A $39,000 backpack from the Olsen twins' luxury fashion line The Row was "the first thing that sold off the shelf," according to Ashley. "During our last economic crisis in the U.S., the only thing that went up was Hermès." That's why she designed this mind-bogglingly expensive backpack, made exclusively from the skin of the mysterious fourth Olsen sister, who lives in a cage in their basement. You thought Elizabeth Olsen was the secret one? Hah. 
 
 Above, Ashley totes the fabled bag in Tribeca. Shhh, do you hear that? It's little Scaleskin Olsen, begging for her life. [WWD, NYDN, image via Splash] ||||| Olsen twins line The Row $39,000 backpack flying off shelves at Barneys New York: Ashley 
 
 Mike Coppola/Getty The Olsen twins said their $39,000 backpack is selling out at Barneys New York. 
 
 Take our Poll $39,000 backpack Would you buy it? Sure! If I could afford it. No way, not even if I was rich. I'm not sure. Related News Articles 
 
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 What recession? A $39,000 backpack designed by the Olsen twins' designer brand The Row is selling out. 
 
 Former child actress turned high-end fashion designer Ashley Olsen told Women's Wear Daily that The Row was scrambling to keep up with demand for the luxury car-priced accessory. 
 
 
 
 'FULL HOUSE': WHERE ARE THEY NOW? 
 
 
 
 "It was the first thing that sold off the shelf," she said. 
 
 
 
 Barneys New York began carrying the crocodile-skin bags in July, in an effort to compete with other ludicrously-priced handbags. 
 
 
 
 Now, it seems the gamble has paid off. 
 
 
 
 Amanda Brooks, the fashion director for Barneys New York, told Fashionista this summer that the line of super-pricy bags was a surefire attempt appeal to a younger crowd. 
 
 
 
 "Obviously we don't carry Hermes bags in the store so we were trying to find something that appeals to that customer who is willing to spend a lot of money on a bag that's going to last a long time and has a classic design," she said. 
 
 
 
 Brooks also touted another benefit to the bag. 
 
 "You also might be the only one who has it," she said. 
 
 Not if the bag keeps flying off the shelves, you won't. ||||| Mary Kate in a Dolce and Gabbana jacket and Giambattista Valli dress. Photo Credit: Tesh Special Offer 
 
 Mary-Kate Olsen is not the same girl you watched grow up on Full House alongside twin sister Ashley. She's now a fashion powerhouse who has forged an identity all her own. Marie Claire's Kimberly Cutter gets an up-close look at the intensely private star, goes inside the studio of her label, The Row, and looks back at her anything-but-ordinary upbringing in our latest issue, on sale at newsstands now. 
 
 Often seen yet rarely heard, Mary-Kate's cover shoot at The Inn in Quogue, New York, sets the sartorial tone  she wears a mash-up of designers, from her own leather jacket to mainstays like Valentino and Catherine Malandrino to newcomer Christopher Kane  and a humorous one, with an antler headband. 
 
 Go behind the scenes of Mary-Kate's Marie Claire cover shoot in the Hamptons. 
 
 Outside of the spotlight, the 24-year-old bohemian star loves designing for her mix of labels  from The Row to her and Ashley's lower-priced Olsenboye line for JCPenney  because "it's kind of like a mask to hide behind." In fact, Mary-Kate likens her and her sister to "little monkey performers" when referencing her childhood in front of the cameras: "I look at old photos of me, and I don't feel connected to them at all I would never wish my upbringing on anyone " 
 
 See the exclusive photos from Mary-Kate's September issue spread. 
 
 And when the topics turn to her tabloid-plastered problems with an eating disorder (she entered treatment for one in 2004) and with a hard-partying lifestyle (including her time with the late Heath Ledger), she only says that she's learned to seek help when she needs it: "I think it's really important to be able to talk when something's wrong. I learned at a really young age that if you don't talk about it, it can drive you insane." 
 
 Her focus right now, as Cutter writes, is all to do with fashion. From the inception of The Row to their early successes  "It took us a year-and-a-half to make the first T-shirt," she says  Mary-Kate takes it more seriously than anything else: "I still read scripts, and if something great comes along, that's great but this is my day job. The Row is where I go every day." 
 
 More Mary-Kate: 
 
 
 
 Tell Marie Claire: What do you think of Mary-Kate? Do you like her cover look? Share your thoughts in the Comments section below!
– The solution to America's endless economic woes is apparently the Olsen twins' $39,000 backpack. In a Women's Wear Daily interview from last week just getting some attention, Ashley explains why she and her sister thought extreme luxury might sell: "During our last economic crisis in the US, the only thing that went up was Hermès." And their plan worked: The alligator backpack, part of The Row handbag collection, "was the first thing that sold off the shelf," Ashley says. Gawker has a picture, and snarks that it is "made exclusively from the skin of the mysterious fourth Olsen sister, who lives in a cage in their basement."