Those hoping to keep up with this year’s fashion trends might find themselves lusting over a very unusual accessory this season – expensive designer lunch boxes.
The new it-bag – which is often small and chic with a flash of bold branding – could cost fashionistas as much as £1,380 at Prada, with the option to add a £320 set of stainless-steel branded cutlery.
This particular offering is a black, nylon carrier – with two stainless-steel bento boxes, with bamboo lids, hidden inside. These are made in collaboration with Black+Blum, the brand known for its sustainable food containers.
Spanish fashion house Balenciaga have a chrome option, made with silver stainless steel and silicone and featuring the brand name embossed on the side – all for £615.
It somewhat resembles a toolbox, with metal clasps on either side for opening.
Saint Laurent’s offering is a £1,350 leather ‘take away box’ – which comes in two colours.
But there are some fancy food containers that won’t break the bank quite as badly, with a nylon, insulated cool bag from Anna Hindmarch retailing for £325.
And if you can forgo the designer branding, Black+Blum – which supplies the Prada bento boxes – have an in-house line which starts at £21.95 for a very similar product.
Dan Black, the founder of Black+Blum, told The Times that designer lunch boxes have become ‘the new status symbol’ as we head towards the summer.
And they’re a far cry from other fashion trends populating TikTok and Instagram.
This year, influencers have moved away from Hailey Bieber’s skincare-focused ‘clean girl’ trend, which saw women slicking back their hair and opting for minimal make-up.
Now, according to New York City-based Kayla Trivieri, clean girl makeup is out and the mob wife aesthetic is in for 2024, making it the latest TikTok beauty and fashion trend to sweep the app.
The fashionable trend coincides with the 25th anniversary of HBO’s hit show The Sopranos, as young women channel their inner mob wife by wearing glamorous gold jewelry, furs, and lots of animal print.
But there are some fancy food containers that won’t break the bank quite as badly, with a nylon, insulated cool bag from Anna Hindmarch retailing for £325.
‘Clean girl is out, mob wife era is in,’ Kayla announced to her 234,000 TikTok followers in a video viewed more than 1.7 million times.
‘We all really need to step into our mob wife era,’ the influencer explained, with photos of the Sopranos cast on display behind her in collages she made.
‘Starbucks and black puffers are out, we’re wearing vintage furs all winter,’ Kayla advised.
‘We’re already seeing the cheetah prints, the sparkle, the glitz, the glam the furs the big hair. This is just a vibe. Carmela Soprano walked so you b***hes could run,’ Kayla continued.
‘She’s got the big hair, the stacks, look at that tennis necklace,’ Kayla said about Carmela.
Kayla ended the video by declaring, ‘Bold glamour is making a comeback because who doesn’t want to be this?’ which proved to be a popular sentiment.
‘FINALLY I’m over clean girl,’ one follower rejoiced.
‘I truly believe my grandma died and left me all her furs so that I could enter my mob wife in Brooklyn era,’ another said.
‘Time for us Italian girlies to shine,’ one popular comment read as another person agreed, ‘Finally a trend I can participate in.’
