Dior Saddle bag
The Dior Saddle bag is a designer handbag created in 1999 by Dior under designer John Galliano. It’s inspired by horse saddles and the equestrian world, and it first appeared in Dior’s Spring/Summer 2000 collection.
The bag became popular in the early 2000s after being carried by celebrities like Paris Hilton, Foxy Brown, and Carrie Bradshaw in Sex and the City. It stood out for its distinctive curved, asymmetrical saddle shape, a dangling “D” charm, a short shoulder strap, and hand-stitched piping. Galliano made the original in denim and leather, and later versions used calfskin, beading, and patchwork florals.
The Saddle bag is widely called an It bag and a pop culture icon. It appeared in Dior campaigns with models such as Gisele Bündchen, and Lauryn Hill’s music influenced the line. The bag was sometimes tied to sensual fashion imagery and faced widespread counterfeiting, especially on Canal Street in New York.
After a period of lower demand, the bag saw renewed interest in the late 2010s. Beyoncé photographed with a vintage Saddle bag in 2014, helping spark a comeback. In 2018 Dior’s creative director Maria Grazia Chiuri reissued the bag in multiple formats, which boosted online search interest. A men’s version was added in 2019 for Dior Homme, and a limited all-metal edition was shown for about $35,000.
In recent years the Saddle bag has continued to be highly valued in resale markets. A 2025 study highlighted it as the most valuable fashion item of the previous decade. The design remains a defining Dior accessory and helped push the brand toward a younger, more global aesthetic. In 2023 Dior’s attempt to trademark the bag’s shape in the European Union was denied, noting the design wasn’t distinctive enough.
This page was last edited on 2 February 2026, at 11:55 (CET).