In Carolyn's Closet : Comme des Garçons Leather Pouch

In the memoir 'Fairytale Interrupted', RoseMarie Terenzio writes that Carolyn "mercilessly edited" her wardrobe. So it's no surprise that Carolyn didn't have a plethora of handbags but rather a few tried and true pieces that she stuck to. One of her favourites was a Comme des Garçons black leather pouch.

Commes des Garcons black leather pouch

To my knowledge Carolyn wore this pouch to two public events, to the Newman's Own/George Awards Gala, and to the opening night performance of The Blue Room on Broadway.

Newman's Own/George Awards Gala, May 19 1999 (gallery)

The Newman's/George gala was one of John and Carolyn's last official public appearance. Carolyn paired her Yohji Yamamoto ruffled creation with the pouch to avoid distracting from the beautiful jacket design. You can read more on the look here. 

Opening night of 'The Blue Room' on Broadway, January 27 1999 (gallery)

The opening night of 'The Blue Room' was a more casual affair. New York winters are never very fun and it looks like Carolyn main objective was to keep warm. She wore a long wool coat, (I'm 99% certain it's Prada Fall '98), sweater, silk skirt, scarf and suede wedge boots (I'm obsessed with these!). All in black of course. Hmm, I need to take notes for when I feel like slipping on a puffy parka and Uggs in winter ...

Update Carolyn also wore this CDG pouch to the a Krizia exhibition in May 1999, pairing it with a Spring 1999 Yohji Yamamoto pin stripe jacket and black slip dress. Seems to have been her go-to bag that year.

"Krizia: An Exhibition" in NYC, May 15 1999 (gallery)

Lucky for us, the pouch is still available to buy, for the small sum of $135.

Commes des Garcons black leather pouch, Net-a-Porter

If you're wishing to emulate a bit of CBK's style I'd definitely recommend this clutch. I have an almost exact copy, without the CDG label, and I find its so versatile with every outfit and in both daytime and nighttime settings. There are also blue, cream and red versions ... but this is a CBK style blog of course - black all the way!

Newman's Own George Awards Gala, 1999

What do you get when you throw together a cinema icon and a political lifestyle glossy? Why the Newman's Own/George Awards Gala of course.

Paul Newman, Joanne Woodward,
JFK Jr and Carolyn

On May 19 1999 Paul Newman and John hosted a gala for their respective companies, honouring philanthropic corporations in America. This event was the second annual gathering of Paul's food company "Newman's Own" and John's political magazine "George" ... oh and Carolyn tagged along!

Carolyn wore a ruffled Yohji Yamamoto jacket and pants, nude sandals and her black Comme des Garcons clutch.

I have to admit, I hated this outfit the first time I saw it. I just could not understand why Carolyn, with her refined style and preference for simple lines, would choose a ruffled coat of all things.

John and Carolyn at Newman's Own / George Awards, May 19 1999

But with a bit of time and a learned appreciation for Yohji Yamamoto's designs this has come to be one of my favourite looks on Carolyn! Yamamoto's brilliant craftmanship should be noted in this piece. He managed to beautifully fold ruffles on the front part of a jacket without it being overwhelming - and when have ruffles ever not been overwhelming?! Admittedly, I was never a big fan of this look but it has grown on me so much that its one of my favourite CBK outfits. Carolyn knew how to take risks without resorting to flashy trends, and always wore her looks with an intelligence that seems modern even today.

I've tried looking for runway pictures of this jacket but anything before 2000 is hard to find. It might even have been custom made for CBK. I'll update the post and let you know if I do find something! As always, click below the jump to see more pictures!