“Go West” may be a Village People song about going out to San Francisco, but handbag trends this year are also going west, too – western, that is. Think about conchos, fringe, and turquoise or coral colors – all of which should be subtle. However, instead of going out and buying cowboy gear, how should you be wearing these new pieces of western fashion?

When it comes to clothes, less is always more. Consider a turquoise belt and pair it with something neutral. Go for onyx and crystal jewelry with an outfit but, similarly, don’t overdo it. With handbags, however, this is somewhat more difficult, as the handbag is often the center of an outfit and shouldn’t be too overpowering. Is it possible to have a neutral western style that won’t overshadow everything?

Long seen as only western gear, fringe is making its way onto many high-end handbags, such as these by Miu Miu. As you can see, these are all beige leather, with the ends lined with medium-length fringe on both sides. The fringe itself adds a unique and less formal touch to the bag and, without it, the Miu Miu handbag would simply be an ordinary beige hobo purse.

Fringed handbags, of course, are perfect for casual wear, as is the entire western trend of the moment. It’s about having fun and adding character to your clothing and bag. However, if you can’t afford the large price tag attached to the Miu Miu hobo above, don’t worry – many designer-inspired and western handbags are already capitalizing on this trend. Wholesale western wear dealer Western Express, for example, has their own fringed handbags. Designed much like the Miu Miu bags above, these are made with darker leather and have medium-length fringe in front. A silver concho, additionally, adds some slight but noticeable bling to the purse.

One trend we’ve seen on many celebrities this past year has been the combining of trends. Bright colors with reptile prints. Bright prints on hobo handbags. Western style on a cross-body bag. Animal prints re-imagined in bright colors. The list could go on, but, no matter which two you combine, trend hybrid handbags are more ubiquitous than the actual hybrid style of last year – the patchwork look. But, it doesn’t appear that this trend will end any time soon, as another celebrity was spotted with a trend hybrid handbag, sorts. Whitney Port, one of those reality-TV celebrities from The Hills, was recently seen with a fringed black hobo handbag.

Hobo handbags generally work best in solid colors, as we’ve seen from many celebrities, although animal prints do work on occasion but if, and only if, the bag is a solid print. Typically, a hobo handbag is too large to have embellishments and ornaments all over. Otherwise, the handbag simply looks tacky. In the hybrid of styles on Whitney Port’s handbag, she keeps a solid black style that’s embellished with fringe on the bottom of the bag and laced-up sides. The bag itself works as a high-end western bag or as rocker chic and clearly stands out from Port’s casual look.

Finding a western-style hobo handbag for the average person isn’t difficult, however. One option, if you can handle the less space, is to go with a retro slouch purse decked with fringe, as seen in this link from Western Express, a western wear store. The bag maintains the solid black color with only one embellishment from a concho. The fringe, additionally, lines the front of the bag instead of the bottom. As western style has become a common fashion trend for this upcoming season, such handbags combine high-end fashion with traditional western style.

Last year, at this time, handbags were all about the retile prints, the hobo style, and the tattoo look. But, while anything Ed Hardy or Ed Hardy-inspired went south when seen on Jon Gosselin, the hobo and reptile styles are still in. Additionally, many of the fashion collections seen recently in New York and Milan indicate that bright colors and western fashion – although not necessarily on the same handbag – are here for at least a few months longer. While this means that the reptile or fringed black leather hobo handbag you bought last year is still fashionable, the one with the tattoo rose and rhinestones on the front may not be.

One of the more notable western-inspired collections seen on the spring fashion runways is Emilio Pucci. One look at the handbags all of the models are wearing under the link, and “western” is one of the first adjectives to come to mind. Some of the designs by the fashion line for spring include the basic black leather handbag with fringe, but others are embellished with fur and feathers. The blogger on The Purse Page calls it “hippy chic,” but we’d rather call it western fashion.

On the other end of the spectrum are collections by Mulberry and Versace. Both of the spring lines by these design houses use bright colors and patterns, often juxtaposed with black for a sharp contrast. This is exactly what the Versace handbags looked like on the runway: An oversized coin purse style in black with neon highlights. Mulberry, on the other hand, was all about bright colored prints and hobo styles. Some of these satchel and hobo handbags take the animal prints we’ve seen everywhere last year and colors them in with reds and neon shades. Others in the line stick to the basic black look but with a reptile texture. Essentially, Mulberry sees trends from last year in reverse: Understated reptile handbags and colorful, bright animal print hobo purses.

This blog has often talked about handbags, especially in regards to western fashion. But, with such handbag trends as fringe on suede bags, concho-like studs, and snakeskin, what is western fashion? Often, western fashion is associated with cowboy fashion and, in the present, this includes clothing worn to a rodeo. While rodeos are still done in parts of the south and western United States, these clothes are appropriate for the occasion, whether you’re an audience member or someone riding a horse in the rodeo show.

The quintessential piece of western clothing is a western shirt. A western shirt is characterized as having a yoke in the front and back of the shirt, and this yoke is often stylized with embroidery on front and back parts. Aside from this characteristic, the pockets of a western shirt are described as looking like folded bandanas and the “buttons” of the shirt are typically snaps. A similar common piece of western clothing is a cowboy hat. For a rodeo, a cowboy hat – also referred to as a ten-gallon hat – is made of felt or faux felt, although for other occasions this style of hat can be made with leather or woven straw.

Generally, a western shirt and cowboy hat are paired with jeans, but, more specifically for rodeo wear, a pair of leather chaps is put on top of the pants. Although chaps are associated with rodeo wear, they have practical purposes, as well, and this includes protecting the legs from getting chafed while the wearer is riding a horse.

Aside from clothing, one aspect of western fashion that seems to have crossed over into mainstream fashion is western jewelry. Typically western jewelry consists of silver and western stones, such as turquoise, onyx, or crystal, in a number of combinations featuring the stone. While western jewelry embellishes western wear, the jewelry style can be found everywhere.

We’ve seen slouch handbags, crocodile and snake skin prints, and silver studs on many handbags carried by celebrities this year so far, so who is to say that western styles aren’t in? Often, western style is thought of as silver jewelry with western stones like onyx, crystal, or turquoise or rodeo gear, like western shirts, cowboy boots, and chaps, and this is partially right. In terms of western style applied to mainstream fashion, it’s often the latter that becomes popular. But, if you’ve ever walked into a western clothing store, have you seen snake skin or alligator skin boots? In a sense, the materials associated with the top echelon of western fashion are being applied to handbags, as well as jewelry like embellishments of silver and western stones.

Both snake skin and crocodile skin, even printed on leather, are in this season. Whether you prefer natural scale colors or a snake skin bag dyed purple or blue, all options are available for a western type handbag. Real snake skin handbags are available through upscale designers and retailers, while snake skin patterned bags, made from leather or an imitation material, are available through designer replica retailers like Best Handbag Wholesale.

Western style doesn’t only extend to snake skin. Another popular trend this year has been studs. While silver studs may tend to be more punk than western, how the studs – and the type of studs – are used makes a bag seem more western. Handbags across high end brands, designer replica, and affordable brands incorporate silver studs, western stones like crystal or turquoise, or rhinestones into their styles. Some of these studs may be as large as silver conchos. In addition, some suede or leather handbags, such as this black handbag seen on Micha Barton have western style fringe trailing from the ends or top flap of the purse.