anna william
By Joanna Massey
Boston Globe
Thursday, July 15, 2004
2014 Mass. Ave., Cambridge. 617-547-2662. www.annawilliam.com. Open daily except Monday. Call for hours.
Of the seeming multitude of designer handbag shops to open doors in recent months, none offers personalized flair like Porter Square’s anna william. Customers pick and choose from 18 bag styles, nearly 200 fabrics, and a zipper, magnet, or ribbon-tie closure to create their own handbag statements.
The styles are named for “places in New England where we live or enjoy spending time,” said co-owner Kristen Lee. Those include the carry-all Harvard tote, the Newton backpack, and the tiny Hampton clutch-an ode to Hampton Beach, not Long Island. The bags can be made with at least three fabrics and some with as many as nine. They’ll even craft a custom bag with fabric that you provide. With everything in the store priced under $100, it’s high fashion at a fraction of Coach costs.
Lee opened this anna william shop with three female family members in March, following the success of their year-old Newburyport store. Custom bags take about four weeks to complete. For a summer wedding or accessory emergency, the boutique also stocks a selection of ready-made bags ranging from bright florals and poodle pup prints to the season’s popular pink and green stripes or polka-dots.
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