These 7 Handbag Trends Are Already Defining 2024 Fashion

Thanks to the spring 2024 shows that took place back in September, we're pretty well aware of the trends that will come to define next year's fashion landscape. In the apparel space, red's set to dominate, with various shades imprinting on many of the most talked-about collections, as are heavy satin and more sophisticated takes on transparency. For shoes, expect a bevy of flower and bow embellishments and continued success for Mary Janes. And then comes the issue of handbags.

After looking and looking again at every runway image from the spring season, sifting out the ones that feature bags and then categorizing said bags for the sake of this story, I have a firm grasp on next year's priority purses to say the least. And no, I won't gatekeep my findings. From classic pocketbooks to the return of clutches, everything you need to know about the handbags set to define 2024 fashion is below. 

From ready-to-wear to shoes to, yes, handbags, burgundy is on track for world domination come 2024 after sweeping the spring runways, with highlights being found at The Attico, Hermès, Gucci, and Versace. Though more traditional shades of red continued to experience a high, no one who's studied the shows will argue that oxblood, black cherry, merlot, or whatever you want to call this luxe, quiet-luxury hue was the true color winner of the season. 

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If you thought micro bags were out before, just wait until 2024 arrives and with it come supersize versions of many of 2023's hottest bags, from Loewe's Squeeze bag to Bottega Veneta's Andiamo. Simply put, if you're between a small bag and a big one next year, the vote from designers would skew toward the latter. 

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In 2024, if you want a bag that can take an otherwise low-key ensemble and transform it into a luxury experience, adding a piece of metal hardware to it in some way, shape, or form is the way in. Take cues from brands like Schiaparelli and Khaite, both of which featured fully gold clutches in their spring collections, or Brandon Maxwell and Bottega Veneta, where bag handles were decorated with silver and gold art forms. 

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Ready-to-wear isn't the only category that's seemed to get a woman's touch in recent seasons. Handbags too have begun to err more on the side of classic and retro, like flap styles and structured pocketbooks, a trend that really started with Prada's F/W 23 collection and has since expanded for spring, with takes by Tory Burch, Altuzarra, Versace, and Dries Van Noten. 

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I can't be the only person who, despite admiring them from afar, haven't really taken clutches seriously when it comes to actual purchases in recent years. There was the Bottega Veneta Pouch, of course, but apart from that style, the ones I've seen haven't seemed able to fight with the big dogs in other handbag categories. That is, until 2024, when a slew of unbelievably chic options are set to arrive in stores thanks to brands like Carven, Tory Burch, Tom Ford, and Philosophy di Lorenzo Serafini that designed fresh-feeling styles for spring 2024. 

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Going back to the office full-time has never looked so good thanks to the likes of Bally, Bottega Veneta, Ferragamo, Hermès, and more brands that are, at last, designing work bags that aren't just practical. In line with the growing corporate-core trend, 2024's handbag offering is all about the briefcase look with rectangular shapes and elegant top handles that might take cues from traditional briefcases but aesthetically appear far more satisfying. 

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Ask anyone woman what's inside her handbag, and she'll probably pull out a heap of items that you wouldn't expect. Sure, there will be the typical lip gloss, wallet, and keys. But you'll also likely find a spare pair of ballet flats, a cashmere sweater, an old magazine or rolled-up book, three different types of lip balm, two perfumes, and a snack of some sort. We're busy, and because of that, we carry our lives in our bags. And finally, after what feels like forever that we were being forced to carry one small, chic purse and one overstuffed one, designers like Miuccia Prada and Matthieu Blazy are throwing us a bone by manufacturing handbags that fit everything we could possibly need (and then some). 

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