Sounds an awful lot like Kate Spade.  :-)

I never pay more than £ 25 for a hand bag, still I have a nice collection for every occasion, I spend more on clothes and cosmetic, and get cheap accessories

No, No. Buy inexpensive clothes (on sale) and really GOOD accesories!!! A fab necklace that you will wear again and again, but paid a bit more for,  will make a sale blouse look expensive.

If I cannot afford it, I’d rather buy some other affordable brand than buy the fake big one.. as for me: buying a fake brand is like faking orgasm…

please do NOT buy a knockoff! or if you do, get a really, really GOOD ONE! Why? well, why do you want a designer bag? is it so that people will look at you and go, hey look at her desigener bag, she looks good? whatever the reason, anyone who knows enough to be impresed will also probably know enough to figure out its a fake. and also, if you dont have the right wardrobe to go with the bag, the bag just looks tacky.

I’m so proud of the $5 bag I bought from a local designer…  May not be a recognizable brand, but it serves its purpose!

I have “real” designer bags in my closet, but the one that gets the most compliments is a designer inspired bag that I bought last fall.  Everyone stops me even guys because the bag is so unique.  Best of all it cost less than $40.

It was mentioned how elements of a design can be copied and sold for less. You are very right. Many, many years ago when I had a summer job in a sewing factor (saving for college). Calvin Klein jean had just come out and were all the rage. The owner of the sewing factory went to New York and bought a couple of pair, of course they fit his wife, and brough on pair into the design department. I was at the time helping in the department. I watched as the chief cutter and the owner taked about using the basic style, but changing certain elements. The know off look really good, but because of certain changes they look CK, but on closer inspection they weren’t. That was my first exposure to kock off and what to look for.

I wouldve bought the jeans. Who cares?! But bags, I always buy real bags. Gotta have good accessories!

I would buy fake in a heartbeat. Why not? I am so not going to drop the money for an authentic designer purse that I can’t afford.

I would like to make two points regarding the Great Fake Debate, and I hope this time my post makes it to the discussion board. I waited a week on my last post and never saw it appear. I believe I have a perspective to share that really hasn’t been explored.

There are those who point out that buying a fake designer purse supports child labor. Unfortunately, making this claim specifically with respect to counterfeits narrows the scope of the sweat shop problem so that consumers wrongfully assume that brand names are always on the up and up. In truth, if you buy ANYTHING made in the Third Word, whether it is Walmart or a designer brand, you have NO guarantee that the company does NOT abuse its workforce be they adults or children. Some will argue that it is better to work 15 hours straight in a diaper without a bathroom break — and yes, this example is from a REAL story — rather than to starve. You be the judge. Would you rather starve to death but have a lot of free time on your hands, or work to death, including the children, but have clothes on your back and a roof over your head? These are decisions thousands of Third World families make every day, and they are not easy decisions. Chances are, people who work legitimately or illegitimately share in common a need to feed and clothe their families — hardly a dark conspiracy. Sweatshops have been linked to name-brand manufacturers too, and not just the likes of discount merchandise sold at places like Walmart. The everyone claims they will reform their ways when the media spotlight shines, and sometimes they do. Even so, labor problems, including child labor, are a much, much broader issue, and often collide with environmental problems, outsourcing US jobs and a whole other host of thorny political and economic issues that are beyond the scope of this discussion.

I’m not saying that buying fake designer merchandise is right, but I am saying let’s not forget that sweatshops and child labor are a widespread problem! Donna Karan International, and Nike, among others have been accused of manufacturing under these conditions.

The entire garment industry is problematic, for that matter. I live near LA and the American version of sweatshop operations are in plain view. Here’s a Website that has documented some of these working conditions right here in the US!: http://www.publicartinla.com/Downtown/HiddenLabor/

Lastly, I want to comment on the idea that designers are losing money to counterfeit. I would say that is TRUE if you can afford or can save the money to buy a designer bag. If you save the same amount of money as it would take to buy an authentic item and then spend it buying a half dozen fakes, you’re contributing to the lost profits suffered by designers. However, if you’re the type of person who cannot afford it, or won’t spend over $50 “until pigs fly”, than I think it is a bit dishonest for a designer to claim they lost your business because customers like this were never in the designer’s marketing demographic to begin with. Furthermore, I believe that most people who have designer tastes and can afford it are going to be brand loyal, or simply afraid to be caught carrying a fake because it may suggest they don’t have the money or the decency to carry genuine designer goods. So when claims are made that 99 percent of LV are fake, I take it with a grain of salt. People with high fashion tastes rarely carry fake anything — only the people who cannot afford it, who are not the designer customers to begin with.

i love this bags .!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I can spot a fake anything a mile away. There’s no such thing as a quality fake.I think most people do this because they want people to think they’re someone they aren’t. These people are PATHETIC!! This includes people who purchase certain products to “keep up with the Jones’s”. And because of this they’re up to they’re eyeballs in debt. I know that everything I purchase is authentic. I only purchase items from the designer’s shop. Quality pays off in the long run. I have a pair of Gucci loafers that are 11 years old. I haven’t even had to replace the soles. A Kate Spade bag that is five years old and I just bought a new one. You can never fail with Chanel, Hermes, Tiffany, and classic Coach (now brought back by popular demand). I have classics that are twenty years old, and look new. I could go on. I’m not rich. I own a house, a car and have no credit card debt. Save your money to buy these products. It’ll help you master money management. I’ve done this since I was 11 years old. When you figure out how much you’d pay to replace an inferior product over just a one year period, you’re getting a deal when you purchase real. And when you purchase the real thing, buy a classic that will never go out of style. I probably buy one CLASSIC designer item every year. Be authentic. Be who YOU truely are. People know when you’re faking in every part of your life. This loses you credibilty. There are women I work with who buy fake. They never get promoted. Because people of quality recognise other people of quality, and that has nothing to do with how much money you make. There’s a women in my office who sews most of her clothes and only buys well tailored classics. She’s going places. You’re a liar when you purchase a fake. Would you promote a liar?