John's Fairchildren

Fashion is in the Fairchild blood: papa John publishes Women's Wear Daily, W, and M; daughter Jill runs a shoe-bow business; and now the Fairchild boys James, thirty-two, and Stephen, twentyseven, heed the call with Le Oui Bag, their own collection of handmade handbags. James recalls that it was while "sweating it out around the pool at my parents' house in the South of France" that they were inspired by a bag their mother had bought locally, and decided that they would make their own. Stephen, who had worked for Giorgio Armani in MiIan, designs the bags; James, who raised horses in Virginia, manages the business. The collection includes leather weekend totes and shoulder sacks; colored suede purses in structured shapes; and small, quilted satin "cocktail" clutches in jewel tones trimmed with tassels or bows. "I consider them little dresses," says Stephen, holding up a poufy blue-and-white polka-dot number.

Stephen and James were raised in Europe and attended the Swiss preparatory school Le Rosey before enrolling at Wake Forest University. "Our parents believed that travel was a good education, and they showed us the best," comments James. "We're down-to-earth people," says Stephen. "The family has taught us that life is relatively simple, and you've got to work hard for your money."

B. B.