This post is sponsored by Carousel Bags. All opinions are my own.
Love handbags? Have a small budget but expensive taste? Want to support female-led local businesses? If your answers are “Duh,” “Of course,” and “YAAASSSS!” then check out Carousel Bags, a new monthly luxury handbag subscription service based here in Indiana.
Irene Martz, founder of Carousel Bags, hosted a launch preview party in downtown Indy a few weeks ago, complete with a display full of handbags available for renting and owning. Each bag is made of high-quality fabrics and stitching, and Carousel’s collections pull pieces from independent artisans from around the world. These bags aren’t cheap on their own–ranging from $299 to almost $1,000 apiece–but that’s where the subscription service comes in.
If you’re familiar with other fashion subscriptions and rental services like Rent the Runway, the concept is similar: For under $30 a month, you add your favorite purses to your rotation, receive one for a month, then either send it back to get a different purse the next month or keep it for an additional month. (Thus, the “carousel” in the name.) And if you love it, you can follow a rent-to-own plan that makes a luxury bag purchase a little easier on the monthly budget.
A few of my favorite handbags from the launch party (and how I’d style them):
^^^ This orange purse (the Tereza bag in “Sunset”) is a creation by Nat & Nin, a two-sister leather design team based out of Paris. The petite blue crossbody below (the Mini GG in “Cobalt”) is designed by Gretchen of GG Maull in New York City and created in Italy. Fun fact: Gretchen has designed for Kate Spade, Coach, Calvin Klein and Proenza Schouler!
So, what’s in my rotation? Here are a few of my favorites:
Rome in “Stripes” – Jamie Wander
Grande GG in “Crush” – GG Maull
Milan in “Pixie” – Jamie Wander
Interested in trying out Carousel? As a special bonus to my readers, if you list IndyDressed in the “How did you hear about us?” section when you sign up, you’ll get your second month free!
Thanks to Sierra of Eclectic Kurves (above, left) for my outfit photos, and to Ashley of FASHionately Me and Kelli of Big Hair and Foodie Fare for joining the fun.
Want more? Check out Sierra’s post with more photos from the launch preview.