Some people collect cars, watches, Precious Thoughts figurines… I collect bags. Well, and shoes, but that’s another story for another day.
You’d think that working in magazine publishing and having easy access to fashion launches would be the reason for my obsession, but no, this is merely a happy circumstance that also happens to be a perfect accessory.
My interest in bags began – as most passions do – as a child.
Blame it on my mother (as we are wont to do), my OG fashion inspiration and enabler. In her Versace jeans accessorised with an array of arm candy from Louis Vuitton to Burberry, she gave meaning to the term Sunday best.
One of my distinct memories as a nine-year-old was writing down in a notepad a list of outfits I would wear to camp (BTW, a habit I still practise today when I travel) along with suggestions on which bags to match them with. I felt so chic knowing my accessories were perfectly coordinated with my Giodarno threads.
Later on, when I graduated to JNCO and Roxy, I borrowed the perfect mini Fendi bag from Mum. I say “borrowed”, but the truth is, I’ve never returned it. Writing this reminds me that I should dig it out – I think my Gen Z colleagues would say it’s bussin’.
In university, I gave tuition so I could afford the puffy Marc by Marc Jacobs tote in bright pink (does anyone remember the chokehold this range had on us?). A year into my first job, I scrimped and saved to buy my first proper designer bag: the YSL Easy Bag. Black, for its classic colour, and in the bigger size so I could fit my laptop and the kitchen sink inside.
On my honeymoon, I was entranced by the idea of owning the Chanel 2.55 flap. The moment the sales associate declared breezily, “It’s jersey!”, when I enquired how to maintain the fabric, I was sold. I still think of this moment often; it’s my Roman Empire.
This recollection of all the expensive bags I’ve loved and owned over the years is not just an exercise in not-so-humble bragging. Believe me when I say that my collection also includes multiple vintage and second-hand finds, as well as cheap and cheerful pieces I’ve picked up on travels or bought sleepily online at 2am.
But the thing about big purchases is that there’s plenty of consideration that goes into it.
After a particularly hard year marked by pain and loss, I decided that it was time to invest in my ultimate Holy Grail: the Hermes Kelly. A happy birthday, merry Christmas and a very happy New Year present to myself.
I had already been camping out on Instagram, PurseForum and YouTube for months – I knew all the colours, the leathers, the sizes, the hardware… and how it was difficult for first-timers to get a new bag in-store.
Nothing could have prepared me for the moment I laid my eyes on the vintage piece I had first seen online. Tadelakt leather. Palladium hardware. Size 32. It wasn’t a Mini Kelly II that everyone coveted, but the sheen was amazing and the leather buttery to the touch. The great price sealed the deal.
Since joining my bag family, it’s been a reliable workhorse. Sure, it’s been dinged up a bit over the years with a couple of scratches, but I don’t mind. It reminds me of the first trip post-Covid I took with my mother to Tokyo; the time I scrambled to find a tote bag to cover it during a downpour in Paris; when it sat next to me while editing stories late at night.
So, what’s in a bag? Only the precious memories you attach to it and the wonderful stories you’ll be able to tell.
What’s in yours?
