Did This Indie Designer Predict Cage Bag Mania?
Suddenly, the newest thing in handbags is barely anything at all. Cage clutches are entirely of the moment, thanks primarily to Saint Laurent's buzzy Evening Cage, but one indie designer may have predated the trend.
HANS TM is an enigmatic young indie label based in Berlin that's at least partially overseen by Julius Heinzl, a self-taught creative whose creative agency, Buero, has consulted for a variety of German clients on matters of interior design, furniture ideation, and much more.
HANS TM's metal bags make more sense in that context.
They're really more like mini sculptures than handbags, though they are designed to be used as such.
Retailing for €450-€650 (about $492-$711) on the brand's website, HANS TM's sleek metal bags are entirely handmade in Germany and boast magnetic closure, stainless steel hinges, and an aluminum frame that's as lightweight as it is sturdy.
It's a study in minimalism, a demonstration of how reduction in design can make the ensuing product that much stronger.
The indulgence of excess allows for many more expressive opportunities but it also lacks refinement. HANS TM's output, at least thus far, epitomizes tasteful restraint.
The cage bag trend will likely heat up soon, especially once luxury peers join the see-through bag race and swap crocheted totes for hardy metal shells.
Not that HANS TM ever intended to create hype: its output is clearly just a reflection of the founders' deconstructionist yen.
When they inevitably do try their hand at hardy metal clutch-sized cases, though, we'll be able to point to HANS TM as a progenitor of the movement, the indie designer that saw things they way they ought to be way before the pack caught on.
