Austin Way Magazine - GreenGale Publishing - There is a place beyond the crowds, beyond the ropes, where dreams are realized and success is celebrated. You are invited.
Issue link: http://digital.greengale.com/i/732984
60 AUSTINWAY.COM PHOTOGRAPHY BY JEFF CRAWFORD (BOOT); SILVER SCREEN COLLECTION/GETTY IMAGES (BUTCH CASSIDY & THE SUNDANCE KID) "I AM ALWAYS INSPIRED BY PERSONAL EXPERIENCE, ART, FILM, AND STREET STYLE." —JANA MATHESON CRYSTAL COWGIRL BUTCH CASSIDY AND THE WEST INSPIRED JUDITH LEIBER COUTURE'S TEMPTING BOOT-SHAPED BAGS. Judith Leiber Couture's new boot-shaped handbags, made exclusively for Neiman Marcus, are stunning enough to tempt any outlaw. Encrusted in more than 7,000 colored crystals, the bags—the floral Belle ($5,495) and the python- patterned Cassidy ($5,595)—are modeled after the boots Paul Newman wore in 1969's Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid. They were also influenced by Creative Director Jana Matheson's childhood. "I am always inspired by personal experience, art, film, and street style," says Matheson, who listened to "These Boots Are Made for Walkin'" while making the bags, which "are a little bit Hollywood and a little reminder of days past." The designer fondly recalls being a 10-year-old rushing home after school to change into her "supercool" cowboy boots and a studded Western ensemble, all so that she could ride her favorite old horse. "It was the highlight of my day," she recalls. "Perhaps this is what led me to a crystal cowboy boot—as a handbag." The boot bags, which take five days to make by hand, are part of Neiman Marcus's #OnlyatNM program, launched last fall to highlight the hundreds of exclusive styles available only at the Dallas-based retailer. Want something more discreet? The boot designs are also sold as pillboxes. The Domain, 512- 719-1200; neimanmarcus.com . Classic Western: Judith Leiber Couture's python-patterned Cassidy bag, $5,995, made exclusively for Neiman Marcus, was partly inspired by Paul Newman's character in Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid (BACKGROUND). STYLE MUST HAVE