Freitag, the Swiss made sustainable bag line who opened their first New York store last week is showing a new collection at 10 Corso Como.  Its signature use of truck tarp is fashioned into a collection called “Reference,” which takes  a more stylized approached to handbags like an imitation  snakeskin (above).  Designboom gives us a closer look on the flip. The bags are available here.

Gucci has revealed a limited edition Mother’s Day bag, part of whose sales will be directed toward a UNICEF program dedicated to stopping HIV spread among newborns. Priced at $970, the bag will sell through June 15th with 25% of sales going to the charity. Available for purchase at Gucci.

Though we love to feature bags by the current hottest hands in the game (LV, Chanel, Alexander Wang, Proenza Schouler, Fendi, Hermes), who much like elite athletes make their greatness seem easy, it’s always nice to come across a label like Wayuu Taya, which makes up for label status with design strength and affordability. It’s an added bonus that the bags are made in the Guajira Peninsula in South America by the ladies of the Wayuu community, who receive a portion of the sales. Available at Bonadrag. You can also buy other colors direct from the Wayuu Taya Foundation.

See a wide array of color and pattern offerings on the next page.

Fueled by a desire to inspire her peers, Rhonesha Byng  created N.E.S.H.A = No one Ever Slows Her Agenda. To empower women to not let anything stop them from reaching their goals and aspirations and provide them with the inspiration to overcome their challenges. Sounds good right? Visit her agenda for more and their signature tee!

Nicki Minaj performed at a environmental charity event held by auction house Christie’s last night (which, Minaj informs us via Tweet, she was asked to do so by by Anna Wintour herself), and on the red carpet was interviewed by Vogue. Here is the response to her outfit question:

What are you wearing tonight? Is it one of your favorite designers?
Yes, it is—it’s Alexander Wang. It’s all black, of course, and I knew I needed to get my green on, so that’s how I came up with the green-and-white hair. I have a lot of designers I like right now; I really like Donatella Versace. She sent me a few beautiful things recently to consider wearing to the Grammys and, even though I ended up wearing Givenchy,  I believe in supporting women. I’m all about the girl power.

Which is cute because Alexander Wang stated in a recent interview that Minaj is an artist he’s listening to a lot lately (“I’m really into Nicki [Minaj] right now, of course, who isn’t?”), so…..together at last!

See a few more images, plus her response to her makeup essentials on the next page. And on another note, first Lady Gaga, then Rihanna, now Nicki?? What the heck is going on at Vogue or maybe more accurately with Wintour??

Lucky for the Snobettes, we were able to attend retail genius Jeffrey Kalinsky’s super fun, Jeffrey Fashion Cares benefit gala, held on the Intrepid (an ex-aircraft carrier that functions as a museum) on New York’s Hudson River last night. The event included silent auctions on hundreds of donated items, as well as a fashion show, and by the end of the evening well over a half million dollars was raised to assist organizations whose focus is outreach to the gay and lesbian community. It was a meticulously staged event and bravo to Kalinsky, who has steered it for eight years. The level of organization and work that goes into it is clearly massive. On this page (yes, that’s a Proenza Schouler PS1 bag) and the page to follow, a glimpse at some of the items included in the auctions.

While you can find a full list of links of aid to Japan at selectism here, on the next page see more info on sample sales by 3.1 Phillip Lim, United Bamboo and events by Nooka and Dance for Japan. Every little bit helps…

Fafi has created a touching pencil drawing titled “We Love Japan,” as part of a fundraising effort done in collaboration with Colette to help Japan recover from its disaster. One hundred percent of funds will be donated to the Japanese Red Cross Society.

To help in the recent tragedies in Japan, Ken & Dana Design via their B-Side collection launch the ”Betsy” Rights necklace, which was also a part of Haitian relief efforts in 2010.

Living in New York is a daily reminder that we are all immigrants and in a sense we are all Japanese right now. For the text on this particular necklace we chose the identifier for the Immigration and Nationality Act of 1965. This Public Law (PUB.L.) abolished the national-origin quotas that had been in place in the United States since the Immigration Act of 1924.*16″ sterling silver necklace*PUB.L. 89-236 is the 236th Public Law enacted by the 89th Congress of the United States .*A Donation of $30/necklace will be made to the Red Cross. Available here.

Fresh out of Germany, the Umasan clothing concept is a highly versatile collection of  high end apparel inspired by the far east teaching of yoga coupled with a  love of design, simplicity and respect of the environment. Completely vegan, the line prides itself on producing this collection with a blend of  natural fibers and innovative materials such as protein and cellulose. On the next page take a colser look at Umasan.