I finally can completely relate to a fashion designer of this day and age. Often times, the latest hair accessory that looks like it came out of my grandmother’s “box of goodies” or the new “shirt” which looks more like fabric that has been held in a cage of lions, leaves me slightly perplexed. What were these designers thinking when they pitched such ideas, and more so, what goes through consumers’ minds as they fork over hundreds of dollars for a square of cloth? The world may never know.

Now, I may not be the most fashion-suave of them all but I have some knowledge when it comes to the latest and most popular items that leave consumers crazed.

I used to be able to walk through Downtown Crossing and spot 15 girls with the obvious re-make of the multi-colored, semi-nauseating Louis Vuitton bag. After that it seemed to be all about hats, whether they were cocked to one side, mesh flat brims or Kangol’s.

Recently, though, I finally saw something that has seemed to be popular in not only department stores but specialty retail establishments that for once made sense to me.

Finally a fad that returned to the simplicity that I, for one, cherish from childhood days. That simplicity that is null and void nowadays, when imaginations would be in play more than the toy that talks, walks and does your math homework. For once the designers got it right. For the first time in a while I’ve seen something that has some rationale behind it.

The new “letter bags,” which come in an assortment of shapes, sizes and colors are being marketed on almost any corner, in any store display, gaining an overwhelming presence. But this time I don’t mind seeing them on every girl’s arm in the city of Boston. This time it actually brings a smile to my face and an odd feeling of nostalgia.

Whoever first marketed such simple bags with letters ranging from “K” to “M,” “L,” “B,” etc. finally did some research before launching a new product. They finally returned to the “basics,” as I call them, the foundation and common roots of almost any person’s childhood.

Finally someone got the bright idea to use Sesame Street in a marketing scheme outside of a toddler demographic.

For those a little foggy on their Sesame Street days, which we all shared, every show started off with a mini-endorsement for that current episode. “Brought to you by the letter ‘L,” or any other letters began every show and played almost as significant of a role in the episode as Big Bird and Elmo.

Two letters and a number and the fast-paced array of segments and puppet-goodness begin. For years Sesame Street has been thought of as more than just a fun TV show. It has been a milestone for children’s television and seen for its ability to subconsciously teach children basic skills, facts and societal behaviors.

Now, Sesame Street is subconsciously invading retail, leaps and bounds ahead of the Oscar the Grouch costume and the Elmo lunch boxes. With so many products today that seem to attempt to throw a million fluorescent colors, logos and shapes at the public, the simplicity of these letter bags is certainly a breath of fresh air and a relief for my eyes.

A classy purse or make-up bag with a slight flare that doesn’t scream “vampy”, sounds like a sure-sell to me. Who needs an accessory that overpowers the actual look the person is trying to achieve? These bags not only come in all sizes but can actually be used not just gawked at.

Yes, you heard me. A bag that can actually be used to hold more than a tube of lipstick or spare change. Unlike, the bags that can be used when you wear that pair of red pants once a year with that certain shirt only when the moon is in its third phase. Whatever happened to utility? As much as I love having a bag that could only hold my cell and my keys if they were downsized 200 percent, what’s the use?

Maybe Sesame Street actually got through to someone in their early days that people are just as amused and interested in a single letter as they are in fuzz and overlapping patterns.

It’s funny to see how core parts of our childhood’s, those times that are still vivid in our minds decades after, reflect in present day situations or businesses. Clothing is starting to circulate back through the market from my cherished days growing up. The use of brighter colors and more flashy apparel is something that was almost taboo a couple of years ago (but after the early ’90s Hammer pants kick, though.)

I have to tell you it is refreshing. Knowing that the comforts of the “olden days” to me haven’t been completely erased from people’s minds gives me some faith in the future of not only fashion, but in people themselves.

Now all we need is for the shoe industry to start studying some Mr. Rogers episodes.

-Kaitlin Thaney can be reached at [email protected]