Girly girls & Their handbags Part II

Charlotte has an absolutely colossal bag! "I saw it in the shop and knew I had to have it." Like Dahlia, she has over 40 handbags and co-ordinates them with what she is wearing. Unlike Dahlia, she does this every single day.

"I want people to know that I take care of my appearance and my handbag helps to say this. If everything goes together, I just feel better about myself."

Again, Charlotte has most of the usual suspects in her bag as well. However, given this bag is so huge, she can afford to bring some non-traditional items with her. She is going out tonight after work so she has bought her hair straighteners with her in case she needs to touch up her hair.

Girly girls and their handbags

Dahlia is 28 and originally from Malaysia but now lives in London. She has over 30 handbags. This one, her father bought her when he was on business in Paris. She changes her handbags according to what she is wearing -- so that typically means 2-3 times per week. (I would have loved to gone to her house and looked at all her bags!)

When she is matching her handbags to her clothes it is important that they co-ordinate rather than strictly match. She doesn't want to look like a fashion victim but wants to look as if she's made an effort. She feels that her bags should be "nice and neat" and make a statement about the kind of girl she is -- someone who loves to look good and takes real pride in her appearance.

Given how many times a week she changes her bag, the inside was quite neat and tidy. She carries the usual suspects in her handbag. She was surprised at how many pens she had, but other than that, she felt all the contents were necessary.

The only slightly unusual item was her hand sanitiser... You don't see a lot of people in England carrying those around.

Another Mummy back in the world of Adults...

This is Vicky. She is 32 years old and a mother of a 2-year old daughter. She is very similar to Mo in that her handbag choice, especially now that she is back at work, needs to be more about her than it is about the fact that she is a mother. Also like Mo, her daughters things can't help but creep into her handbag... (Note the wadded up tissues and sweets/chocolate -- "Just in case")

Vicky bought this bag recently in the sales. It was a bit of an impulse buy, "I actually wanted to look at something else in the shop but someone was in the way so I decided to look at the handbags. I needed something functional -- that I could use for work -- but not too big. I didn't want it to look like a diaper bag. What I liked about this one is that it is deceivingly big... It looks quite small but hold a lot."

Vicky says she needs her bag to be practical because her busy schedule means that she can quite easily become disorganised. So, she needs a bag that helps her keep it together.

Inside her bag you will find:
Loose change -- "It fell out of my purse at some point."
hair brush
opened and half eaten chocolate bar -- "My daughter ate part of this when we were out shopping but didn't want to finish it. I just shoved it back in my bag."
Sanitary towel
Tissues
Oyster Card
Pens (Lots and lots of those!)
lock for her locker at the gym
Lipstick and Lip gloss -- "Because I am trying to hold onto my femininity at all costs. I hardly use it but it makes me feel more human to know it's there."
Wallet
Train ticket

Apologies in Advance...

Hi Ladies...

My trusty photographer has gone to work in Mauritius. Yes, Mauritius. Some people have all the hard luck... Anyway, I have had to conduct the last 4 interviews without him. So, you will notice that the quality of the imagery has suffered somewhat...

For my last 4 interviews, I conducted a combination depth interview/group discussion with each of the girls you see from now on. I spent 30 minutes talking to each of them individually and then we had an hour long group discussion.

Some typologies are definitely emerging from our girls in London... Looking forward to seeing what you make of it!

Kate x

Understated handbag for an Extroverted Girl

This is Helen. She is 26. Originally from Dublin, she has spent the past couple of years living in Spain and has recently settled in London. She is a PA at a big marketing firm.

Helen's bag choosing/decision making is quite interesting. I've spent some time with Helen as I've been working for her agency on a bit project. She is totally the life and soul of the party. She is always the one to arrange the drinks nights out and is the last one to go home. She always has the most positive attitude around the office and is very smiley and accommodating. She is very outgoing and I notice that people from other departments come over to talk to her and joke with her.

So, I was very surprised when she told me that she chooses handbags that are understated and simple. She wants a bag that doesn't draw attention to her or what she is wearing. She says this is why she always wears black too. So, while her personality is very large and loud, her handbag is medium sized and very understated.

She bought this handbag when she was in Spain on a recent trip. Handbags are cheaper in Spain than in the UK. Helen feels that this handbag is "classy" and "versatile". It's big enough to hold a lot but not too big to hurt her shoulder or weigh her down.

Inside her handbag are the usual things:
Tissues -- her nose is always running and she MUST have tissues with her at all time. If she doesn't have tissues she'll take toilet roll!
Gum & Mints -- especially handy after she has a big night out, which is quite frequent. Helen likes to take her lovely personality out with her at night!
Keys
Wallet
Mp3 Player for her commute
Umbrella
Cigarettes
Hair ties
Spare hoop earrings
Face Powder

Of all the things in her handbag, she would die with out the usual things -- wallet, mobile, Mp3 player. She also couldn't do without her umbrella... If it rains it ruins her hair.

"My handbag gives me security. It holds all my junk and I'm prepared for work and play... I'd feel naked if I didn't have it with me."

It's all about someone else...

Although being a yummy mummy, a sexy mother and wife with the perfect family isn't really Jackie's frame of mine like it was with Mo (and Vicky -- watch for future posts), there's something else going on here that is similar... And her utilitarian handbag enforces this point... Jackie's life is full of her taking care of other people -- running the kids to and from school and activities. She is their chauffeur and their bank and their chef. And she is rarely thanked or visibly appreciated for this.

Her handbag has very little in it -- but there are lots of receipts for things for her kids.

Contents of Jackie's Handbag:

2 Wallets -- 1 for credit cards, 1 for everything else
Inhaler -- for her asthma, which can hit her at any time so she must have it with her when she's driving
Mobile phone -- Jackie is deaf in one ear so hates the phone. Her mobile is only in use when she needs to liaise with her kids about when and where to pick them up
Lipgloss
Pens
Chequebook
Receipts for petrol, Louisa's clarinet lessons, Louisa's new school uniform (it was declined twice because they were just back from holiday and had overspent... Jackie wasn't bothered but the man at the store was very embarrassed!), salad from Waitrose (when Jackie was waiting for Ellie to come back from the Reading Festival on the train), groceries, football kit for Freddie