The Style List: Book smart

Olympia Le-Tan doesn't just have a remarkable name (and yes it is real), the French accessories designer also has an exceptional talent for embroidery and is mad about literature. Combining the two, she makes handbags and minaudières with embroidered designs inspired by vintage book covers, and they are unlike anything else you could carry.

Made by hand at her Paris atelier in very limited numbers, each Olympia Le-Tan creation has become an instant cult classic, and seen in the hands of the likes of Michelle Williams, Natalie Portman and Tilda Swinton. A clutch she recently designed for Lancôme (limited to 100) is currently selling for around Dh6,000.

The daughter of the French illustrator Pierre Le-Tan, born in London and raised in Paris (she's part English, French and Vietnamese), her career in fashion started at Chanel with Karl Lagerfeld. She then went on to Balmain where she worked closely with Gilles Dufour, before launching her own label in 2009.

Her latest library is stocked on the virtual shelves of Net-a-Porter, and now available to UAE customers. Take note however: you'll have to be quick, lucky or patient to own one.

From around Dh5,000, netaporter.com