Extra Touches: Fall 2009 Accessories

“Tough shoes for tough times,” was Alejandro Ingelmo’s mantra for fall. And his collection, with its vampy platforms and touches of metal, featured just that. Light beige tones paired with reflective copper and flat, over-the-knee boots with hardware were the sexy-yet-commercial highlights. Meanwhile, Amanda Pearl continued to be inspired by her international travels as she updated her classic silhouettes in bright new materials: hand-painted splatter-motif evening bags influenced by an Edward James Surrealist garden in Las Pozas, Mexico and abstract animal-print brocade handbags suggested by a safari in Kenya. Pearl also added costume jewelry this time, including a silk leaf, mother-of-pearl and glass necklace and headband, as well as big round papier-mâché pieces that start at $20 wholesale.  Brooklyn-based I Love Factory, for its part, showed a collection of pretty hand-sewn millinery inspired by spring perennials.