DNA extracted from hair left behind by Alexander McQueen would be used to create skin in a project by Tina Gorjanc

Alexander McQueen always made handbags to die for. But would he approve of one that he could have, literally, died for?

Hopefully he would, because an artist wants to make a leather handbag using the designer’s skin.

Tina Gorjanc, from Central Saint Martin’s art school, has produced a project, complete with patents, describing plans to use DNA extracted from McQueen’s hair to make his skin in a laboratory using cutting-edge biotechnology.

At present growing enough skin to craft a full handbag would probably be prohibitively expensive

At present growing enough skin to craft a full handbag would probably be prohibitively expensive, although arguably not compared with what McQueen, who died in 2010, used to charge for handbags with no trace of his skin — they can set you back more than £1,000.

Yesterday stem cell scientists said that her idea