Edie Parker Clutch

The glamorous Lucite clutch spotted in the possession of Julia Restoin-Roitfeld — as well as many of the chicest women on the red carpets and in the hottest venues around the world — is the bespoke bag by Edie Parker. Designed by Brett Heyman and named for her daughter, this little acrylic number has captured the imaginations of women everywhere since the brand's launch in 2010. Inspired by her own collection of vintage handbags and frustrated by the limited availability of new finds, Heyman decided to create a modern take on a classic. 

I adore the marketing copy from the Edie Parker website, my compliments to the copywriter: "These chic, wearable sculptures are objects of delight with retro soul… Edie Parker's sleek lines, creamy surfaces and gem-flaked textures glide timelessly onto today's fashion landscape. And like their mid-century predecessors, each bag is meticulously handcrafted in America." Yes, the Edie Parker clutch not only makes a chic statement, but a patriotic one as well; according to Vogue, the collection is produced entirely in the United States, "Brett Heyman’s line of clutches supports economies in three states: The acrylic is hand-poured in New Jersey, cut and fabricated in Chicago, and assembled on Long Island." Learn more about Heyman's philosophy in this video interview.

Edie Parker, the namesake for the label and daughter of its founder, Brett Heyman

The Edie Parker bespoke monogrammed clutches are available upon request, select the model you prefer (crescent, rectangular, or cube), decide on one of the numerous color combinations, and then choose to inscribe either your name or another word. It looks as if Julia chose the rectangular shape in the steel pearlescent finish with her name in silver confetti script. I personally prefer the look of the Lara Clutch in green confetti with glow-in-the-dark ends, Julia's eyes would pop peeking over the top of it while perfecting her lipstick in the mirror…

Note that the fixation on the Edie Parker clutch is a family affair: Julia's brother's girlfriend, tastemaker and stylist Giovanna Battaglia is also a fan. I love Gio's description from her monthly journal for W Magazine, "The brand Edie Parker made this clutch for me. The 'Giovanna' part is some kind of acrylic that looks like crystals. It's the perfect club bag — no one can steal it, because it has my name on it." Practical and glamorous, chic and unique, who can resist the sparkle of the Edie Parker clutch…

Follow all the chic new developments at Edie Parker
Twitter: @edie_parker
Facebook: Edie-Parker
edie-parker.com

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Julia Restoin-Roitfeld photographs courtesy of instagram.com/juliarestion and © 2015 Into The Gloss, Inc.. Edie Parker photograph courtesy of twitter.com/edie_parker. Clutch photographs courtesy of Edie Parker.

Lara Bohinc

Amid her fabulous collection of jewelry, Julia Restoin-Roitfeld admits a few favorites. One of these is her Lara Bohinc bracelet given to her by Robert Konjic to celebrate their first year together. Bohinc spent her formative years in Slovenia at the Ljubljana Academy of Fine Art, deciding in 1996 to relocate to London to study at the Royal College of Art with a focus on jewelry and metalwork. When asked why she chose London, Bohinc replied: "It was the very kooky way you guys dress. No one puts things together like British women do: they're daring and accepting at the same time. In Europe if you wear anything in the least bit different they whisper about you, but in England you could walk around naked and nobody would care." Within one year, she had debuted at London Fashion Week, won the Marks & Spencer New Generation Design Award, and launched her own label, Lara Bohinc International, clearly finding her niche with her bold and feminine designs.

Bohinc uses industrial techniques such as computer aided design, photo etching, and laser cutting with materials like rose gold, polished brass, and leather to craft her coveted pieces. Known for her versatility and her passion for design, she has collaborated with a number of respected labels including Lanvin, Gucci, Costume National, and Julien McDonald; most recently the dynamic designer was engaged as a consultant by Cartier, one of the world's premier jewelers. She also finds time to write a fascinating blog for Vogue UK. Bohinc resides in London with her boyfriend, Benedict Cooper, a British advertising producer, and their daughter, Coco. I must say, Monsieur Konjic has fabulous taste in jewelry as well as women.

Lara Bohinc photograph courtesy of accessorieslounge.com
Julia Restoin-Roitfeld and Robert Konjic photograph © 2010 See Your World LLC. All Rights Reserved.

Mark Fast

Though Mark Fast may have been beaten out for the ANDAM Fashion Award this year by Hakaan Yildirim, the form-fitting knitwear that he designs is fast becoming a favorite of Julia Restoin-Roitfeld. She chose to wear one of his memorable dresses for the British Fashion Awards this past December, no small compliment. Fast grew up in Canada outside of Winnipeg then moved to London to study at Central Saint Martins. He describes himself as obsessed with texture and his distinctive work constantly explores the connection between the garment and the human body. Fast's designs take shape on a domestic knitting machine, forming to the figure stitch by stitch. The innovative methods he has devised for stitching work to create areas of tension and volume across the body thereby enhancing most figures. To sculpt his knits, Fast prefers angora, wool, and lycra blended with viscose, the latter of which he is particularly fond. Note that Julia is not just wearing Fast's gorgeous creations — the designer selected her to create the lookbook for his new Faster collection as well.

Julia Restoin-Roitfeld, Robert Konjic, Mark Fast photographs courtesy of Beauty Confessional, brownsfashion.com, Condé Nast, and style.com

Update on mercredi 24 novembre 2010 by kellina

I keep meaning to mention that I was thrilled to notice Mark Fast himself added this post to his Facebook page the day after I published it...

Joseph Altuzarra

Julia Restoin-Roitfeld asked me to add talented young designer Joseph Altuzarra to her list of favorites and I am delighted to oblige her kind request. He is already listed as one of Carine's favorites, but I will focus on his relationship with Julia here so hopefully the two entries will be different. Julia says of her friend Joseph, "He has real talent and deserves to be talked about. I designed his first lookbook." Altuzarra worked for Marc Jacobs, Proenza Schouler, and Givenchy before launching his own line for Fall 2009 with Julia styling his lookbook and Vanessa Traina modelling, oooo la la ! His first collection was 15 pieces and he was concerned that his debut be neither too cold nor too distant. I'm guessing that wasn't a problem, here's what Julia had to say upon returning from Altuzarra's first show: "I just got back from his presentation and just so proud of him. We first met through friends when he asked me to art direct his lookbook and ever since I am one of his biggest fans. It's just so nice to see such a young designer with such luxurious taste and detail oriented." He expanded the collection to 29 pieces this season and dreams of a large jewelry and shoe line in the future, sounds luxe. Julia is pictured wearing a dress from Altuzarra's first collection paired with YSL Tributes; the photographs of this collection were taken by Julia as Dazed's guest blogger for New York Fashion Week.

Joseph Altuzarra photograph courtesy of style.com
Julia Restoin-Roitfeld photograph courtesy of Six Six Sick
Julia Restoin-Roitfeld photographs of Joseph Altuzarra collection © 2009 Waddell Limited

Brian Atwood

The sexy violet suede shoes that Julia Restoin-Roitfeld wears are the Lola pumps by her friend and designer Brian Atwood. Fascinated by toe cleavage, Atwood is a fetishist's dream. He learned design while working at Gianni Versace for seven years in Milan where he still maintains a studio. Donatella says of his work, "Brian is amazing at injecting sheer femininity and sexiness into a static object like a shoe or a bag." Brian has a lofty goal in his design, to make the wearer stare at her own feet: "My job is done when a woman can't take her eyes off of her shoes. If she's at dinner and is looking admiringly down at her feet, rather than at her guy, I'm a happy man." Though I can hardly imagine Julia choosing to gaze longingly at her Lolas when she has Robert Konjic to look at, she is super sexy in these and clearly an Atwood fan.

The admiration is mutual, Atwood is a Roitfeld fan as well. He flew in his sister to be his date at this year's Council of Fashion Designer Awards (CFDA) including styling and dressing her for the evening as part of the deal. When he chose the stylists for his sister's hair and makeup, Brian requested a specific look: “Hair straight and shiny with a little bit of bedhead in back, and very natural makeup with a smokey Carine Roitfeld eye—very Vogue Paris.” Apparently that same day Julia was texting Brian while trying to zip up her stunning black Balmain dress for the party.

Photograph of Julia Restoin-Roitfeld wearing Brian Atwood's Lola purple suede shoes courtesy of coolspotters.com
Brian Atwood photograph courtesy of The Fash Pack