Chanel's new 'Boy' bag

Chanel's new piece of arm candy is as androgynous as ever, but has a love story behind its conception.

The Chanel Boy Bag, available in stores from August.

Style insiders might have relegated the concept of the "It-bag" to the humble home of the dust bag, but the top fashion houses are still going neck-and-neck in creating the most desirable, must-own accessories of the season.

The fuss-free Chanel Boy is intended to appeal to the androgynous side of its wearer - British model and girl-of-the-moment Poppy Delevingne already being one.

Creative director Karl Lagerfeld explains: "Chanel used men's underwear to make dresses; she had this boyish attitude, in fact, it is the very spirit of Chanel. She got it from Boy Capel, the great love of her life, which, incidentally, explains why the new bag is called the Boy Chanel."
So, although the mannish Boy is "far removed from the conventional feminine clichés" (goes the press release), the new member of the Chanel handbag clan possesses a warm heart.
Inspired by a cartridge bag that was originally made for hunters and was carried by Madame Chanel herself, the Boy comes in three varying sizes and in practical, no-nonsense shades of red, black, grey, green and ivory.
A bag that's not too girlie? See you in the Chanel store come September..
BY Olivia Bergin