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Fashion / Shopping

Two Creative Texas Power Women, Besties for Years, Combine Their Talents to Create a True Statement Handbag

These Entrepreneurs Want to Make Luxury Handbags More Affordable

BY // 09.26.24

You could credit the posh surroundings of San Ysidro Ranch and a bottle of wine for the inspiration that led to a collaboration  between jewelry designer Christina McAllen and handbag designer Kathryn Swain. But you would have to salute their left side/right side brain cells for the creative bent and business acumen that led to creation of an adorable, must-have, limited addition handbag. Even if the idea was born in Monticeto.

It was early summer when the Texas women and their families, both have young daughters, were traveling together in California that over that glass (or glasses) of wine, McAllen and Swain deduced that there was a gap in the luxury, statement handbag market at an accessible price point.

Christina McAllen, Kathryn Swain with the Christina Greene x Colores Collective Turquoise Crocodile Bucket Bag
Designers Christina McAllen, Kathryn Swain with the Christina Greene x Colores Collective Turquoise Crocodile Bucket Bag.

Their thoughts turned to the rise in Western and rodeo inspired fashion: Beyoncé’s Texas Hold ‘Em, Pharrell Williams’ Western looks for Louis Vuitton, and the crazy popularity of the Yellowstone TV series. Their Texas roots came into play. McAllen is a native Houstonian and Swain is a native of San Antonio.

And, voila! The duo realized that they could provide the perfect product for their parallel customer bases — Christina Greene Jewelry and  Colores Collective. Swain tasked her production team in Italy to locate leather swatches in the signature Christina Greene turquoise while the duo began designing.

The result is a truly must-have turquoise bucket bag with a detachable crossbody strap crafted in crocodile-embossed Italian leather. Priced at an easy-on-the-wallet $325. The Christina Greene x Colores Collective Turquoise Croc Bucket Bag will be introduced in the Christina Greene Jewelry boutique on Monday.

Christina McAllen, Kathryn Swain with the Christina Greene x Colores Collective Turquoise Crocodile Bucket Bag
Crocodile-embossed Italian leather in the signature Christina Greene turquoise enjoys an approachable price point of $325. (Courtesy photo)

From 11 am to 1 pm, both women will be in the shop where they will showcase their latest creations — Christina Greene’s Grecian Escape and Swain’s Colores Collective Fall + Holiday Bags. It is a festive sip and shop opportunity in the making.

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“Our friendship is both personal and professional as she and I share stories of highs and lows of what it takes to be a female entrepreneur in this day and age,” Swain says. “Bringing this collaboration to life, after knowing one another for more than a decade, is a true celebration of how far we have both come in our entrepreneurial journeys.”

These two Houston women entrepreneurs are a true team.

“Kathryn is someone I can always reach out to whether it’s to bounce ideas off of, share both wins and losses, talk through various challenges, or even the (occasional) venting session,” McAllen says. “Having a friend in the same entrepreneurial space has been an incredible blessing.

“Behind every successful woman is a tribe of other successful women who have her back, and I’m lucky to have Kathryn at the forefront of that tribe.”

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