There was once a time when an affinity for barrel-leg jeans was all my closet had in common with Our Town star Katie Holmes's. Now, fall has officially started, and the reigning queen of casual street style has deemed one of my all-time favorite canvas bags worthy of her famed New York City strolls.
Holmes embraced the second official day of fall's chill on Monday, Sept. 23, layering a quilted jacket by Marfa Stance over a pair of Rachel Comey jeans. But the pièce de résistance in this editor's eyes was her monogrammed Lands' End tote, which currently retails for just under $35.
Holmes's Monday morning tote bag is one I'm all-too-familiar with. Canvas totes—sometimes embroidered with my initials, other times with a cheeky acronym—have been a staple in my wardrobe since high school. I've carried bags like hers to beach days and first days of classes; I also have a version I use as a laptop tote for work. (It's embroidered with "scooped," for fellow journalists out there.) Yet another of my canvas totes goes everywhere I go, as my preferred bag to perch on top of my roller carry-on bag at the airport. I'm not the only professional fashion person who's a fan: Marie Claire editor-in-chief Nikki Ogunnaike also has a few zip-top versions she swaps in and out with her work outfits.
Naturally, I understand exactly why Holmes would carry a bag like this. It's unpretentious and personal. It has some New England charm to share with her barn jacket, but it can also pair with a confectionary Simone Rocha dress or an athleisure-y gym outfit. It's lightweight. It's easy to clean. It's not going to look dated in a few seasons like so many It bags.
It used to be that Holmes only left her downtown apartment with a more minimal Madewell bag or a capacious style by Mansur Gavriel. Those of us who've carried a personalized canvas tote all along know they can compete with Holmes's old favorites in terms of quality, storage space, and style.
Now that she's caught on to this preppy staple's all-around appeal, what's next? Equestrian boots and plaid skirts, I hope.
