How to afford a designer handbag without paying the full whack

Your heart is saying “yes, yes, yes” but your bank balance is screaming “no, no, no” to that fabulous Prada handbag sat seducing you in Harvey Nichols window.

Yes it would look completely divine, teamed up with a pair of Alejandro Ingelmo shoes and a Paul Seville corset belt but not on your £20k pa salary missy. If wearing some of the rather convincing imitations on the High Street shops brings on an asthma attack, then there is a cunning alternative.

It’s called “Fashion Hire” and allows you to wear your favourite designers like Mulberry, Marc Jacobs and Chole on your arm without being weighed down by the price tag.

The way it works is that you choose a handbag from their hundreds, borrow it for a month and return it. Prices range from £10 to over £60 per month depending on the bag. A standard membership costs £9.95 per month plus the hire of the handbag. But for £120 per month, a Gold Membership allows you to borrow two bags at anyone time for free.

It’s a concept that has been around forever in the USA and as usual us Brits are only just getting the hang of it. But it’s a very neat way of updating your look without having a hoard of designer bags clogging up your wardrobe. Try it. www.fashionhire.co.uk

Vanessa Lees