I went into my first fashion week with ELLE both excited and scared. Excited for the obvious reasons: to see all of my favorite designers’ shows, to go to the parties, to feel the ultra chic exhaustion every editor I knew spoke about that I secretly couldn’t wait to experience. But scared, too: would I survive it all? Would I know where to go? And of course, most importantly, would I wear the right thing?

I approached my outfitting like I always do: dress first and foremost for myself, then for comfort, and then for the weather. It was a ridiculously cold winter and most fashion week attendees peacocked in brightly colored furs to catch the attention of street style photographers.

I opted to focus on my accessories.

After working in fashion for almost a decade, I’ve amassed a good collection of handbags—Chanel tweed classics, Proenza Schouler PS11s—but outside of the BCBG show, my eyes caught one leopard printed Mark Cross box bag and, I swear, my heart skipped a beat.

No surprise, ELLE’s Accessories Director Maria Dueñas Jacobs was carrying it and I needed to have it immediately. Unfortunately, though, it couldn’t be mine. It was hers. It was out of my price range (I had just purchased a terrific Theory coat), and, well, I didn’t think it would be polite to buy the exact same leopard print bag.

TAYLOR JEWELL

Months passed and I still thought about the bag. I’d peruse the Mark Cross section of Barneys. I’d ogle when I visited the brand’s showroom. It wasn’t until almost two years later that I was able to acquire my own, after receiving the golden ticket to one of their sample sales.

I arrived early and scored a light blue studded box that remains my most prized possession. Not only because of its utter chicness, but because it’s proof that the wait, and the hunt, is worth it.