Lisa Kingsley's Laid-Back Luxe
1
By Casey Kettleson
in Fashion Features
on May 18, 2010
Known for her down-to-earth approach to luxury, Lisa Kingsley introduces a hand-painted, limited-edition handbag collection. Debuting on June 1st, the Chelsea Love collection is everything a downtown girl could want.
Lisa Kingsley is one hell of a woman. Not only is she the founder and designer of Kingsley Handbags, but she is an avid traveler who has worked within different cultures to produce clothing and accessories for over a decade. Several months out of the year, the designer works with leather makers nearby San Miguel De Allende, Mexico, (where the Kingsley store is located) to create each piece in her collection. Kingsley has also designed ready-to-wear and denim collections, which have been around the world in stores including Saks, Bergdorf Goodman, Takashimaya, Henri Bendel, Louis Boston and Nordstrom.
But that's not all... Kingsley, also a former stylist with Ford Models, was honored with a solo fashion show at the Museum of Contemporary Art in Chicago and is a Contributing Fashion Writer for Chicago Magazine. This year, Kingsley won FGI's Rising Star Award for Best Accessories and Vogue Magazine invited Kingsley to become one of the "Vogue 100," a group of inspiring women in fashion and business. Madge, Gwyneth, Oprah and Angelina are fans too.
She's currently in pre-production for her forthcoming cable TV show called "Down to Earth Luxury", and has plans to branch out into outerwear, clothing and furniture in the coming months. Oh, did we mention that she's signed on for our Influencer Series as well?
And even as busy as she is, Kingsley still found the time to talk with us about her upcoming Chelsea Love collection. The collection, which consists of five styles, will be available online June 1st and ranges from $1,350 for the long clutch to $2,500 for the carryall. Inspired by a white turquoise ring, each bag is hand-painted and only five of each style will be produced.
StyledOn: When did you first start painting?
Lisa Kingsley: These are the first paintings I've done.
SO: Who are your favorite artists?
LK: Dubuffet, Richard Serra, Louise Bougeois, Jasper Johns, James Bishop, Brice Marden, Ellsworth Kelly, Bresson, Ed Rusha, Raymond Pettibon...
SO: Why the name "Chelsea Love"?
LK: An ex-boyfriend of mine was an artist in NY. We lived in an amazing loft on 14th street and hung out in Chelsea a lot. We hit all the openings for about two years and made out over margaritas at Bottino! It was a time when I felt closer to the art world.
SO: Only five bags in each style? Really?
LK: The main Kingsley collection (including the tote seen to the left) takes a lot of focus and careful attention because I work together with hand crafters and leather makers to develop our leathers and bags from scratch. So it was good to limit the amount of bags I hand painted to 25 for this year... If people like them enough, we may offer another set next year.
SO: As a stylist, tell us how a bag impacts an outfit. Do you feel a bag makes the outfit?
LK: Yes! Bags, shoes, belts and accents like jewelry make your look! You can wear black on black and carry an outstanding bag which highlights your personality. Hopefully it's unique. My own love of neutrals (I have one "blacks/greys" closet and one "whites" closet) can be spiced up by an orange cobra clutch in a very sophisticated way – if you get what I mean.
Are you feeling the Chelsea Love?