Bold Bags For A Bold Career Change

Bold bags for a bold career change

Dress for a career change

We bet you have a go-to bag. It sits on the countertop near the door filled with your mobile work essentials, ready for you to sling it over your shoulder as you rush out of the door every day. Are we right?

Don’t tell us yet. We’re also willing to bet that your bag is black or brown, perhaps cream, but generally very neutral. Are we right now? We’re only so presumptuous because we too have been caught red…err, earth-toned, handed.

It’s easier to know that you can dash out the door having picked up the same bag every day and that it’ll definitely go with the outfit you’ve put on than to worry about what crazy colour might match. But, isn’t that so hum-drum? And, at this point in your career, hum-drum you are anything but.

Like many women experience in their careers, there comes a time when greener pastures in another industry tempt and lure you to try something new. Now’s the time to add some bright colour to match the bright new future that awaits!

We sat down with LA based Lola 76 owner Gabriela Aceves – known for her signature bursts of colour – to talk the many reasons why women should start opting for a bright bag, especially if they’re opting for a new career.

How does she know about such things? She went through the same professional transformation, and her flamboyant bags were the light that led her through it.

‘After losing my full time job in 2011, I felt it was my window of opportunity to pursue what is my destiny in fashion design. With no formal work experience in the industry, I jumped in and started my business from home’, Gabriela revealed. So, inspired by her bold bravery, here are our three main reasons to consider buying bright over boring this season…

Bold colour exudes confidence.

Lola76

With Marsala being the colour of the year, Gabriela is anticipating rich and exotic hues to be more popular than ever this season.‘Choosing a colourful bag is making the statement that you are confident, ready for change, and ready to be noticed’.

Why play it safe? Being bold, even if through your wardrobe, will remind you to make bold moves and take chances. Just as you take risks in fashion, you’ll be reminded to take risks in your next business endeavor.

Pair any bright handbag with your favorite skinny jeans and boyfriend tee, Gabriela offers as an example, and it’s like carrying a slice of vacation or paradise with you.

As far as matching goes, the Lola76 owner wants to eliminate the worrying involved. ‘We need to lessen the amount of second-guessing we do as women. Do most men worry about their ties and oxfords matching?’ Good point. Mismatching can be, well, empowering in a sense. It’s worth a shot.

You’ve got more than a serious side.

The Lola 76 motto is that women are multi dimensional, and expressing these personas is one of the many benefits of bright fashion. ‘I believe that women possess more than one side. Like a woman, each Lola 76 collection is unique with a story behind it. The combination of textures and layers represent the beauty in her ability to evolve into anyone she wants to be’.

Lola76

It’s true that standard business attire usually conceals the quirks of a woman’s personality outside her commute, and a handbag can reflect the speckles of personality oftentimes kept at bay in the office. We’re not talking anything risqué or TMI here. We’re talking about your hidden talents, particular sense of humour, general playfulness and ferocious creativity. As Gabriela puts it: ‘our bags show a sliver of her soul. It shows the other side of that woman. She can make a statement without saying a word’.

These bags aren’t only used as a career weapon from 9-to-5, there are endless ways to wear your emotions in your handbag while you’re out on the town too. ‘Detach its chain and it gives your ordinary cocktail dress a little disco. With jeans and tee, the chain strap gives it a rock n’ roll vibe’, Gabriela tells us, ‘or, pair it with your favorite work blazer for a chic contemporary look’.

Her bags are clearly perfect for the girl who needs options, which is pretty much all of us.

Everyone needs a little colour therapy.

Lola76’s Gabriela is a firm believer that colours do heal and balance deficiencies within our bodies. For example, ‘lush hues of green give the feeling of love and compassion. Just imagine yourself walking through a protected nature trail in Hawaii. You will feel grateful for the experience and love for the beauty in nature’.

Bold bags for a bold career change

Now, if only plane tickets would appear in one of those handbag pockets…. Well, the bag is helping to boost our chances of switching careers successfully so we guess we shouldn’t push out luck!

For more from Gabriela Aceves and her gorgeous Lola 76 bags, connect with her on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook.

Megan Broussard

Megan Broussard is a storyteller from New York City. She credits her talent for balancing big hand gestures and a glass of red on her Cajun roots. When she isn’t covering women in career/business, fashion, lifestyle and culture, she’s playing with her pup – the inspiration for her doggy daycare business.