One Battaglia sister has already made her name on these shores — Giovanna, a master stylist and reigning street style subject. Now, with a growing line of luxury handbags, little sis Sara has further raised the family’s profile stateside.
Creativity runs in the Battaglia DNA, Sara explains from Milan, where her line is based.
“My father was a painter and my mother is a sculptress, my older brother is a gallerist and my little brother a set designer!” Battaglia says. “All of us grew up with the smell of painting.”
No surprise, then, that her bags — envelope clutches in contrasting animal skins; hobo satchels with fringe so thick, it would make Tina Turner jealous; colorblocked and gilded minaudières — often take on the appearance of high art.
Inspiration, says Battaglia, comes from “whatever can catch my attention and make me happy.”
The cultural influences she cites are vast, and while they may seem incongruous, they ultimately complement each other, just like her bags.
She loves both Quentin Tarantino and Walt Disney movies; her music picks range from Vivaldi and Michael Jackson to Kanye West and the Italian singer Mina.
“My favorite artists are Christo and Maurizio Cattelan,” she continues. “In terms of designers, I admire Prada, Azzedine Alaïa, Dolce & Gabbana, Alessandro Dell’Acqua with his collection N21, Fendi and many others.”
For her spring 2014 collection, Battaglia found a muse in the Isle of Capri. “I looked at old pictures of ladies from the ’50s on holiday,” she explains.
The collection already has a fan in sister Giovanna. “It’s very feminine and chic with a modern, young take,” raves Giovanna. “I like the fact that you can wear them from morning to the evening, when you don’t have much time to change.”
The Sara Battaglia handbag line, which has been in production for two years, features heavy doses of hardware, often in brass, which she’s passionate about.
“My super favorite is brass, because it’s more luxurious than other metals,” she says. “This material gives more importance to a bag — it’s hard, still, doesn’t change.”
As for her work, Battaglia plans to continue evolving and moving forward at full speed. Her bags are now available in the US at avenue32.com and at various retailers around the world, but she’s working towards a stand-alone shop: “My biggest dream would be to have my own boutique!”
Battaglia explains that she was first drawn to handbag design because women “put inside of them a part of their life.” Purses, she believes, serve to amplify the rest of an outfit, and to make their wearers feel good. “And women need to feel special,” she adds. “From morning to evening!”