My Love Affair with Purses

I think most people who know me know I love purses. Even people who think they know me know I love purses. But I haven’t always had this love affair with purses. As I’ve mentioned before, my mother was certainly no fashion maven and she definitely did not encourage this trait in me. From her perspective, you didn’t need to wear the latest trends or look like everyone else. She had probably 5 dresses in her wardrobe, all made from the same pattern, in different colors or prints. She had a couple pairs of shoes and she had a coat. And she had one serviceable purse. Anything more than this was just unnecessary, as far as she was concerned.

When I was in college, I remember buying some clothes, usually things that were – surprise, surprise – more trendy and modern. I had a roommate my freshman year who was very fashion savvy and I aspired to look more like her, although I failed miserably. I remember buying my “interview suit” for on campus interviews my senior year. And that suit was the first professional item in my wardrobe. I added to my closet over the intervening years, but I don’t recall having more than maybe two purses, one for fall/winter and one for spring/summer. And if I spent $30 on a purse, that was a BIG deal.

The first time I really remember thinking about purses was not long after college when my best friend Debbie bought her first “expensive” purse. She spent $60 on an Aigner purse, which seemed like an incredible indulgence to me at the time. She doesn’t remember saying this, but I recall her telling me that now that she was in the working world she was going to buy whatever she wanted and not worry about the price. I thought that was so amazing, but I had been raised to be cheap and I couldn’t bring myself to do the same. I spent many years searching for that perfect color that could take me throughout the year in the perfect style that was classic and timeless. And that cost $30 or less.

Debbie was probably the person that put the purse bug in my head, although it lay dormant for awhile. I was with her when she bought a Gucci purse and I bowed down to her ability to spend the money without having heart palpitations. I genuflected to her awesomeness when she spent $80 – EIGHTY DOLLARS – on a shoulder strap (just the STRAP!) for her Louis Vuitton purse. I never thought in my lifetime that I would spend $80 on a purse, much less a strap.

But then one day a Dooney & Bourke caught my eye. It was a shoulder bag in a nice season stretching color. I salivated over it. But it was $225! A fortune! But I thought back to that Carrie Bradshaw-like confidence Debbie had when she’d bought her first “expensive” purse after college and I started saving my money. When I finally had the $225, I went to visit her in Houston for the weekend and we went to our favorite shopping haunt, The Galleria, and I bought that beautiful purse. It was apropos that she was with me when I bought that first special purse.

I probably should mention that by this time I was already a Talbots-aholic and was spending crazy amounts of money on clothes. Spending that kind of money on a purse though somehow seemed silly. But I loved that purse and I carried it for many years. And even after I had that breakthrough, I still looked for purses that would be suitable year-round. Or at least for half a season.

The first Coach purse I ever bought was actually a swing bag. I bought it before I went to the SHRM conference in New Orleans back in the early 2000’s. It was perfect for carrying the essentials and leaving my hands free for my tote bag and other necessities. The first full size Coach purse I ever bought was a Willis bag, a Coach classic. An HR friend of mine named Kerry was a huge Coach fanatic and she recommended the Willis. I carried that bag for a long time, even though it wasn’t as practical as later purses. The Willis didn’t have things like the cell phone pocket or another interior pocket and it wasn’t as large, so it didn’t hold as much “stuff”.

Then I discovered the Coach outlet in Grove City, Pennsylvania. For a couple of years after that I started adding to my Coach collection, all from the outlet. I had Hampton bags, which were my favorite style, and tote bags, which were great for travel. I even bought a laptop bag. I would look at the full price catalogs and then buy the outlet version.

I don’t remember the next time I bought a Coach bag from the full price store, but once I started I couldn’t stop. And suddenly I had more than just a purse for fall/winter and a purse for spring/summer. I started buying purses just because I liked them. And eventually I quit buying from the outlet. I had so many purses that I had to start switching them out each month. But I loved my purse collection. I loved the pretty colors and the comments I would get.

Eventually I traded out my swing bags for better small purses that are my go to for travel.

 

I bought an oversize tote that has traveled to Europe and many places in the US.

 

Debbie and I bought the same purse once. On purpose. We both loved it and loved the color and we both still have it.

 

I bought a Burberry purse at the Burberry outlet. I had been on a Burberry kick and bought it along with a scarf and an umbrella.

Then the day came when I went in the Louis Vuitton store with Debbie during one of my visits to Houston. I was breathless over the prices. Sure, they were beautiful purses, but at those prices I just couldn’t imagine myself ever buying one. And then I saw this:

 

The sales clerk took it down for me and placed it on the counter. I gasped as I touched it and picked it up and admired it. I nearly passed out when I looked at the price. I remember thinking “I wonder what would happen if I just picked it up and ran out of the store?” I was in love with that purse. Debbie egged me on. But I couldn’t do it. I left the store without it. But I couldn’t stop thinking about it. I agonized over it. I went home and still couldn’t stop thinking about it and talking about it. I finally looked it up online and not only did they not have it in the beautiful red color, but the price had gone up. So I took it as a sign that I wasn’t supposed to have that purse.

But one day I looked again and there it was. The red purse. At the price I’d seen at the store. And before I could change my mind, I ordered it. I thought I would regret it, but once it arrived and I had it out of the box, I knew I would never second guess my decision to buy it. And I will have it forever.

I have bought other purses. I have re-homed purses to friends as I’ve bought new ones. I have bought Kate Spade purses and a real Burberry and even another Louis Vuitton. But that red purse is the centerpiece of my purse obsession and it is the epitome of my love affair with purses. I don’t buy Coach purses much anymore. The styles don’t speak to me as much as they used to. But I still love beautiful purses and I still love it when someone comments on the one I’m carrying.

Thank you, Debbie, for introducing me to the world of purses. And for reminding me that it’s ok to be good to myself with something that I love.