Fashion

Pharrell's New Fashion Collab Is A Must-See

by Tyler Atwood

Pharrell Williams has made 2014 "The Year Of The Hat" thanks to the jaunty Vivienne Westwood chapeau he wore to the 2014 Grammys, but it seems the famed performer is about more than just headgear. Women's Wear Daily broke the news that Pharrell and French design house Moynat are partnering up to create a collection of train-inspired purses. After finding himself enamored with Moynat's Pauline bag, the Happy singer quickly hopped aboard the design train and lent his creative eye to the brand's reboot. If your initial reaction is confusion, you're not alone; the mere idea of an established brand like Moynat deliberately creating bags to resemble the classic locomotive is baffling.

Due to Moynat's nearly 200-year heritage, which includes creating a much-adored patented steam trunk in the mid-19th century, evoking train imagery with the new collection was a logical move. Called "fun but refined" by Moynat CEO Guillaume Davin, the train bag collection will be anything but juvenile. With $4,105 set as the price point for a hand-carved ebony train, and $12,830 for a chic minaudière, the collection isn't the type of plush toy backpack you tooled around with as a child. The Train Bag is also offered in acrylic resin, with streamlined steel accents for good measure. In terms of form, the minaudières will recall the type of objets Judith Leiber turns into bedazzled clutches, sans crystals, of course.

So is a Pharrell-designed Choo-Choo train on a gilded metal chain worth $12,830? I guess the decision depends on the depth of your obsession with Pharrell and the Transcontinental Railroad.