$ doesn't = Style

I always tell people that money does not buy great style and having great style does not necessarily need to cost a lot of money.

Above are 8 clutches. It may surprise you which are the most expensive and which are the least. The most stylish ones, in my opinion, are the in-between priced ones.

Now don't get me wrong, I 'm not talking about purchasing pieces that were cheaply made or made from cheap fabrics, just that quality is not necessarily directly related to price all the time. Matter of fact, most of the time, it's not.

Brand and/or designer name is what drives the price of a piece up most of the time. There was a time in the U.S. when showing a designer logo on your person was trendy, there was also a time when it was a status statement. That was decades ago, yet just take a walk through your local mall to see that the "logo equals status" notion is die-hard among Americans still.

The French have always thought that "showing off" how much money you've spent on something is the stupidest thing a woman could do. They pride themselves on "looking expensive" while buying their clothes for as little money as they can get away with. American women need to take a page out of their book!

Don't be swayed by designer names and status, buy whats works best for you and what you really love.  After all, if you buy your clothes full retail at the beginning of every season - you're going to be wearing the SAME PIECES as many other women in your town or city - French women would rather be caught dead than be exact replicas of each other.

(Clockwise from top left: Camille Zarsky crocodile clutch $675, Smythson green croc wallet £290 ($403), Christian Louboutin suede handbag £595 ($828), Chloe leather clutch $1,280, Manumit evening clutch £21 ($29), Smythson croc handbag £140 ($198), DVF croc clutch $365, Ralph Lauren monogrammed clutch $1,250)