Matt & Nat

When springtime ushers in the cherry blossoms, sunglasses, light jackets and cheery smiles, I always get a hankering for not only a new romance (or spring fling, whatever you want to call it), but for a brand new wallet.

Matt & Nat, a Montreal-based and animal-friendly handbag line founded by Inder Bedi, came out of the woodworks in 1997. Bedi -- a marketing major and corporate law minor degree holder -- teamed up with Manny Kohli a few years later, solidifying a creative and entrepreneurial partnership that has produced some neat handbags and some really, really fantastic wallets. The line now sells not only on this side of the pond in Canada and the US, but overseas in the UK as well.

I discovered the line a few weeks ago at Spank on Granville, where a snazzily dressed mannequin (wearing VOOM I think) in the store window convinced me to make a quick pit store, and where I discovered Matt & Nat sitting prettily on shelves near the back. The collection's price points are decent ('round $50 for a wallet), the material is eco and animal-conscious and the aesthetics are unique. This ain't your typical LV fake wallet, yo.

With spring here and summer about to get here, you don't want to be carrying around a huge purse around to meet your friends for drinks on the patio. After all, isn't less more, come summertime?

So get yourself a Matt & Nat.

Stat.











I'm Lovin' it: Oh, Martin Saar -- an incredibly fine specimen of an Estonian man (and former Abercrombie & Fitch model) who happens to be an amazing graphic and sketch artist. The fashion world has already bowed down to worship his feet, with press hits in Fashion Week Daily, WWD and Vogue, as well as a collaboration with Bergdorf Goodman to produce long-sleeve button down shirts with graphic silk screens of famous faces. His current exhibition "Ths 80s in Estonia" is showing till May 2nd and backed by KiptonART, a highly regarded site founded by Kipton Cronkite that promotes emerging artists and talent.





I'm Over it: Larry Birkhead is Anna Nicole's babby daddy. We knew it all along anywhere, so let the story -- and A.N.S. -- rest in peace.

Track of the Day: "You" by People Under The Stairs. Yup, going back to my old school, hip-hop listening roots today. A little funky 70s bass guitar riff provides a solid foundation for a catchy singing hook and spit-out worthy lyrics. It'll make you want to do the shoulder shake, or perhaps jump into a drop-top, cherry red Impala while bobbing your head with a couple of big-afro blaxploitation icons, a la Shaft, Richard Roundtree and Pam Grier.





www.myspace.com/peopleunderthestairs



* Photos property of mattandnat.com, Google Images