Boredom in the checkout line at the supermarket meant that a copy of the December issue of US Vogue came home with me, something that hasn't happened in about six months as I tend to find American Vogue the dullest of all the Vogue family. However Christmas issues are always a fun read as you try to imagine who will buy the $250 Louis Vuitton baby sneakers or the 24K gold digital camera (with diamond-trimmed lens cap). The item that really attracted my attention though was the white canvas Fendi baguette which, for $5,500, could appear under a Christmas tree near you...along with a logo-embossed wooden box and 48 Pantone markers. It's certainly a cute idea but would anyone who wasn't a professional artist have the courage to take pen to bag?

In a way, it reminded me of a faux-Fendi that I made (based on a beaded and embroidered tote bag that had caught my eye in a magazine). Weeks of work...which filled many a winter's night...only to come to the conclusion that I didn't actually like the bag...and it certainly didn't fit my style. I was lucky that my mistake was relatively cheap (fabric, beads, and embroidery wool...blood, sweat, and tears) but to feel out of sync with a bag that had cost around six thousand dollars (once tax was added) would be a very bitter pill indeed.