Shanina Shaik carrying Les Miniatures. Rex
Farah Yasser and Hanna Hazem are self-described “life-long best friends that turned partners” after they discovered a shared interest in fashion – more specifically in handbags. “Our love for mini bags is what made us decide to launch Les Miniatures,” the duo tell Vogue.me about how their collection of adorable, pint-sized bags came to be. “Ever since we were little kids, we’ve been obsessed with collecting statement miniature handbags. Moving forward in life, our obsession never dwindled. So we decided to create something out of it — together, of course.” Although the Egyptian accessories designers have been day-dreaming about launching their own collection of handbags since they were children, it wasn’t until they decided to quit their fashion stylist (Hanna) and investment banking (Farah) jobs in 2011 that the idea really crystallized.
“Each bag tells a story of its own,” explain the co-founders. “We strive to create beautiful, unique, and timeless pieces.” As a result, each piece comes with an antique handcrafted brass handle and in different materials that aims to narrate a story. For instance, their most recent collection, “Minimalist”, embraces simplicity through natural tones and suede fabrics.
The range of highly collectable micro-bags have already found fans in Victoria’s Secret models Josephine Skriver, Jasmine Tookes, and Shanina Shaik (the girls reveal they’d love to see Blake Lively carry one of their designs next). Indeed, tiny handbags appear to be having a major moment — virtually everyone from Emily Ratajkowski to Rihanna and Kim Kardashian West have been spotted toting around a micro-sized purse in recent weeks.
While the designers reveal that they boast completely contrasting backgrounds, they admit that this fact is what makes their ultra-covetable accessories produced in Egypt by a skilled team of local artisans so standout. “It’s challenging to reach a compromise from our totally different mind-sets, but we think this is what makes our designs stand out and not look consistent,” they note. “Thankfully, we have very similar taste. We always complement each other’s ideas to reach one final design that incorporates both our tastes into one.”
