Setting Site On: Raven Kauffman

Raven Kauffman, one of my favorite talents-and not only for her elegantly crafted handbags, relaunched a signature website this last week finally worthy of her resplendently lavish aesthetic.

There a press section, natch, with images of fans such as Sarah Jessica Parker and January Jones toting her elaborately embellished clutches. A blog appropriately called "Magnificent Obsessions" is new, and a shop is on the way. But the most fun is tripping through the collection lookbooks, if only to fantasize about handling all those beautiful minaudieres and pochettes.

Raven will be featured along with fellow downtown designer Michael Schmidt on October 6 in a conversation on the challenges and pay-offs of designing a high-end product in Los Angeles at the Pasadena Museum of California Art, where they are both showcased as part of the California Design Biennial. I will moderate the discussion, as well as guide a tour of the exhibition. Join us.