Super Styler: Handbag Designer and Glamazon Sara Battaglia

Super Styler Sara Battaglia has bags of style… literally!

Did you know it takes 77 hours to make a Sara Battaglia bag? Nope? That’s okay, neither did we until we chatted to the Italian glamazon about leaping into a business at age 25. We catch up with the vibrant, bubbly and stylish designer on everything from her morning routine to her handbag staples below in this month’s Super Styler. 

Can you tell us a little bit about your career and when you decided to launch your handbag label?

I crafted my first handbag when I was six years old, stealing a piece of fabric from my lovely mother’s stock. I’ve been drawing clothes and accessories since I was a baby, so I think its always been in my DNA to become a bag designer. I chose to focus on accessories because you can change an outfit in a moment and make a simple outfit special in a few seconds. All you need is a nice shirt and pair of jeans if you have the perfect bag!

I went to art school and then worked for the accessory brand Corto Moltedo. That’s when I fell in love with handbags! It was a big opportunity to learn every step necessary to make a bag, starting from the design to the label. All the suppliers were like teachers for me and I spent many hours in the factories. It’s amazing in there, you can see and learn all the processes. When I finished my stint at the brand I followed my passion and set up my own label.

What accessory do you never leave home without?

My golden ring with my initials engraved on it, it’s also my lucky charm, I can’t go out without it.

What are your favourite materials to work with and why?

My favorite material is brass, because it’s more luxurious than others metals and because I can create something from nothing! It gives more importance to a bag… it’s hard and durable. And of course I like leathers, both soft and hard and love to intertwine many different colours together.

One of your bags takes 77 hours to make! Can you tell us about it?

I created that bag for Altaroma, it was an evening clutch bag, a very exclusive style with micro-brass flowers applicated by hand.

What were your favourite handbag brands before you became a designer?

When I was young I fell in love with Birkin bags from Hermes, but they were too expensive for me! Other than my own bags, my current favourite is definitely the Fendi Peekaboo of Fendi, because it’s original and really really functional. In terms of designers, I admire Prada, Azzedine Alaïa, Dolce & Gabbana, Alessandro Dell’Acqua with his collection N21, Fendi and many others.

Your sister Giovanna is a fashion editor, does she ever try to style you and do you let her?

She’s a permanent source of inspiration for me and is the first to see my collection when it’s done. She actually doesn’t influence me per se, but she gives me advice sometimes, as I do with her. People say that I’m stubborn but in a good way, I know what I want and I know what I don’t want!

Ciao!