Autumn's most sought-after accessories: From fetching footwear to bijou baggage

This autumn/winter great things come in small packages – all showcased here with support from OPI nail expert Trish Loma

Petite Malle handbag, £3,150, Louis Vuitton, 17-19 New Bond St, London W1, 020 7399 4050. Nails in OPI Red, £12.50, OPI (Arthur Woodcroft)

Ditch the holdall and decant your belongings into a tiny minaudière. For winter, the most desirable handbags are hand-held numbers barely big enough to clutch an iPhone and credit card. Nicolas Ghesquière sets the pace – and defines the silhouette – with his dinky Petite Malle (pictured above), a Lilliputian Louis Vuitton trunk reimagined as a hand-held objet d'art made of interlaid leather and metal. It is as intricate and precious as a Fabergé egg – but, thank goodness, a touch more hardy.

Volatile stock-markets abound, but one thing never becomes worthless: gold. Perhaps that's why, as traders tear their hair out, carats are still to be seen on the necks of the richest women in the world. Chanel placed them centre-stage at its winter haute couture show, while Fendi coated the fronds of a sable in the precious metal. Why? Because this stuff stands outside the fluctuating world of fashion. Gold never really gets old (see gallery below).

Decadence? Divine! So thinks Marc Jacobs, who launched his latest perfume in a bottle adorned with gold chain and faux-snakeskin, like a disco-primed evening bag. Packed with plum, saffron and iris, it's an ode to excess. What else would you expect from a designer who recently upped his notoriety a few notches with a risqué instagram selfie. The caption on that photo could even be the strapline for this new fragrance: it's yours to try.

Velvets and satins are the only suitable covering for after-dark shoes this winter. Miuccia Prada shod her ladies like debutantes in low-heeled silk satin slippers in a macaron box of colours, occasionally enlivened with Fauvist shades of chartreuse, cyclamen and an acidic limoncello. If you're investing, treat them with kid gloves and wear at night, adding a bit of daring to plain black dresses.