My Baggage

When I was about 14 years old, I was bringing home some decent cash from my babysitting gigs. Whenever I could catch a ride with my mom to the Aviation Mall, I would blow all of my earnings on cute little purses, my infamous 'Stayin' Alive' tote bag, and various pocketbooks that made me feel grown-up.

The second I walked in the door my father would always say, "You know, Cara, if you spend all of your money on pocketbooks, you will have nothing to put inside them". He was right. I never had any money and funny thing is- I never carried any of those bags. Until recently, I was the sister who would go to the store stashing her wallet, cell phone & sunglasses in everyone else's bags.

Now that I am all grown-up, I have strayed away from the desire to own lots of bags, but I do strive to find that perfect bag- the one I'll carry for years, a classic.

Here are a few of the senseless but fun bags I own:
The Bermuda Bag

I was ba-nanas over these Bermuda bags in middle school. There was an entire store in the mall dedicated to them. Not a cart, a store. I could never afford them back then. Then a few years ago, my sister, Theresa surprised me with this set she found at a vintage store on the Vineyard. "Perfect for summers here around the pool in New Canaan," said the Stepford wife. 

You can buy new Bermuda Bags here.

The Hobo Bag

I was in the mood for that boho-chic look a few years back, and bought 2 of these hobo bags, only real  hobo's bags are plastic shopping bags. Digging through these deep, shapeless sacks makes me insane and I'm pretty sure that's why hobos mumble as they rummage through theirs as well.

Fun for a date night, but not a classic.

The Little Clutch

The Summer Bag

This is probably one of my best bag purchases. Many summers ago, the sisters and I made our seasonal pilgrimage to Walmart. Walmart I said! We each bought this beach bag for about $9.00. I swear, I have never gotten so many compliments on a bag. People go NUTS for it. And by people I mean everyone. I gravitated to it because it reminded me so much of a Paul Smith rug I covet:

The Serious Bag

This bag was my most recent attempt at feeling grown up, although I have recently been referred to as Dr. Quinn Medicine Woman carrying it. That's ok. This bag goes with everything (except my Yoga outfit), keeps things in order inside, and was affordable. It has structure. I had stalked its cousin, the Biennial Satchel from J.Crew forever, but this Evan Satchel from Banana Republic was much more my speed price-wise - plus I used a 40% off coupon that mysteriously arrived in the mail. It was a steal.