Favourites

I've been collecting coin purse and handbags for some years now and I have found that with each occasion, there's always a particular bag and coin purse to go with it - just like there's a certain pair of shoes, ear-rings and type of jewelery to wear.  

However, I do have my favourites amongst my collection that I use on a daily basis; and I thought to let you guys know which bags I use for when I'm not going out somewhere special.  These bags are for when I'm just in the need for something to take with me to store the stuff for everyday use.

Blue Dragon Bag is used for most trips into the city, Garden City and to Mum and Dad's place.  It's got a gorgeous long strap that's nice and wide and it can carry a book, my mobile, cards, purse, another carry-all fold-up bag and notebook too.  It was bought last year around March or so for around $8.00 at Life Line and it's made of cotton put out by Esprite. 

Pinelands is a new purchase.  I have handbag exchanges ever year or so at Life Line and this was one of them; my third in fact.  I like to change my shopping handbags to keep up with the changing feel of my wardrobe, life and anything else that may change in my life as well.  This one was a move into a more stable bag from the last one.  It's got a lovely long strap, plenty of room in it, a small double ended zip pocket on the side closest to my body and it's got feet on the bottom of it; so it's good and sturdy.  This handbag cost only $10; which a common price for a handbag for me, as I try not to pay more than that.  It's quality I look for in something like this, not quantity.

Bookcrossing Briefcase.  Now, I bought this one online through the Bookcrossing Supply Store.  It cost me $29.99US and the exchange in that was almost $50AUST; making it all the more expensive.  But once I received it, I found about a year later, they stopped making them.  So, this particular one - in Forrest Green especially - is very hard to get a hold of now.  I'm happy I bought it as it's got all the bits and pieces I'd ever want to take anything and everything to the Gallery to volunteer.  It holds my phone, cards, purse and pens, notebooks, at least three books, any knitting and craft gear I'd want it to; and the best thing is that it has a double-ended expander zip which doubles the size of the brief case if you need the extra room.  The long strap on this puppy has a padded shoulder pad and that can be removed if you don't like it there either... pretty convenient.  I do love this bag as it's so comfy and wonderful to use.

Little Beige Bag.  I bought this one at Life Line a few months back and is one I take with me if I'm going out for a few hours and don't need anything much with me.  It will carry the bare necessities and is very comfortable with its long strap and I love how cute it is.  I have taken this one on the bus all over the city and it's not a burden and has never weighed me down.  A brilliant little bag; could use it overseas with me - most definitely. 

Brown Check Bag is used mainly to collect the mail.  I don't remember where I bought this bag; I think I purchased it from Target for around $15 brand new when I was working, and it's still going.  The straps are wearing away and the colour is fading and it's filthy, but - like I said - it's only to collect the mail with, so it doesn't go anywhere all that fancy.

So, you know which bags I use on a regular basis, which ones are your all-time favourites; the ones you use all the time?  Where did you buy them from?  How long have you had them for?  Did you buy them on an impulse buy, or did you spot it and know exactly what it was going to be used for?  Leave a comment and let us all know.

New Bag Change-over Time

Every now and then, I'll change over my handbag at Life Line.  This is where I'll find a better bag than the one I currently have, buy it, and swap everything from my old one into the new one outside and then hand the old one back to be resold by Life Line.  

This one was a lovely little bag that I picked out.  It's a Pinelands and I do like how good it is.  It's got a lot of space inside it and an outside zipper pocket where I can put other things inside that - like my bus pass and my phone - right where I can lay my hands on them, and right where it can't be touched by other people but me seeing it's right up against my body.

It's got a lot of room inside it and an inside zip pocket.  I like the three-tone colouring and the feet on the bottom makes it very sturdy as well; very solid when I put it down, instead of it falling over like other bags I've had.

Yes, I'm happy with this new one I've gotten.  What do you think?

A Girlie Bag

While I was out yesterday, I also found this wonderful bag.  Now, it's not the type I'd take out on the town, actually, it's the kind of bag I'd use to go out to the movies or to visit a friend because it's just lovely and comfortable.  The great thing is that the gusset in it is big.  There's a central zip and two side sections where I can slide in my phone and store many things - like my camera and a book! 

This bag isn't designer labeled or anything like that; it's just a nice bag that I spotted and found I like.  It's a simple bag that I'll try out next week some time; and let you know how good it is.

The B & B Club

Yesterday, I was looking around my usual haunt of a charity store when I happened to come across some clothes.  Well, after trying those on - and not liking them - I wandered around and found this cute little bag from the 'B & B Club'.  It was something I just couldn't walk past; and it's got all it all.  I love the feet, the handles and the nice clean interior too.  I will be testing it out soon as well.

I am actually getting quite a nice little collection of these types of bags.  I guess they're just the sort of things that are catching my eye lately; and are just so cute!  This one is bigger than the ones I currently have; however, I will keep it in the collection as it's just a lovely Springtime-like bag.

Bad Alice

While out shopping yesterday, I dropped into my usual Life Line charity store to have a look around.  And I found a few little treasures to bring home with me.  One of them is this lovely little Goth bag called 'Bad Alice'.  Now, at first, I didn't think anything of it until I Googled it to see if it was of a particular design (as I had never heard of it before); and what popped up was a UK site where it was a popular style of handbag for teenagers overseas.

So, I'm lucky to have found a brand new one of these bags - with its tag still attached - on the shelf for $4.00!  What a steal!  And I love it as it's right up my alley of bags.  I do love these little bags that have a little attitude of their own.  Now.... to find the right occasion to flaunt it!  For more information about this little bag, I've put up the official site for it on the sidebar.

Astroboy!

 I remember when I was young, Astroboy was a big thing on my television screen; and the merchandise was massive too!  However, little by little, the craze diminished as I grew and the next generation of children enjoyed his antics on the small screen as the re-runs had them watching on.

On Wednesday, I was amazed to find an Astroboy vinyl wallet in the glass case at Life Line.  There's a few magic marker lines on it, but I've been unable to get them off.  This doesn't matter, though, as the magic of this wallet still goes on with this smiling face in black,white and red.  It was something I just couldn't pass up.

Handbag Exchange

Every now and then - about once a year or so - I change over my handbag.  It's something I do just for something different; it's a little like changing over your wardrobe every few years.  It's a nice thing to do for yourself.

And on Wednesday, I found a new bag at Life Line (who says you have to buy something brand new?).  The bag was something I could adjust the strap on, it had zips on all the compartments and those said compartments were roomy and deep too; so they could hold everything from a notebook, a book to my keys, phone, purse and - well - anything else I need in a day out.  I used it while I was out shopping and for once I didn't feel as though I was wading through a new bag.  I actually felt as though I had a bag which I was made for me.  This bag could be slung either across me or over one shoulder - depending on the length of the strap - and it felt very comfortable too.  So, once I emptied out the old bag, transferred my gear into the new one, I handed it straight into Life Line.  The lady smiled and took it from me, checking it to make sure I had everything, and then thanked me for it before taking it out the back to be cleaned.  So, where do you get your new handbags?  Do you do what I do and claim second-hand ones and do a type of exchange, or is it brand new or nothing?

Two Gorgeous Beauties!

First off, I must say that I have finished my clean out and didn't come across anything that was worthy of a give away... sorry about that. But I didn't wish to part with any of my good purses; but I didn't want to give you guys anything that was horrible not worthwhile either.

Well, I went out today to do my fortnightly shop and was looking at changing over my handbag again. I'm just not comfortable with it; that's all. It bugs me all the time and doesn't seem very easily accessible so I thought to find another one. However, instead, I found two lovely bags and nothing to replace my handbag. Bummer, but I guess that's how it happens sometimes.
It was the Glo-Mesh evening bag I saw in the window I spotted first; and grabbed it straight away. It's brand new, made in Hong Kong and has never been used. And if it has, it's only got a few little marks on the tiles. I looked inside and - instead of being white - the inside was brown; a colour I've never seen before. I looked at the tag and it saying Hong Kong explained why. This bag looked new because it was a recent make and the colours inside had changed from the vintage white/creme colours to a chocolate brown instead, very nice and clean too. I'm impressed with my purchase and happy with it.

The next one I spotted was hiding in amongst the other handbags on the shelves. It's a Burberry Bag, made in London; something we don't get here often, and if we do, it usually costs a lot of money to import. It's been used, and loved, however I love the simplicity and complexity of it in the same bag. The checkered pattern on the outside is continued on the inside where it's nice and neat and very well-taken care of. On the bottom, there's little feet and the handles are in very good condition too - with no frays to speak of. This impressive little bag is something I love to collect now as it's very cute and is easy to cart places; and with the feet on the bottom, it keeps the dirt at bay. So, these two bags were my impressive scores at Life Line today... it's amazing what you find when you go into an Op Shop!

Spring Clean!

This weekend, I've been busily Spring Cleaning my townhouse.  This means, I'll be coming across bags and coin purses I haven't seen in a long time.  So, I'll be documenting them here on the Coin Purse Obsession.  I can't wait to keep you all up-to-date with what I find around my office and bedroom (as these are the two main room I keep them).

Now, in my bedroom I keep my Glo-Mesh and Oroton bags, but there are others that are hiding in the wardrobe that I'll be pulling down and looking through.  

This is where you come into play; as followers...

I'll be conducting a giveaway of sorts for anyone who is interested in any bag I offer up as a giveaway bag up here.  However, if I'm unsuccessful in giving it away, it will go on Facebook and the first person who jumps in there it'll go to.  

Sounds good?  Hope so. 

So, stay tuned and I'll keep you posted about it all. 

Tokyo Cat Purse

A couple of months ago, Mum and I were at Annerley to get my mobile looked at when we found the Asthma Foundation's charity shop.  It was a very stuffy place chock full of great things at not-too-bad prices; if you knew what you were looking at.

The handbags weren't anything too exciting - that Mum and I agreed on - however I found my most exciting finds were in the coin purses.  This little one was a very lovely find; however half of it isn't connected up properly.  And even when I tried to fix it, it still didn't work properly.  So, this one will never be used in the real world but does look pretty.