a carry-on. I was also able to take the luggage tag to get it gold stamped with a "B.F", Louis Vuitton style! So obsessed I could cry.
Lol okay so I couldn’t even stick to 11… but I completely forgot about my gorgeous chocolate Jacquemus bag!! I bought this bag in the Jacquemus store in PARIS for my 21st birthday from my parents. I am completely and utterly obsessed with it. I had such a hard time deciding which size and color to get, but ended up going with the large size and this STUNNING dark brown color. I wanted the medium-sized one, but since my phone didn’t fit inside of it, it felt stupid to buy a bag I’d be carrying around Europe with me that I couldn’t even put my phone inside of, lol.
Being in the store in Paris was totally unbelievable. It was so much fun and worth the long line Brenna and I had to wait in to get inside. Brenna, I am still sorry for that torturous line!! But this bag was worth every second. I use it ALL the time. The size is perfect and the color is perfect. I wear it with the long strap usually but frequently take it off and just have the handle on my arm. I am OBSESSED and I literally wear this bag so much. It goes with everything and I am so happy I went with the brown color!!!
I have also become obsessed with all things Jacquemus... I have a beach hat, t-shirt, and scarf in my collection and I am on the lookout for something new!👀
Well kudos to you if you made it through this blog!! I really loved putting this together and reminiscing on all of the sweet stories of these items. :,) I hope you found this helpful (or at least interesting) like the post I was inspired by. I definitely want to start doing more chatty blog posts like this one. As I always say, hopefully stay tuned for more of these posts. And let me know if there are any items that you’d want to hear a solo post about!!
Thanks as always for sticking around and scrolling through. I am hoping to get this whole blog storage situation under control so I can post more for you guys during my last semester of free time!! Until then, thanks as always for reading!
Xo,
Bella
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