Designer Dupes you Need this Month

If there’s anything I like to indulge in, it’s got to be my accessories. Shoes and handbags are most certainly my weakness. The way I see it, they’re timeless and are the finishing touch to a stylish outfit. Accessories bought after some consideration will never depend on a season or fashion trend, they will compliment almost any outfit. It doesn’t matter if your weight changes or the colour you dye your hair, accessories are universal. Luxury purchases and designer labels are synonymous with shoes and handbags especially. We’re all guilty of lusting for a Louis Vuitton ‘Never Full’ at some stage or another – or dreaming about how sweet the Christian Louboutin ‘So Kate’ heels would be on our feet.

Designer Dupes

For the most part, those genuine designer wares are what dreams are made of. Nowadays, high street retailers are so quick to get their lookalikes on the market in record time. Fast fashion is a millennial phenomenon – we see it on the catwalks, on our favourite celebrities and want to emulate their look, like now! Lately I’ve been particularly lucky with some really amazing designer dupes from the high street.

Life is short. Heels shouldn’t be..

The first of those being these high heels that I wore to the Irish Beauty Blog Awards recently. About a week previous, Pippa O’Connor had shared the Alaia studded suedette heels on her Snapchat. A nice treat, if you can afford it, at €880 a pair!

I found my dupe in Shoe Rack in Wexford town and they are actually identical! The only difference being that the Shoe Rack copies had a t-bar strap. I wasn’t too gone on it to be honest but I was able to cut out the t-bar and et viola!! They could 100% be mistaken for the real deal now. The shape of the piece that goes over your toe is even cut the same as the original Alaia’s!

The best bit? They’re now on sale for just €35!! You actually couldn’t pass them up. They come in 4 shades; Stone, Pink, Grey and Black. I think the black pair are next on my list 😉

Handbags are like friends. You can never have too many..

Put A Bow On It in Enniscorthy is a local boutique that I absolutely love. Aoife, the owner, has a great Snapchat account and regularly shares what’s new in store. Last week she shared a snap of a handbag that had just arrived and in that 10 second clip, I fell head over heels in love! This tan bag is a dupe of the Chloe ‘Nile’ handbag. The original one costs around €1,200 and even if I had that lying around my bank account, the Nile is constantly sold out, making it extremely hard to get your hands on.

The handbag that Aoife currently stocks in Put A Bow On It is absolutely identical – it has a cross body strap, the golden handle folds down and it has the internal slot pocket, all as the original one features. Aoife got these bags in tan, black and blue and she also recently got some Gucci look-a-likes too. My bank account gets the fear every time I see her new arrivals. Check out the Facebook page here and save yourself €1,165, as the Put A Bow On It dupe is just €35!

To take the road less travelled, I’ll need new boots..

My final dupe is from the nations favourite – Penneys. The internet went in to meltdown when these studded ankle boots were released. They come in 3 colours – nude pink with silver hardware, khaki with gold hardware and soft grey with gunmetal hardware. Aside from being really cute, they are the image of the Chloe Susanna boot.

The original comes in at €895, while Penneys versions are just €21. I picked up the nude pink colour and I have to say, they’re quite comfortable. A little ankle boot like that will funk up a sun dress, (especially given how unpredictable our Irish summers are), and will be stylish with jeans and a jumper in the winter time.

There you have it girls, your designer looks for a fraction of the price! Let me know if you do pick up any of those pieces or if you spot some dupes of your own on Facebook, Snapchat or Instagram.