Judith Leiber and her bags. Photo: Gordon Munro

Judith Leiber is on the hunt for handbags... her own.

The famed designer, who made jeweled minaudiers into an art form, is looking to acquire examples of her work to populate the Leiber Museum in the Hamptons, NY.

"I had to leave the archives with the company when I sold the company," Leiber told StyleList at a party fêting her memoir, "No Mere Bagatelles: Telling the story of handbag genius Judith Leiber & modernist artist Gerson Leiber" at Bergdorf Goodman.

Consequently, "I've had to collect my bags from auctions, people have given me bags and some people are leaving us their bags in their wills, which is very nice," she explained.

"I have about 850 now, but I made about 3,500 in my day, so I'm still looking around for more. "

The book, which was written by Jeffrey Sussman, traces Leiber's story from her youth in pre-World War II Hungary to her early days in New York, and follows her to the pinnacle of success alongside her artist husband, Gerson "Gus" Leiber.

Reading as if each chapter is a social occasion, the memoir is woven around wine drinking, good food and comfortable settings described in great detail.

"I interviewed Judy, her sister and Gus for about a year starting in 2007," Sussman explained.

And from the text in the book, it sounds like each meeting was a marvelous time.

The book will soon be available at judithleiber.com and select Neiman Marcus locations. In the meantime, order your copy by calling 866-542-7167.

For more stylish reads, learn more about this blogger's book dedicated to a certain First Lady's style.