Knuckle Duster Conundrum

Jean asks: "What's a girl to do?" The irresistible knuckleduster clutch purses made infamous by Alexander McQueen feature jeweled rings affixed to the top of small clutches  through which the wearer slips her (or, I guess, his) fingers. The effect? An instantly chic, ring-covered hand! The small-ish handbag is securely grasped by the wearer.  The basic layout of rings and their subjects appears to be the same across multiple brands and designers.That two of the 4 rings involves menacing death head skulls doesn't seem to deter non-Goths from acquiring the bags which incorporate those rings.

Carrying an evening bag that incorporates 4 elaborate rings is just great only if one isn't already wearing 12 rings! For those of us who indulge daily in wearing multiple rings, the Knuckle Duster is just too much of a good thing. (Geez, I never thought I'd ever say that!)  You will notice that two of the 4 rings include a skull (small on the far left and large bejeweled version 2nd from right), a large silver-toned faceted jewel 2nd from left and a floral designed dome ring far right.  The red Alexander McQueen bag below by a different designer than the knock-off above has an identical lineup of rings.

One doesn't want to slip off one's own favorite rings while wearing the bag, for fear of losing one or several of them during the evening.

Since one cannot hold a clutch bag and still eat, drink, take Selfies and post Instagram shots (follow IdiosyncraticFashionistas on Instagram!), invariably the bag is relinquished. Once one removes the bag, the little ring-less digits are bare for all the world to see. Marlon Brando's reaction in Apocalypse Now summed it up best: "The horror"!

DeeDee's posing above with the black brocade knock-off handbag with the identical McQueen line up of rings is a study in chiaroscuro. Below is a closeup of the claspe.

Since one simply does not want to put the bag down on a table and slip one's hand free and then wave those naked digits to the world, people like Jean have to just "double up" as she does in the opening photo with a faux python Knuckle Duster clutch which was a gift from thoughtful and overly generous relative.

Ah, now let's get on to the more esoteric, educational aspects of the word: "Knuckle Duster":

According to the Urban Dictionary, Knuckle Duster is another term for the easily concealable weapon, the brass knuckle. A brass knuckle is a metal weapon worn around the knuckle to strengthen the impact of a blow or punch.

After viewing various weaponry, Jean is thinking about acquiring a set of brass knuckles to incorporate into a small bag handle or neckpiece. What do you think?

Of course, there is one other conundrum: where do you put your wallet and your cell phone and your lipstick (to say nothing of your foundation and mirror and tissues and all the other sundries you love to carry around just in case. But that's a conundrum for another time!

Attention, please! Thursday, June 19th is National Cocktail Day! So do your part! We know we will. (Stay tuned!)