Wind In My Head: Bye Bye Love
Wind In My Head
Monday, December 17, 2007
Bye Bye Love
I don't remember when I fell in love with Kate Spade. It might have been when my sister-in-law presented me with my first Kate Spade. It might have been when I watched Gilmore girls and Lorelai said something about hunting someone down like a half priced Kate Spade purse. There was something rabid and insane about that line, plus I liked Lorelai, so Kate Spade it was.It's been an ongoing love affair for the years since I've moved back to Singapore. I think deeper than the prettiness and quirkiness of the bag, it was a symbol of my financial independence; that I could afford to buy these bags. Add to that, was the fact that it wasn't part of logo-mania and it wasn't a tai tai brand in Singapore. So, I slowly amassed my collection of Kate Spades. All kept in their dust bags in a cupboard all for themselves. On occasion, I would go little bit crazy and buy two or three at a go. Although, after that, I often lamented the state of my bank account.
Another thing I have always complained about was its lack of presence in Singapore. A tiny store in a departmental store left much to be desired. It also meant that I often got my spoils when I travelled. The good thing about that, however was that few in Singapore carried Kate Spade and there was much chi chi cred with it. Those who carried Kate Spade were drawn to one another and would bond over their bags and only the knowledgeable were inducted into the world of Kate Spade.
This was till last week. A flag ship store opened up in the middle of Raffles City. When I first saw it, I was drawn to its size, its trademark white interior and of course the rows and rows of pretty bags. Packrat laughed at me because even though the store was closed, I insisted on going to take a look and spent a good ten minutes with my nose very close to being pressed up against the window. I think the apt phrase would have been- a kid at a candystore. Because it was closed, I vowed to go back.
That was the fatal blow. I walked into the store, fingering the fabrics on the bags, looking at the prices. While I shouldn't have been surprised at what happened next, I was still sad that it had to happen. There was a girl with her boyfriend, dressed in shorts and hight boots ( the girl, not the boy, though I wouldn't have put it past people now) who whiningly demanded he buy her this bag because "very nice leh!" and it was time to replace her LV with it. I stood there, aghast. One, because she thought the bag that looked like a license plate and screamed Kate Spade ostentatiously, was nice and two, she compared it to LV. The thing about Kate Spade was that it was subtle, it didn't knock you over with pompous arrogance like many of the logo bags do. And the fact that there was an increasing number of bags with KATE emblazoned onto the bags did not sit well with me. That, plus the fact that, doing a quick sweep of the peope in the store, many in the store seemed to gravitate towards those bags and these were people I couldn't imagine gushing over the newest design with.
It was at that point that I realised that I had reached the end of the road with this love affair. It no longer held any thrill, it saddened me more than it excited me and it wasn't what I had initially fallen in love with. So, I put quietly put down the bag I was holding, turned around and slipped passed all the other customers who were ooh-ing and ahh-ing at the bags like I once did.
I found out later on that the reason why the designs had moved from being quirkily subtle to being in your face is that Kate Spade herself had left the enterprise and while it still carried her name, she was no longer the creative genius behind it. This made leaving a little easier, I wasn't saying good bye to what I had been attracted to. We had simply grown apart and our tastes were now different.
It was time to find a new love, the problem was I didn't know where to start looking. But no matter, I will spend some time savouring all the momentos I have from this before moving on although I don't think I'll ever be able to let it go fully. I will always carry remnants of it around and there will be baggage and whatever comes next will have large shoes to fill.
Technorati Tags: Singapore, Kate Spade
Ondine tossed this thought in at 19:23
4 thoughts...
-
At 6:24 pm
mummy's little pig said... it's rare to find someone not caught up in the 'logomania' these days.
may i recommend the following:
furla
hiroshima
longchamp
braun buffel-
At 10:50 pm
ruz~* said...
eyuew that is the most unkate-spade bag eva.
anyways, if you dont sayang ur kate spades anymore, and want to sell, tell me! LOL!-
At 11:05 pm
Chiacolate said...
I liked Kate Spade when she appeared on Oprah with her designs. Never got the chance or $$$ to get one and now it's gotten into this state!?
-
At 5:24 pm
The Vanilla Team said...
Kiss me Kate goodbye, baby.
Your sister in law will now proceed to introduce you to the lovely and understated world of TOD's...