I’ve always felt that the role of luxury accessories, such as a timeless bag or a sophisticated watch, is to compliment any fashion style, no matter the trend or season. One day I might choose bright and bold colors, another day a head-to-toe black number, and luxury accessories worth investing in are meant to provide that seamless transition. One such classic statement piece is the now infamous Balenciaga City Bag or Motorcycle Bag. I also have a very exciting giveaway to tell you about if you keep reading. You won’t want to miss it!
I window shopped for a Balenciaga City bag for years! I found what I thought was the right option for me and immediately began working out my budget and whether or not I could justify the purchase if I cut back on some luxuries for a while (Starbucks lattes, as this was a time when I worked in Corporate America and coffee was my best friend, and manis/pedis at the salon). The Balenciaga City sat high up on my list of lusts and I continued to hope to be able to one day treat myself. It became the purchase of my dreams and it’s still the purchase of my dreams!
Buying Safe: Color and Hardware
Buying a Balenciaga takes time, consideration and for most of us, months of saving up. You want to shop savvy, buy smart and buy safe. Is it a timeless style? Will I wear it enough? Does it transition to multiple style outfits throughout the year? Those are a few questions you need to ask yourself before making the investment. Balenciaga is infamous for an endless array of colors. Name any color under the rainbow and chances are they make a bag in that unique hue, anything from blacks and light browns to jewel tones and neons. They make it all and create about a half dozen new shades twice a year, every year, for their Spring/Summer and Fall/Winter collections. However, for me, it was all about the cost per wear, meaning I chose to opt for a safe color and the kind of hardware that truly goes with everything. The color of my Balenciaga is a sophisticated glycine purple with classic antique brass hardware. I personally felt this kind of color in the Balenciaga distressed soft leather plays the role of a neutral shade, thus complimenting any outfit, regardless of style, trend and season. The brass hardware meshes beautifully with gold or silver details, thus I never have to question or plan around my accessories.
Classic Style
The Balenciaga Motorcycle Bag has no doubt become a classic and iconic style. It comes in a wide variety of sizes and shapes from coin purses and clutches to beach totes and overnight bags. I chose a satchel style, which I figured could easily transition from day to night, from work to an evening out with friends. The exact name is Balenciaga City Part-Time, an east-west type of bag that comes with a removable shoulder strap. The bag features a leather tassel zipper for the top zip closure, a front zip pocket, an interior zip pocket with Balenciaga embossed leather label and a leather framed hand mirror. One of the unique features of these bags is the rolled whip-stitched handles that make the bag so durable. The lining is a soft, black cotton canvas.
The bag is made from soft, thin and light weight lambskin leather, which makes it perfect to carry around for longer periods of time. To this day, my motorcycle part-time bag is the lightest bag I’ve ever carried! Even with the thin leather, I’ve never had a ripping or any issues with the leather. This type of leather makes the bag durable and unique.
Timeless Style
Bags such as the Balenciaga City have legitimately become ageless. They have that ‘je ne sais quoi’ quality about them that transcends time and trends. They are feminine, yet they’re still edgy. They’re soft to the touch, yet look tough. They still manage to have a modern appearance, yet they have a fashionably distressed look (in a very chic and trendy kind of way). They have the perfect balance of hardware and studs, without compromising looks and comfort. For my purposes, they are the perfect bag!
Accessorizing the Balenciaga City
When it comes to accessorizing my Balenciaga City, there are certain accessories that are pretty much fail safe and a sophisticated watch is most certainly one of them. To go along with the concept of timeless style, the perfect accessory for my purple Balenciaga City is a modern timepiece I selected from Jord Wood Watches from their Fieldcrest Series collection. Watches are a huge part of my personal style as I tend to be a bit obsessed with a little wrist candy. The Jord Fieldcrest Series watch is a beautiful timepiece handcrafted from natural zebrawood and maple, hand finished and pretreated with tung oils. It features scratch-resistant mineral glass, Citizen Miyota 2035 movement, quartz crystals and being wood, it’s super lightweight!! Just like the Balenciaga!
Jord Wood Watches have very kindly offered Cat’s Daily Living readers a chance to WIN an e-gift card for $75 towards your very own JORD watch, any series, model or style. Follow the link HERE to enter the giveaway. The winner will automatically be chosen by Jord Wood Watches and notified via email at the end of this giveaway – ending September 30, 2016. As a bonus, everyone who entered will still receive an e-gift card for $20 off any JORD watch of your choice. The JORD watches are stunning hand crafted timepieces and it really is so easy to enter the giveaway, you just don’t want to miss it!
Great review, Cat you look stunning those red nails can we talk ?, I also think the Balenziaga city is a nice bridge between a tote and a crossbody fantastic choice Lady.
Okay the Jord wood watch what an offer, I am definetly entering this give away thank you for sharing. Have a great day beautiful ?. X
Hi Esnath, thank you so much for stopping by and for such kind lovely words! You made my day! I think you would really love these handcrafted watches! They are so unique and well done, truly a must-have accessory to anyone’s wardrobe. Not to mention they make excellent gifts as well. Good luck, hope you win the giveaway! ~ Cat L.
That bag is divine! I absolutely love your entire look – so classic with modern twists. Your wedges are ultra cute. I’m so bad at walking at heels nowadays that wedges are my go-to “heel”! The Jord watch is beautiful. I just entered the giveaway, it was so easy!
Always such kind, thoughtful and sweet words! Thank you so much, Jenn. It means more than you know!
I am the type who saves for months and sometimes even years and then splurges on a luxury accessory such as timeless bag. My style is a mixture of high street clothing and luxury accessories. The wedges I got at the beginning of the Summer at Nordstrom Rack I believe and they are from Jessica Simpson’s collection, so definitely a very affordable shoe, very comfy and practical. The Jord watch is truly very beautiful and unique. I love anything handmade as I feel it has a special energy about it, and this watch is no exception. Fingers crossed you win! ~ Cat L.
Beautiful bag and great review!!! The bag looks super stylish and buttery soft! I love soft leather!!! Thanks the giveaway info too! Have a fabulous weekend ahead!!!
Thank you so much! Yes, the bag is made from very soft yet durable leather and it’s one of my favorites! Hope you get a chance to enter the giveaway! You would love the watch, Laura! ~ Cat L.
Oh Cat you look effortlessly beautiful. Totally agree with your thoughts on investing in the perfect bag. I adore the purple, such a great choice I always tend to go for black or tan colour bags. I’ve had my DVF favourite for years…..
That’s watch is just stunning going to enter your giveaway now xxx
Much love
Lisa xx
Beauxdiaries.com
Thank you so much, Lisa! I am such a fan of your style and of your blog http://beauxdiaries.com so your feedback means more than you know! I too tend to go for mostly tan, black or grey bags but if there is one brand that will make me venture outside of my comfort zone, that is Balenciaga and their City bags. I am glad I opted for the purple as it does tend to go with most of my outfits. The watch is truly such a unique piece! I love anything handmade as I feel there is a special energy about handmade items. Hope you get a chance to win the giveaway! ~ Cat L.
I wasn’t sure if I had commented here or on IG so shall do anyhow so if you have two comments thats why! hahah.
Your shots are stunning and may I say, I have some serious leg envy; You have some serous pins Cat! 😉
Love your style as always and having a JORD watch already myself, it is really nice to see our separate styles as we both have such different watch types. Isn’t the packaging of the watch to die for?! So much detail – that really impressed me!
Good luck with the giveaway and rock those pins. lol Kelly xx
http://www.KELLiLASH.com
Such blush worthy compliments, thank you so much Kelly! You are gorgeous yourself and if there is anyone with image envy, that is definitely me! You are so stunning, chic and elegant! You already know I’m such a fan of your style and of your blog http://www.KelliLash.com
So glad you also have the watch! It truly is such a beautiful piece, so unique and trendy. The giveaway is a wonderful opportunity for others to become familiar with the Jord Wood Watch brand! Thank you again for stopping by, off to catch up with your blog! ~ Cat L.
Cat I apologize it took me this long to get to your blog, you know me if I tell you I’ll be reading your blog on weekend I’ll read it on weekend it doesn’t matter what time it is anyway back to your blog. I enjoy reading especially your blog because it brings me calmness and fascination on the topic (products, diy, reviews, etc) you keep me motivated to write before I go to sleep and to stay focus on the things I need and not “want”. I agree with you on investing on timeless pieces in which I keep on my special closet, thanks to my Dear Husband. These timeless pieces especially leather(purses,shoes, wallets, clothes, all leathers?, watches, jeweleries, and even some of my skincare products has to be in a controlled temp room as well as the lighting of course I clean them every after use because I take pride of every pieces I have because I purchased them with my hard earned money not all at once but piece by piece hopefully my daughter will take pride in taking care of them too?. I love the watch and whoever wins it is so lucky.
Thank you so much for always being so kind to me and so supportive! It means more than you know. It is feedback like yours that motivates me and inspires me to stay consistent and create content for my blog and Instagram page. I truly am so happy you enjoy reading my posts. You are such an inspiring person and your daughter is so lucky to have you by her side. You lead by example and in my opinion that is the best way to inspire and motivate those around us. Thank you again for checking out my post and for always leaving the sweetest, most thoughtful comments! ~ Cat L.
Cat , Great post! the Belenciaga city bag is beautiful and the color of your choice is exquisite , it definitely made your whole outfit pop . The Jord Wood watch is an amazing piece , I love it ! The details in it makes it a watch I would love to have . Both pieces are right up my alley! Btw I love your pictures as always and you look amazing in them as always ! ?
Thank you so much! I wanted this bag for a long time and saved for months so it’s definitely extra special to me. The Jord watch is such a chic and trendy piece, so unique. Good luck with the giveaway, hope you get a chance to try this watch! ~ Cat L.
Cat I have always loved your style. It is very classy and elegant with just the right amount of edge . You know how to keep your style fun even with being a mom and I love that about you ! This bag is absolutely gorgeous . The color is something I would have picked myself , I love it ! You have impeccable taste as always ! This is also so very kind of you to work with Jord Wood and do this giveaway . Your kindness never ceases to amaze me and have such a generous heart. You truly only deserve the very best my dear friend. ♡♡♡
Kristen, you have made my day! Such lovely and thoughtful comments, thank you from the bottom of my heart. I’ll be the first one to admit that I always have to style my outfits taking my son into consideration as he’s still little and needs me. It’s not always easy, but I aim to find pieces that will allow me to keep up with my son at the same time looking put together.
Yes, the Jord watch is such a stunning piece. Hope you had a chance to check out the giveaway. ~ Cat L.
So in love with this bag! It looks so beautiful and sure is a great investment! Glycine purple is a divine colour choice xx
Thank you so much, Naya! I still remember longing for a Balenciaga for years, researching it, clipping photos of it from magazines and saving up to be able to treat myself. The bag is indeed very special to me. I decided to go with the purple as opposed to beige, grey, black or white, because Balenciaga are so well known for their colorful bags. The purple was a bit out of my comfort zone and to this day it’s still probably the most colorful bag I own. So glad you enjoyed my post! Now off to catch up with your blog http://www.partyparrotblog.com
~ Cat L.
Beautiful bag 🙂 It’s been in fashion for so many years and still is. Great investment. I love the colour you picked. It looks like a good handbag for any Mum. I totally agree that a purchase like that has to be made really wise. I have an LV bag which I wear every day, so I feel like that justifies the money I’ve spend on it. I also try to do a lot of research and window shopping before I spend my hard earned money on a bag and I totally agree that buying something that’s so iconic is a guarantee that you’ll enjoy it for years.
Thank you so much, Anna! You described perfectly how I also feel about investing in a classic, iconic bag and all the time and effort that goes into researching such an investment. As it truly is an investment. Glad you enjoyed the post. Now off to check out your blog and see what you’ve been up to. ~ Cat L.