I don't think there's anything wrong with purchasing a fake bag. I think I owned a few fakes from "the purse man" who sells purses at the hair salon!
At this point in my life though, I would rather get a "lesser named" handbag "inspired by" than get a fake. For example, Target has some really cute Moschino suede kidney shaped bags (I think I'm going to break down and get it this weekend!) for $17. Newport News has a black bowler bag with leather handles on clearance for $19.99. Both of these bags were probably inspired by Prada, Gucci, Fendi or whomever but they don't pretend to BE Prada or Gucci, Fendi or whomever. I guess I would rather get these bags than to head to Ebay and pay $150.00 for a fake LV Cherry Blossom bag (usually running $900-2000) or get a "Chanel" bag from the "purse man" for $40.00. I could get two or three "lesser-prestige" bags that I think are really cute for the same price I got ONE fake.
I figure that true fashion sense come from making the season's styles work for YOU rather than being a copycat anyway--hence why one week I bought a pay of Pliners from Saks and the next week buying Juicy Couture "knock-offs" from Target! If I wanted something that looked just like the hottest Prada, LV, Tod's or Lambertson Truex ((sniff, sniff)), then I I'd just save up my pennies and dimes and get the real thing.
And yes, shopping is indeed a beautiful thing!