London leather tote for the working and well-paid woman

The Marylebone Tote, named after Aspinal of London’s Marylebone High Street store, was launched in 2012. Courtesy Aspinal

Aiming at “women on the go”, the luxury accessories maker Aspinal of London has designed a handbag that also requires them to come with deep pockets.

While other handbags from the company start at £195, the Marylebone Tote is one of its higher-priced models starting from £895.

The handmade bag in ivory saffiano and mouse python leathers sells for Dh9,500 in Abu Dhabi. The maker has a retail outlet in Abu Dhabi’s Galleria mall.

The designer – which counts the Financial Times' fashion editor Vanessa Friedman and Emily Johnston, the founder of fashion blog Fashion Foie Gras, among its fans – says the product is as much for the office as celebrity gatherings. The bags are meant as "a definitive trans-seasonal wardrobe classic".

In its spring/summer collection this year, the company also introduced the handbag in navy pebble and deer saffiano shades. The autumn/winter collection is expected to introduce more colours. It was originally available in black.

Mariya Dykalo, the Ukrainian creative director of Aspinal of London, was the brain behind the Marylebone tote and other bags.

For the autumn/winter collection, she says she was inspired by “childhood stories of snow queens and frozen landscapes, the film adaptations of the Narnia trilogy and traditional Cossack folk tales”.

The bags are made from the calf leather and come lined in silk, with an iPad pocket and two mobile phone pockets.

Named after Aspinal of London’s Marylebone High Street store, the model was launched in 2012.

“This particular bag took its inspiration from our traditional Brook Street bag,” Ms Dykalo says.

“I started by increasing the height of the Brook Street bag, unbuckled and released the sides, then added internal pockets for an iPad and iPhone. The new size allowed the bag to carry A4 documents, making it more practical for the modern woman, as well as giving it a more stylish, cool look.”

The Aspinal handbags are handcrafted across Europe, including in England, Italy and Spain.

“All of our leather and metal hardware is sourced from or developed in Italy,” Ms Dykalo says.

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