Hi friends & HAPPY Wednesday!
For as long as I can remember, I’ve been carrying a purse.
Not exactly sure what 5 year old me was carrying around but ever since I was a little, I’ve LOVED purses!
Back in the day, I indulged in all of the purse fads which, looking back on it were just plain tacky + actually make me cringe now haha.
If you were born in the 80s (like me), then I can almost guarantee that your purse collection consisted of at least one of these bad boys:
UGH!
Thankfully as I got older, the fads changed. And while I had left my tacky bags in the closet to collect dust, I I found myself swapping out my mermaid-esque slouchy bags for the likes of Chanel, Burberry and Gucci.
By my early 20s, I had accumulated quite the collection of high end bags that I THOUGHT made me a bit of a big deal. Now looking back on it, it really just meant that I was throwing away my money on some overpriced sh*t.
As I entered my 30s, I became more intentional with my spending + when it came to bags, I realized I needed to take a real hard look at what I was actually buying. I was spending AT LEAST $1500 on a bag that was:
– leather + therefore NOT cruelty free
– not sustainable
– from a brand that didn’t have good labor practices
And that’s when the lightbulb finally went off + I started to make the transition to sustainable, vegan leather bags that wouldn’t break the bank. And let the record state that doesn’t meant that you have to sacrifice style! There are tons of brands (both high end and affordable) that offer some incredible pieces that you’d never know were vegan! Don’t believe me, check out “9 Vegan Bags & Purses That Prove You Don’t Need Leather To Be Stylish“.
Annnnnnnyways, now that I’ve gotten that off my chest, let’s chat about the purse I’ve been carrying around lately.
When it comes to my wardrobe, I am ALL about H&M. Their pieces are trendy, super affordable + are great quality. So when they started launching some super cute vegan leather bags, well why the heck would I not try them out?!
I picked up this Balenciaga-esque black bag back in 2019 and since then, it’s been a purse staple. It cost less than $50 + is the perfect bag to take me from the office to a dinner out, fitting everything I could possibly need (and then some).
When I’m not filling this “not so little black bag” up to the brim, I usually have these purses on rotation throughout the year:
(**Wanna know a little secret?! The Gucci and Goyard are both knockoffs + I’m obsessed! FL Fancy Bags has a dupe for almost every single high end bag, so they’re definitely worth checking out…https://flfancybag.com/)
So now that you’ve met the bag, let’s dive right into a good old fashioned WHAT’S IN MY BAG post!
It’s totally worth mentioning that my purses are NEVER, I repeat, NEVER this tidy!
At any given time, you could reach in + find empty wrappers, loose bits of gum, receipts, a sock! haha You never know what you’re going to find in one of my bags.
That being said what you WILL find are two wallets.
Yes two. And the more I think about it, it’s like I have a wallet for my wallet (haha).
Anyways, yes I carry around a regular sized wallet AND a card holder.
My Marc Jacobs zippered wallet is the perfect size to house my membership cards, gift cards, cash and coins, while my sparkly Kate Spade card holder is strictly for the essentials (aka ID, debit and credit card). If I’m running into a store and don’t want to lug around my purse, I can just grab my card holder and go.
Now I can’t be the only one that fills their purse with stationary!
Notebooks, pens, you name it, I need it. Because you never know when inspiration is going to strike, am I right?! I always make a habit of buying books that are colorful + make me excited to write in them, so this one from Indigo that says “Go out and paint the stars” is no exception!
And while I suppose it doesn’t fall into the stationary category, my AirPods live in my purse. Because you never know when you’re going to need to drown out the world with some music OR a good old meditation.
And now we’ve arrived at the REAL essentials…MAKEUP & beauty.
No matter how big or small my purse is, it’s a guarantee that I will have at least 10 beauty products stuffed in there. Haha I wish I was kidding but my goodness when it comes to makeup, I don’t travel light.
I always make sure to have:
– a mirror
– hand cream
– hand sanitizer
– lip options! I always travel with a plentitude of lip balms, glosses, lipsticks AND lip liners!
– a travel sized perfume
– gum and/or mints
– Kleenex
And there you have it friends!
What weird or random things have you found in your purse?
Thanks so much for stopping by & until next time,
xo