For the past couple of years, few style trends have been as persistent as the entanglement between food and fashion. You know what I’m talking about — the cutesy baby tee emblazoned with a cluster of tomatoes from it-boutique Lisa Says Gah, the Rachel Antonoff dress printed with colorful sardine tins, the Susan Alexandra dangling shrimp earrings. The most recent evolution of this trend, though, is centered around the handbag.
This week, Kate Spade announced a new collaboration with Heinz, which includes a crossbody that is inspired by the brand’s iconic ketchup packet. The detailing on the bag, which retails for $398, is extremely fun. It boasts pinked edges that look just like the real deal, a decorative zipper pull that looks like a squiggle of ketchup, and a puffy design that makes it look like it’s full of the tomatoey stuff, not just your wallet and keys. There is, according to the description, even an interior pocket that’s designed specifically to protect the ketchup packets that you (probably, if you’re willing to spend $400 on a ketchup purse) carry around every single day.
Kate Spade isn’t the only brand getting in on the food-shaped purse game. Betsey Johnson offers a particularly creative — and literal — take on the genre, including a bag shaped like a frozen cocktail glass that is covered in little baubles that look shockingly like condensation on an actual Bahama Mama. There’s a berry-basket bag dotted with 3D strawberries, a sparkly watermelon purse, a cherry pie crossbody. There’s even a ridiculously over-the-top, fancy heart-shaped cake bag with decorative rosettes and ribbon “icing.” Anya Hindmarch, too, has its own Heinz offering — a ketchup packet bag charm — along with a $500 Crunch bar wallet, a glittery $1,800 tote decorated to look like a vintage box of Kellogg’s Coco Pops, and a bucket bag that resembles a bottle of Kikkoman soy sauce.
Of course, kitsch is at the heart of the food-shaped purse trend, and some designers are really leaning into it. Nik Bentel, known for his extremely literal pasta box bags, is currently selling a $200 clutch that looks remarkably like a canister of Tums Chewy Bites. At retailer Lunchbox, you’ll find a McFlurry purse with a McDonald’s logo lining, a box-shaped tote that resembles packaging from fictional restaurant the Krusty Krab in the cartoon Spongebob Squarepants, and a fanny pack designed to look like a bucket of Kentucky Fried Chicken.
On the more budget-friendly end of the spectrum, reality TV star Lauren Conrad’s line of bags, sold at Kohl’s, includes a coin purse shaped like a cob of corn and a surprisingly cute crossbody that looks like a slice of grapefruit that will set you back less than $30. Amazon is also replete with knockoff food-shaped bags, from a buttery slice of toast to a tiny carton of strawberry milk.
On the heels of the popularity of the “tomato girl” and “strawberry girl” aesthetics, it is perhaps not surprising that we’re being so literal in choosing a bag that expresses our personalities. We are what we eat, after all.
