It's Confirmed: These 7 Handbag Trends Will Take Over This Fall

No need to triple-check those calendars, friends! We've officially entered autumn. For the fashion crowd, waiting until the start of fall can feel quite arduous. After all, it's not always socially acceptable or easy to rationalize why you're already shopping fall's biggest trends when it's still scorching hot outside. If the girlies don't get it, they don't get it! With the fall equinox coming up, the calendar is finally giving us explicit permission to clear out our closets to make room for new staples. However, just because we're finally free to shop for fall without judgment from others doesn't make narrowing down our list easier. If we're being honest, it can be overwhelming to discern what's worth buying for the season. Do you invest in a brand-new pair of boots? Knitwear? Outerwear? Making a choice can be challenging, even if you've spent time counting the days until fall. We'd argue that one of the best places to start when it comes to shopping for the fall is with handbags.

Hear us out: Purses are the perfect way to transition any wardrobe from summer to fall in a single purchase. Rather than buying a plethora of new pieces, buying a designer handbag can make an old pair of jeans or a simple jacket feel brand-new. Plus, no other luxury items retain their value quite like a purse. If you're unsure what exact handbags are worth the investment, don't fret. Considering that we're certified bag ladies, we figured it was our journalistic duty to research which handbag trends took over the fall/winter 2024 runway collections. Ahead, we're sharing a breakdown of the seven biggest handbag trends for fall and a rationale for why they'll make great investments for this season and beyond. We've also curated trendy purses from luxury and contemporary brands that you'll be totally justified in purchasing or, at the very least, see on TikTok in no time.

As we've previously reported, there's one shade that's sure to secure the top spot in everyone's closet this fall: black cherry. While there were plenty of examples of this color incorporated into ready-to-wear collections, what's going to carry (excuse the pun) this trend into commercial success this fall is handbags. From deep merlot clutches at Victoria Beckham and Philosophy di Lorenzo Serafini to east-west bags crafted from crocodile-embossed cherry leather at Gucci to classic quilted Chanel bags in a bougie bordeaux, there was no shortage of examples of this dark shade on the runway this season. It will take time to see whether this trend becomes as hot as expected, but there's no better way to spice up your fall staples than with a purse in this particular color.

Remember a few years back when mini bags were all the rage? Well, they've called in reinforcements. While we may no longer be clamoring to get our hands on the smallest bags in sight, that's likely to change simply with the flick of a wrist. As a hybrid bag style between a miniature top-handle bag and a traditional clutch, a wristlet hasn't always been considered the easiest bag to style for everyday life.

The fall/winter collections showed that this trend could be worth holding on to, and the silhouette's versatility was demonstrated in full force. At Chloé, there were adaptable wristlets that could be styled as a bracelet or shoulder bag. Similarly, Prada's classic Cleo Bag was creatively restyled as a wristlet with the addition of a leather wrist strap that easily attaches to the bag's hardware. Even the more traditional versions of the wristlet seen at Gabriela Hearst and Roksanda had elements that could make them just as versatile as the others. Whoever said mini bags were dead clearly never saw wristlets coming.

Clutches are forever chic, but with fall/winter 2024 collections, we saw designers take elements of this classic bag and transform them into something current. It's almost as if everyone got the memo that the theme was swan fashion, as clutch designs were coded in '60s eveningwear aesthetics. Of course, we saw the traditional satin fold-over clutch surface this season, including at Altuzarra's F/W 24 show. Overall, there were far more contemporary takes on the classic evening clutch. Pouches felt far more polished because of their elongated east-west shapes, punchier colors, and elevated styling—see Carven's and Carolina Herrera's shows. But it wasn't just the retro pouch that got a recent upgrade. The everyday dumpling shape was given an elevated eveningwear spin by playing with size, shades, and styling at Philosophy di Lorenzo Serafini. By turning back time to revisit this timeless bag, designers made the style feel more timely than ever before.

Even if you don't follow trends extensively, it should be no surprise that '90s fashion has resurfaced. It's taken over social media, street style, and even our own site. The bags from that era, however, haven't been given as much attention until now. Sure, we still see some of the decade's silhouettes, but it wasn't until these past few seasons that we saw luxury houses revitalizing bags from the '90s in full force. More specifically, designers have brought back the bowler bag—a shape with a flat bottom and round top that was first popularized by Prada and Dior.

While these two luxury brands may have put this bag on the map, it was made relevant again with the release of The Row's Margaux tote bag. Since then, we've seen this bag take over social media, street style, and the selection of handbags offered in fall/winter 2024 collections of Miu Miu, Tod's, ACNE Studios, Bally, Coach, and Sandy Liang. While every designer reimagined this bag in different ways, from mini bags to oversize suede versions, there's no denying that this style will strike out this fall as one the biggest bag trends of the season.

A particular textile stood out this season in terms of bags: suede. Once the first crisp breeze is felt in the air, this material makes the rounds. It bubbles up once every bag and boot style in sight is made from suede. We'd be shucking our duties as fashion editors if we didn't mention the outsized presence of suede handbags throughout the fall/winter 2024 runway shows. Unlike previous iterations of this trend that may have felt Western, we saw designers make suede accessories more sophisticated. Some fall collections achieved that by opting for unexpected shades of suede materials. For example, a crescent-shaped shoulder bag and top-handle handbag came in a chocolate-brown suede at Officine Générale and Moschino. At Miu Miu and Bevza, brands made this material bolder by relying upon unique shapes. Overall, designers showed that even the most predictable fall trends can be surprising if you look at them a bit closer.

Raise your hand if you've ever had trouble choosing what type of bag to wear or buy. Don't worry—you're not alone. For the accessory lovers reading this story, if you're finding it hard to pick only one trend to buy this fall, consider this your sign that you don't have to choose. Rather than doubling down on one handbag trend, carry multiple bags much like what we saw in the fall/winter collections. Across the board, designers struggled with sticking to a single bag this season, as some chose to style bags of different sizes, shades, and shapes all together. See Coach, Bottega Veneta, and Fendi. Others, such as Tory Burch, created bags that crafted an optical illusion of multiple handbags stacked on each other without the extra baggage. By exploring variations of maximalism through bag silhouettes and styling, designers proved that sometimes the better choice in life is not to choose at all.

ICYMI, bag charms are so back! We've seen charms come back into the conversation on social media as users rush to hop on the trend of Jane Birkin–ifying their bags, and they've cemented cultural relevance because of recent runway collections. It may be surprising to see this trend surface again considering it is centered on styling, but that's the point. Whether it's quirky charms or the doubling up of bags, this season is about making what's in style more signature. Thankfully, fall collections provided plenty of ways to do just that as a minimalist or a maximalist. At Miu Miu, overstuffed bags were covered in charms, and at Burberry, sleek shoulder bags featured a single key chain. Moreover, the offering of bag charms ranged from eccentric to luxurious, and there was everything from New York City–inspired bag charms at Coach to leather lollipop holders at Fendi. By showcasing different ways to embrace bag charms, designers reminded us that the best trends encourage us to make what we already own feel brand-new—whether it's an old black bag or any other basic in our wardrobes.