Handbag and luggage label Rue de Verneuil was founded in 2014 by Vincent Ribat. The products are made by hand in the Parisian studio – on a quaint street in the heart of Paris’s Saint-Germain-des-Prés district - the address of which lends the label its name.
Ribat didn’t expect the more-conservative French market to show interest at bags made of fabric, but he has been surprised by an opposite reaction. The brand quickly amassed worldwide major stockists for its assortment of cloth bags largely priced at under 200 euros, proving that well-designed accessories need not be made of leather. Every luxury bag label of note now seems to have a variation of a leather-trimmed canvas cross-body bag and I put the canvas tote in the same bracket as straw baskets for summer holidays - perfect for flight hand luggage as well as beach towels.
Summarizing his philosophy as 'a return to the essentials' and an anti-IT bag attitude, Ribat’s designs are all about casual practicality, inspired by references to architecture, Bauhaus, Modernism and the French Riviera.
The Rue De Verneuil bag is perfect for picnics in the park, hanging onto a buggy filled with baby bits, going to the office or doing errands. It draws from the famous American "tool" bag, the useful bag that appeared in the 50's. The signatures of the brand include the elegant pinstripes in colours you typically see lining the French coastline such as red, baby blue, a soft yellow and lilac as well as the practical shoulder strap colour options that are interchangeable.
The styles are fabricated in oxford cloth and ecru canvas, and bits of tanned leather. Many of them are affixed with the brand’s architectural “RDV” monogram patch and most styles can be personalised with embroidered initials for a nominal fee.
So far it is impossible to choose, but the M or L sizes are definitely winning.
May 2022
By Anna Bance
