Friends, I am by no means a fashionista.  Puhleeze!  The acceptable work attire for my day job is jeans, a t-shirt and sandals.  I wear Crocs or sneakers almost every day.  This is not to say that I don't know how to dress fashionably or that I don't own other clothes.  When the occasion warrants, I have many outfits and separates from which to choose to pull myself together.  Still, unlike the character of Finley in Knock Em Dead, which I blogged about in the previous entry, I'm not a label conscious pursuer of designer duds.  I don't care who designed my clothes as long as they're well-made, stylish, fit me right and aren't made of questionable "fabrics" that could melt on a hot and sunny enough day.

So, it might sound strange to you, but I'm experiencing more than a soupcon of grief over the departure from Key West of one of my favorite stores.  The Coach Outlet is no longer on Duval Street.

*le sob*

I love Coach handbags.  Truly.  I have three, okay, technically four if you count the wristlet.  There's the golden brown suede and leather portfolio-messenger style bag for fall and winter (Who cares if Florida's temperature really doesn't change enough to follow style seasons?), a blue leather and dotted fabric number, and a cute little blue leather and shiny fabric bag.  Plus that wristlet of blue and white leather.

Great bags and, thanks to that Coach Outlet, wonderful, affordable bags.  See, I got all of them, at various times, from the clearance sections of the outlet.  Coach Outlet + clearance section = significant savings from regular retail.  Factor in the generous extra 10% discount I received for being a local and you'll see that the bags were so much lower in price that I couldn't NOT buy them!

I have no idea when I developed this Coach crush.  Heck, not too many years ago, I carried a bag made out of the butt of a pair of jeans, complete with zipper fly and pockets!  (Great for slipping in a cell phone and lip gloss!) It even had pretty dolphin appliques.

 My sister-in-law loathed that handbag.  I swear when she saw it, her face tightened like she'd gotten a whiff of month old, maggoty meat.  She thought I was far too mature to carry such a bag.  Sis-in-law is pleased with my more appropriate Coach addiction.

Sometimes, if I'm in a mall with a Coach retail store, I go in to view the merchandise and torment myself over the prices.  I love Coach, but I don't relish the idea of spending $400 to $800 for a handbag.  It isn't that I'm cheap, or poor.  More that my practical heart knows I'll be happier paying hundreds less for a bag and using the savings to purchase something else that I'd really, really love to own.  Call it Sense and Cents-ability!

Which brings me to an article that I read online today about what the style of bag we carry indicates about our personalities.  Briefcase-purse type bags = professional, intelligent, organized, able to multi-task.  Clutch = confident, streamlined, don't need entire life by our sides.  Monogrammed tote = Proud of who we are, comfortable, open to the world knowing it. 

Then there's the Brand bag = We like the finer things in life and want people to know it.  We're "fabulous" and know that certain brands enhance our image and upscale personality. 

Does that make everybody who carries a brand name bag sound like a status-seeking snob or what?  Topping that, the bag they named as the "pinnacle" is the Hermes Birkin.

I Googled the Birkin.  Retail price starts at $7500.00!!!    

Holy sweet Lord in Heaven, that's only slightly less than the cost of my first car!

For a handbag.  To carry stuff in.  Everyday ordinary stuff like my wallet (enhanced by puppy tooth marks), keys, lip gloss, business cards, eye drops, tampons.    If I was the type to carry a $7500.00 bag, I'd damn well better have a 14K gold tampon case as an accessory.

Could you imagine the first time you got the teeniest scratch on the leather of the Birkin?  It would be the equivalent of someone keying a Bentley's paint job. 

Even if I had the money, I wouldn't spend $7500 on a single handbag.  Not when there are so many other, wonderful, more rewarding things to buy -- like trips to Hawaii, a good sized deposit on a luxury car, a fourth of your kid's college tuition.

 

I have long lusted after a Coach handbag. All of my bags come from Target. :(

I still have my very first Coach bag ~ from high school in the late '80s. It's black leather with gold hardware and I keep in tucked away in a special dustbag because one day it will be vintage, lol.

I admit to having a pathetic addiction to high-end bags and shoes. I spend way too much money on them. However, I did run across a web site you might enjoy. It's called Bag, Borrow, or Steal. It has a large variety of brand-new handbags that, for a membership fee, they will 'lend' to you. Much like Netflix for handbags, they have different levels of membership. Check it out, I think I remember seeing some gorgeous Coach bags on there. :) Karen

Do they make a 14k gold tampon case I wonder?

really I am glad you gave up the jean cut off bag, Now you're styling!!:P