They say imitation is the sincerest form...

[iluvmybags]

I remember when MJ was kicking into high gear and his collection bags were really taking off, padlocks started showing up EVERYWHERE -- designers at all price points were doing bags with padlocks -- it worked for MJ so it should work for them too, right? of course those bags came & went but MJs collection pieces are still highly sought after today --

 

[tadpolenyc]

...of course, as time went on, MJs quilted line took on a look of its own and became very different and distinguishable from Chanel -- but I still believe he was inspired that first season by the Classic Chanel bags and drew inspiration from their timelessness & vintage appeal. The Quilted Chanel flap bag has been around for more than 50 yrs and I suspect that MJ's stam has made a mark for itself & will carry on just as long

well, that's what i love so much about the man. he takes the classics and shakes it up. for those not content with having mother's pearls and bags, it's really great. we're living in a different culture now where everything old is new again and even the new can become old and dated pretty quickly. i don't want to sound like a complete fangirl here, but mj does such a fabulous job walking the line between stodgy classicism and quirky modernism.

 

[yvalenz]

I had the same thoughts about a Coach bag this week when the Kate was posted:

I thought it looked like this:

Then laughed my head off when I realized they were the "Kate" and "Ali" bags!!

In case you're not old enough to remember...it was a bad in the 80's with Jane Curtain (SNL)

 

[jun3machina]

^ ITA!!! well said TAD!

 

[Beany]

well, that's what i love so much about the man. he takes the classics and shakes it up. for those not content with having mother's pearls and bags, it's really great. we're living in a different culture now where everything old is new again and even the new can become old and dated pretty quickly. i don't want to sound like a complete fangirl here, but mj does such a fabulous job walking the line between stodgy classicism and quirky modernism.

ITA (again lol)

 

[Dawn]

wow, this is a great thread!

so many things are inspired by so many other things that it's hard to tell who came up with what first. i'm sure if we dug deep enough or went back far enough, we'd find that Marc was inspired by other designers. maybe some of it was reflected in his stuff..who knows.
that being said, there is 'inspiration' and then there is holy crap that's a dupe without the name!

 

[Glynis]

A very MbMJ Posh Super K (I think) looking Ted Baker Roobie Tote

 

[pursemonkey]

I had the same thoughts about a Coach bag this week when the Kate was posted:

I thought it looked like this:

Then laughed my head off when I realized they were the "Kate" and "Ali" bags!!

In case you're not old enough to remember...it was a bad in the 80's with Jane Curtain (SNL)

Not only do I remember it, I actually loved it Too funny about the bag names!

 

[Amarante]

SarahP mentioned this already, but I was a little horrified the last time I looked through a JCrew catalogue. Not only do they have that Sham Stam but they also have a quilted hobo number with what appears to be a faux push-lock detail. Ofcourse they are also doing some outrageous european luggage. It's purdy but can you say Louis Vuitton?

 

[HitchcockBlonde]

well, that's what i love so much about the man. he takes the classics and shakes it up. for those not content with having mother's pearls and bags, it's really great. we're living in a different culture now where everything old is new again and even the new can become old and dated pretty quickly. i don't want to sound like a complete fangirl here, but mj does such a fabulous job walking the line between stodgy classicism and quirky modernism.

Very well said!

So many designers nowadays take inspiration from other designers. To me, it's fun if the designer takes a common design/style or influence from another designer, but puts a new spin on it or does it with a sense of humor. Mark ALWAYS does this, and it's one of the reasons why I love him. For example I loved the way he mixed up his own styles and LV when designing for LV; the way he took a Chanel-style quilted sensibility and brought it into his own funky styles with a sense of humor; the way his little tote bags make fun of labels including his own, etc.

Taking a design and copying it exactly really doesn't make any new kind of statement. But when Marc does it, to my mind it's always sort of more an homage. You can always see his own personal style and the statement his is making and he's always done something creative and fun with it.

 

[jun3machina]

post modernism!!!

 

[HitchcockBlonde]

When I was flipping through the jcrew catalog, I thought this looked to be very inspired by the pleated stam...

Compare this with his Moccasin Karen bag:

 

[smooches]

^ yeah, i was pretty shocked by the striking similarities between those two bags.

on the other hand, marc has and is always being accused of ripping off or "heavily referencing" other designers like ysl and chanel. i see other designers do the same to mj and the reverse charge isn't leveled upon them. remember the big hubbub we had over the colorblock clutch, and how some of the ladies in the hermes forum thought it was a rip-off? as if hermes has the patent rights to the color orange and locks.

I just searched and read that Hermes thread. Wow, that got pretty out of hand. Glad it got closed--it was getting mean!

 

[Coach Superfan]

I just searched and read that Hermes thread. Wow, that got pretty out of hand. Glad it got closed--it was getting mean!

smooches, you tempted me here.. i had to go and read it was getting mean?? The first 5 posts were already mean! the posts thereafter are a mixture of being misinformed and mean ush:

anyway, :back2topic:

 

[debora4ever]

I don't care about inspired bags ... but I hate fake bags!