Tabitha Simmons and Coach’s Stuart Vevers Collaborated on Flowery Bags and Shoes—With Prices Starting at Just $165

In his five years as Coach 1941’s creative director, Stuart Vevers has become known for his particular way with flowers. His Spring 2016 collection sticks out in our memory: It was his first runway show for the now-78-year-old American brand, and Vevers opened with about a dozen patchworked, multi-printed floral dresses with kicky pleated skirts. They were a little Woodstock, a little prairie girl, and got a lot of women (this one included) wanting a Coach dress for the first time. Not only did shoe designer and Vogue contributing editor Tabitha Simmons snag one when the collection arrived in stores, but she still wears it—and it recently sparked an idea to collaborate with Vevers on shoes and handbags in the same spirit.

“I remember when Tabitha called me to ask about the dress [in 2016], and I took that as a really good sign,” Vevers says. “Not long afterwards, I saw her wearing it at the Greenwich Hotel, so the dress felt like a really natural starting point for us.” Their collaboration includes familiar styles from both designers, like Simmons’s pointy-toe Hermione flat and Vevers’s foam wedge combat boots, in new collages of jewel-toned floral velvets. Other silhouettes haven’t been seen before, like the flat lace-up sandal with sheer mesh and velvet, a grounded twist on Simmons’s signature Freya stilettos. “Tabitha’s taste is very refined and elegant, and then Coach shoes are a bit more down-to-earth, so I found it interesting to bring those two aesthetics together,” Vevers says.

Also new: a shoulder bag inspired by a ’60s-era style they found in the Coach archives. “Going through the decades to see the evolution of the bags in the archives was really fantastic,” Simmons says. “It was the first time I’d ever approached [designing] a bag, and it was great to see this incredible history.” With a mix of floral-printed leathers and color-blocked shades of pink, the bags feel inherently Coach, but “with a lot of extra elements,” Simmons adds with a laugh. Those include trompe l’oeil “double” flaps, two brass buckles, and XXL tassels with printed strips of leather.

Simmons is photographed here wearing them with Vevers’s latest version of her favorite floral dress: a floaty, handkerchief-hem midi in a swirl of bolder, kaleidoscopic florals from his Fall 2019 collection. “What I really love is that Tabitha designs for herself, so it always feels really natural and personal,” he adds. “For me, that’s the best way to approach design.” Even better: With prices starting at $165, it won’t cost you a month’s rent to mix and match the pieces like Simmons does. The collection will be available in Coach stores and on its website starting August 12, so you have time to bookmark your favorites.