BOTTEGA VENETA
699 Fifth Ave.
212-371-5511

It’s almost impossible to resist the pull of the trendy bag: There’s the feverish excitement to own it, the perverse thrill of plunking down four figures to have it, the joy of flaunting it. But trendiness wears thin quickly, which is why the best place for that four-figure plunk is at Bottega Veneta. The workmanship has always been impeccable, as befits a venerable Italian leather house, but ever since designer Tomas Maier arrived, the shapes and colors (turquoise blue, stark white, gleaming metallics) have gotten markedly hipper without sacrificing the heirloom quality. One more healthy rationalization: No matter how good the knockoff artists get, they’ll never be able to pull off that signature intrecciato—the complex interwoven strips of leather—that made Bottega famous.