The Fashion History Edit

Nineties Chanel was cut sharp and short: tweed skirt suits, sequined jackets, woven tweed minis and the whipstitched flap bag in vinyl. Karl Lagerfeld was deep into his run at the house, and he treated its codes as raw material rather than rules.

 

Among the eight in this grid, I would look first at the Chanel Yellow Vinyl Whipstitch Half Flap Jumbo, the Chanel Multicolor Floral Printed Denim High-Waisted Pants and the Chanel Multicolor Tweed Dress.

 

The suits and dresses below carry mid to late nineties design years in their listings, and the Whipstitch flap is dated to 1993 or 1994. I would wear the skirt suit with flat boots and nothing else shiny. For a longer walk through the decade, The Nineties Called picks up where this leaves off.

Early-2000s Dior is John Galliano at full volume, with Trotter canvas, Rasta stripes, denim and the Saddle bag that has since been reissued. In just a few seasons he covered street style, equestrian dressing and runway theatre, and the bags show all three.

 

Among the eight in this grid, I would look first at the Christian Dior Multicolor Rasta Saddle Bag, the Christian Dior Brown Trotter Canvas Jeans Pocket Tote Large and the Christian Dior Brown Shearling Remove Before Flight Shoulder Bag.

 

The Rasta and Flight pieces are the most dated in the best way. I would pair a Trotter saddle with jeans and a white shirt, exactly as people did then. More of that world lives in The Art of Vintage Dior.

Tom Ford led Gucci's design from 1994 to 2004, and the bamboo, horsebit and Abbey bags here come from around that period and the years just after. The Abbey Pocket styles are listed as early 2000s, which makes them easy to place.

 

Among the eight in this grid, I would look first at the Gucci Brown Original GG Canvas Abbey Pocket Hobo, the Gucci Yellow Original GG Canvas Bamboo Bar Tote Large and the Gucci Original GG Supreme Canvas Horsebit Crossbody Mini.

 

The GG canvas and leather trim are the house language of the time, and the bamboo handle goes back even further. If you want the full story across creative directors, The Gucci Years covers it.

A handful of designers changed what a bag could be. Among the eight in this grid, I would look first at the YSL Black Leather Muse Large, the Fendi Pink Selleria Wool Baguette Bag and the Fendi Brown Corduroy Baguette.

 

I would carry the Muse for the slouch and the Baguette for the shape. They look different from each other, but both tell you exactly when they were made. For another take on bags that defined an era, see The Lost Art of the It Bag.

My rule with archival pieces is to wear one at a time. A Chanel skirt suit with plain sneakers, or a Baguette with a simple trench, lets the history show without turning the outfit into a costume.

 

Choose the decade you feel most at home in, check the design year in the listing, and start there. The right piece will feel less like a throwback and more like something that was waiting for you to carry it.