Every Cool New Yorker Owns This Anti-Mainstream It Bag

Welcome to It-Bag Alternative, a column where we look into bags that aren't everywhere yet but that all the cool people are already wearing. These are the bags that have the true It factor—the bags that are cool before everyone knows they're cool. You can buy them now and tell everyone "I told you so" later.

I can't loudly snap my fingers. The reason is simple: I wear very long acrylic nails, so when I go to snap my fingers, the nails clink together instead and overpower the sound. But it's not at all the same. A snap is satisfying. A clink? Not so much.

Maybe this is why I was instantly obsessed with Eckhaus Latta's Snap Bag. It's named after a snap, but not the kind you get from striking two fingers together. The bag's name comes from its silver snap closures that circle the opening and line the straps. You can snap the bag entirely shut or leave it entirely unsnapped. Yes, the buttons do create just as satisfying a sound as you would. It's definitely better than my nail clink.

The bag was first released last December and was the brand's first bag in its 13 years of existence. Allegedly, it came to Zoe Latta in a dream.

Ironically, the bag's design is not necessarily dreamy. It's practical and grounded in the delight of utility. The snaps are functional closures that are particularly functional here because of how many there are. You can unsnap one and reach in for your lip gloss. You can unsnap a handful more and pull out a wallet. When you're running around on the go, you can snap it shut entirely so you don't risk anything falling out.

Eckhaus Latta is very much an IYKYK brand. It exists so far outside the fashion-world bubble that you won't just see fashion people wearing it. Instead, you'll see artists and chefs and creatives from all different industries slinging the Snap Bag over their shoulders around New York. I actually saw the bag on so many stylish people in passing I decided I could no longer stare. I knew I needed to try the bag out for myself. Suddenly, I really understood the intention behind the bag's photo campaign, which featured adoring fans looking onward at a unknown celebrity off camera, clutching onto their Snap Bags as they leaned onto a barricade. The bag makes you become a fan.

There have been a couple of drops of the Snap Bag in different colors. The most recent one features a ivory colorway called Bone and my personal favorite, a baby blue called Forget. Funnily enough, the color is not one that you forget. It's a blue you can't help but remember. It's bright, bubbly, and fun. It is not a color that I often see when it comes to bags, and I have never owned a blue bag, so I decided this would be perfect to fill a hole in my closet I never even realized I had.

Not only is the color rich, but the size is also perfect. It easily could fit everything I typically need as well as a couple bottles of wine and a handful of books, depending on where the night was going to take me. My laptop even fit inside! It almost feels sneakily big because it doesn't really present as large. The hole for your arm is also masterfully done. I can throw it over my shoulder without any fear of it slipping. Instead, it sits quite comfortably, even as I run on the subway platform multiple times to catch the G train.

I felt myself reaching for the Snap Bag at every chance I got. Even though I hadn't owned a blue bag before, I never realized how well it went with everything I typically wear. It also made me want to wear more blue in general. One evening, I paired the bag with some Carel Mary Janes in a similar shade with a sun and moon on the toes that I got at a sample sale. It matched in a way that felt fun and not too on the nose. The bag was indirectly encouraging me to wear some lesser-worn pieces in my wardrobe.

Another night, I wore the Snap Bag with my Marc Jacobs doll shoes, blue socks (of course!), and a vintage Jean Paul Gaultier dress. It was one of my favorite outfits in recent memory. The other special thing about the bag is that the hardware adds a nice pop that made me feel as though I didn't need too much jewelry. It does a lot of the accessorizing for you.

Perhaps the best thing about the Snap Bag is talking about the Snap Bag. While I wore it out every day for a week, not a day passed by without someone asking me about it. It felt fun to wear a bag that gets people talking. It's even more fun if they were unaware of its existence or hadn't heard of Eckhaus Latta before. The Snap Bag gets people to approach you in the snap of a finger. It just has that inherent cool quality that turns everyone into a fan.

Shop the Eckhaus Latta Snap Bag below.