2019 resolution - shopping my own bag and wallet collection. Any one else?

[ipsum]

How is everyone doing / feeling mentally and activity wise on shopping their closets vs. buying new bags?

I did get the black tote but, I’ve wanted that for a few years now. That being said, I do really want to try to stick and stay with enjoying my collection not buying new “just because”.

Funny coincidence! I got a black tote too in lamb and absolutely love it. It's pity that it has been snowing lately like a hell so it's very difficult to use any open tote unless I want to carry a full bucket of snow with me... But spring is on the corner soon!

I got a matching flap card case / wallet in lamb as well which I've been using every day. It still looks like a brand new though I haven't treated it with special care. This model works so well so I gathered my courage and purchased the exact same model in caviar this week without a second thought because it was beautifully made (all threads in line, no crooked CC logo etc.) while browsing the minis. Now I sort of regret not being considerate enough. No love for stiffness and plasticy feeling of the caviar but I do hope it'll soften a bit at least and growing to love it more later. I really don't want to re-sell it. Just too arduous process. I learned again not to buy anything which is not on my wishlist.

Link to the pic if it doesn't show: link

 

[Sparkletastic]

Challenge Update:

I’m doing the Form & Function challenge and surprisingly have gotten the “form” bags worn.

Mr. S. & I had fun celebrating the anniversary of our first date last night. I didn’t get a purse pic which is so unlike me. But, I wore my silver Dior so first half of the challenge complete.

I’ve also worn my Jimmy Choo Raven so half of function is done. I just haven’t gotten around to wearing the black Fendi BTW.

I think I’m going to switch up the challenge and try to wear each of 4 prettiest and 4 most functional bags twice. That will be a big challenge!!! But, hey it’s no fun if it’s easy. Lol!

• Dior cream and gold Diorama (worm onece)
• Dior silver Diorama (worm once)
• Chanel red lamb flap (worn once)
• Miu Miu pewter mini tote

• LV LockMe II BB (worm 3 times)
• Jimmy Choo Raven (worm twice)
• Fendi BTW
• Chanel Tote

 

[Sparkletastic]

FYI: here are the Feb challenges again

FEBRUARY SHOPPING YOUR CLOSET CHALLENGES!

• Color challenge: Wear each of your bags in the colors of Feb - red for love or purple for amethyst.
• Extreme team: Wear your 3 smallest or 3 largest bags at least 2x
• Fresh Focus February: Pick one lesser used bag and wear it with 4 new outfits over the month (approx. one a week)
• Function or Form: Wear both your prettiest bag and your most functional bag at least 2x this month

 

[Rhl2987]

I’m totally feeling cheated over here. I had my kids when things like a babymoon and push presents weren’t a thing. All I got was a baby, private school tuition bills and a sprinkling of stretch marks. Lol!

Can I demand reparations? Maybe the kids should chip in too.

Push presents seem to be more of a thing now but I'm absolutely using that as an excuse to get myself presents HAHA. And I think you should absolutely get retroactive push presents for yourself!! Or have your husband pick them out!

I originally mentioned to my husband what I might want and then I decided to just take matters into my own hands. I really buy myself enough things that I don't need him to buy me presents except small, thoughtful things! And he doesn't like purses or VCA jewelry anyway, which is what I really like. Plus, he doesn't have the budget for such extravagant fun pieces. A couple of years ago for my birthday he got me a beautiful pair of diamond climber earrings and a stunning handmade wooden jewelry box. He really went all out that year and I don't expect that again. I'm the spender in our relationship and I'd like to keep it that way

 

[Rhl2987]

Isn't it a great bag? I wish they've continued making it cause I would not hesitate to get one in every color.

View attachment 4337943

I also love your well used mono PA!! Do you use that as a catch all or as a clutch?

 

[Rhl2987]

Old Photo of my MJ Cammie in Mustard/Camel. Miss this bag but I got years of use before selling it.
View attachment 4338316
I've been an irregular poster but back and going to be serious !

I used to have the MJ Blake bag with similar locks on the front. Love it! Mine was my first designer bag that my Mom bought me and I used it long as well before gifting it back to my Mom.

 

[Rhl2987]

Challenge Update:

I’m doing the Form & Function challenge and surprisingly have gotten the “form” bags worn.

Mr. S. & I had fun celebrating the anniversary of our first date last night. I didn’t get a purse pic which is so unlike me. But, I wore my silver Dior so first half of the challenge complete.

I’ve also worn my Jimmy Choo Raven so half of function is done. I just haven’t gotten around to wearing the black Fendi BTW.

I think I’m going to switch up the challenge and try to wear each of 4 prettiest and 4 most functional bags twice. That will be a big challenge!!! But, hey it’s no fun if it’s easy. Lol!

• Dior cream and gold Diorama (worm onece)
• Dior silver Diorama (worm once)
• Chanel red lamb flap (worn once)
• Miu Miu pewter mini tote

• LV LockMe II BB (worm 3 times)
• Jimmy Choo Raven (worm twice)
• Fendi BTW
• Chanel Tote

I love how you and Mr. S celebrate the anniversary of your first date! My husband and I don't even agree on when we officially started dating 8 years ago, but at least now we have a concrete wedding anniversary that we can celebrate.

 

[More bags]

Funny coincidence! I got a black tote too in lamb and absolutely love it. It's pity that it has been snowing lately like a hell so it's very difficult to use any open tote unless I want to carry a full bucket of snow with me... But spring is on the corner soon!

I got a matching flap card case / wallet in lamb as well which I've been using every day. It still looks like a brand new though I haven't treated it with special care. This model works so well so I gathered my courage and purchased the exact same model in caviar this week without a second thought because it was beautifully made (all threads in line, no crooked CC logo etc.) while browsing the minis. Now I sort of regret not being considerate enough. No love for stiffness and plasticy feeling of the caviar but I do hope it'll soften a bit at least and growing to love it more later. I really don't want to re-sell it. Just too arduous process. I learned again not to buy anything which is not on my wishlist.

Link to the pic if it doesn't show: link

Beautiful tote - congratulations!

 

[taho]

I used to have the MJ Blake bag with similar locks on the front. Love it! Mine was my first designer bag that my Mom bought me and I used it long as well before gifting it back to my Mom.

I love the past MJ bags, nothing from the newer designs has compelled me to buy. Hope they Revisit some old designs and add some new flair

 

[lynne_ross]

I have velvet jeans from two brands. 7 for all mankind and INC (Macy’s house brand). Love them!
I really need to track my clothing usage. I’m so spotty in doing so which is weird because I always track bag usage. I’m going to commit to starting today.
Jewelry is my weakness but I’ve grown very planful.

I finally decided to get serious with my everyday items - for me that means pretty, sparkly, non branded white gold and diamonds. I wanted 3 sets (earrings, bracelets, necklaces) that I can rotate and semi mix and match. Some selling, some buying and some restyling has gotten me to just about complete with that project.

And, because I’ve collected jewelry since my teens, I already have a number of yellow gold items from when that color was more popular. However, I sold / gifted a lot (anything 10k, 14k or generally blah) and only kept the best pieces. Most of what I kept were pretty chains for which I upgraded / restyled pendants so that the stones were a good size. One of my favorite is a yg drop pendant in which I set the 1ct diamond that was in my mom’s engagement ring. It means a lot to me to wear that. I have a couple pair of pretty yg earrings but, need to work on that a bit too.

And, I’ve sold off almost all my sterling silver (lots of Tiffany’s stuff) and just about all my colored stone jewelry except for one killler earring / necklace set I adore and one bracelet. Sterling silver gets on my nerves with the tarnish. Colored stones just don’t make my heart go pitty pat as much as diamonds. (Plus the price I’d rubies has gone through the roof. It was a good time to sell mine.)

What’s slowing me down is that I only want to add super extra special pieces at this point. And, most of those are 5 figures in cost. Not the kind of items I can just run out and impulse buy. So, Mr. Sparkle has his marching orders and I expect him to look neither to his left nor right til he’s done.

Seriously though, I’m really not thinking more bags right now. I’m really focused on jewelry. I have about 12 pricey items at the consignment jeweler right now. I need some hungry buyers to buy so I can get moving with what I want to get. Lol!

I encourage you to sell what jewelry you aren’t wearing. It feels as good as getting rid of bags and clothes we aren’t wearing.
I can’t window shop or I will buy. So, I just have to stop cold turkey.

In contrast, TPF doesn’t tempt me. It helps me refine my choices so I make better purchases. It stops me from making purchases as I get the inside scoop on bags and learn of deal breakers. And, this thread gives me healthy peer pressure to resist buying into external buying / marketing / keep up with the Joneses messages. So weirdly, TPF stops a lot of my buying and makes what I do buy much smarter choices.
That orange bag is so happy!!!!

I really need to look for velvet jeans! Thx for brands.

I am not tracking clothing just seperating it this year. It is eye opening though just doing that!

Ugh need to figure out jewelry situation. I need to figure out what I want to keep for my daughter then part with the rest. Going through it just seems so hard. Good for you for going through and letting stuff go!

 

[lynne_ross]

I honestly think you should stop trying to like this bag. It just is NOT for you. You shouldn’t even bother selling it.

Instead, you should allow me as your dear selfless friend to take this burden off your hands and spare you any further consternation or pain. Mail it to me today and be free of this bag!!!
I’m totally feeling cheated over here. I had my kids when things like a babymoon and push presents weren’t a thing. All I got was a baby, private school tuition bills and a sprinkling of stretch marks. Lol!

Can I demand reparations? Maybe the kids should chip in too.
Buying this book now. I love getting fresh ideas on how to play with my clothes!!!
I adore black, white and grey clothes that have beautiful design structure. Adding colors in pops was easy peasy and natural for me to do too. They make strong statements and I like interesting clothes.

Adding in the other colors I wanted - navy, bordeaux, dark emerald green and clear (not dusty, pale or tea stained) pastels - was work. You can’t add plop one caramel piece in your wardrobe and not “support” it with other items. So, that’s why I started slowly. I had to buy in tiny clusters that worked together and with what I had.

I still never wear any camel colored (or burgundy) item near my face. It’s bottoms, shoes or accessories. And, I have zero desire to add true earth tones (rust, mustard, hunter, brown, blueish slate, etc) because they don’t flatter me and I don’t like them.
Oooh passport holder for tissues. Genius. I hate carrying tissues (but need to) because they get all crumpled and shed dust. I get a tissue pouch!! Thanks for sharing.

Lol! I was wondering where you were going with my bag!

I explained the idea of a push present to my DH before I had my first and he was like - your present is a baby! But I had a rough labour and delievery and in the recovery room the nurse asked me if my love bracelet (one my mom had bought me years before) was a present for giving birth (swear I did not pay her to say this!) and I said no and DH immediately goes ‘but we are going to get her another one after she is released’. The day after I was released DH took me to Cartier and bought me a second love. He had so bought into the literal meaning of it lol! But yes now I am left with stretch marks and future private school costs...ugh

 

[Sparkletastic]

Funny coincidence! I got a black tote too in lamb and absolutely love it. It's pity that it has been snowing lately like a hell so it's very difficult to use any open tote unless I want to carry a full bucket of snow with me... But spring is on the corner soon!

I got a matching flap card case / wallet in lamb as well which I've been using every day. It still looks like a brand new though I haven't treated it with special care. This model works so well so I gathered my courage and purchased the exact same model in caviar this week without a second thought because it was beautifully made (all threads in line, no crooked CC logo etc.) while browsing the minis. Now I sort of regret not being considerate enough. No love for stiffness and plasticy feeling of the caviar but I do hope it'll soften a bit at least and growing to love it more later. I really don't want to re-sell it. Just too arduous process. I learned again not to buy anything which is not on my wishlist.

Link to the pic if it doesn't show: link

The pic is of a pretty tote not a wallet. Which one did you just purchase? Do you love the item enough to “break in” the caviar? I knew with my red caviar jumbo that I was avoiding wearing it because of the plasticky caviar. So I eventually had to give in, sell it and buy one in lamb. The caviar tote I just bought isn’t plasticky. But, even if it was a teeny bit, I would wear it enough to soften it pretty quickly.

So, just my two cents on materials. I hope it softens over time do you can love it!

Push presents seem to be more of a thing now but I'm absolutely using that as an excuse to get myself presents HAHA. And I think you should absolutely get retroactive push presents for yourself!! Or have your husband pick them out!

I originally mentioned to my husband what I might want and then I decided to just take matters into my own hands. I really buy myself enough things that I don't need him to buy me presents except small, thoughtful things! And he doesn't like purses or VCA jewelry anyway, which is what I really like. Plus, he doesn't have the budget for such extravagant fun pieces. A couple of years ago for my birthday he got me a beautiful pair of diamond climber earrings and a stunning handmade wooden jewelry box. He really went all out that year and I don't expect that again. I'm the spender in our relationship and I'd like to keep it that way

That was so sweet of your DH to do that for you. What a sweetie!!!!

Mr. S is the spender and I’m the saver. We can both be pretty extreme in our approaches so, we balance each other out. Lol! Having very specific wish lists for each other helps. It keeps him from going rogue and me calm because I know he won’t go rogue. Oddly, he doesn’t really like to spend for himself. He will spoil me, the kids, his nieces, etc but we literally got irritated with each other this weekend because he neeeeeeds to buy some
more jeans. He balked at $90 jeans. Makes no sense. But, if I glance at a Dior he’ll surprise me with it. What makes this even more cuckoo? He LOVES it when I buy him nice things. If I had bought him $500 jeans (I assume these exist lol!), he would have been as happy as a clam.

We had talked about love languages before. He likes to give time and gifts. I like to receive time and acts of service - I’m not really a gift person. On the other end, I like to give time and acts of service. He likes to get time and gifts - he wouldn’t care if I ever lifted a finger to do anything except cook. The book was helpful for us because we irritated the heck out of each other at first. I thought - if he buys me one more doo dad but doesn’t do his flippin’ chores, I am going to stab him in the eye. And, I was busy doing stuff for him when he felt put off because he wanted me to spoil him with things.

I think some of this is cultural. My family is thrifty as heck and works hard. I didn’t get messages that “stuff” mattered - saving, effort and pulling together is what matters. His family is relatively low income (he’s the only one with undergrad or grad degrees). He worked his butt off to be a successful man but, the little guy in him still remembers Christmases and birthdays where they had nothing. So, we try to honor each other’s outlook.

I really need to look for velvet jeans! Thx for brands.

I am not tracking clothing just seperating it this year. It is eye opening though just doing that!

Ugh need to figure out jewelry situation. I need to figure out what I want to keep for my daughter then part with the rest. Going through it just seems so hard. Good for you for going through and letting stuff go!

My DD “helped” me figure out what she wanted. I didn’t have to wonder.

Lol! I was wondering where you were going with my bag!

I explained the idea of a push present to my DH before I had my first and he was like - your present is a baby! But I had a rough labour and delievery and in the recovery room the nurse asked me if my love bracelet (one my mom had bought me years before) was a present for giving birth (swear I did not pay her to say this!) and I said no and DH immediately goes ‘but we are going to get her another one after she is released’. The day after I was released DH took me to Cartier and bought me a second love. He had so bought into the literal meaning of it lol! But yes now I am left with stretch marks and future private school costs...ugh

Well, I’m “trying to go” to my house with your bag but, I’m not sure my efforts are working as well as I’d like.

That is a funny and sweet story about your love bracelets. And yay for the nurse!!!!

Trust me. Being on the other end of private school tuitions felt like someone was just dumping money into our checking account the first few months. It’s crazy expensive. I see why DINKS look so calm, happy and carefree.

 

[Sparkletastic]

Let me be grumpy for one minute.

When I’m selling, I hate offers. People are never reasonable. I’ve gotten 5 offers on 4 different items in just the last two days. Not one of the offers was more than 60% of my asking price. Do people really think sending me a stupid offer is a good use of their time??

I usually never list with an offer option. But eBay now changes listings automatically after a couple of weeks. Then inevitably I get a kooky offer and have to decline and go back in and reset my listing.

Argh. I just hate it!

 

[taho]

How is everyone doing / feeling mentally and activity wise on shopping their closets vs. buying new bags?

I did get the black tote but, I’ve wanted that for a few years now. That being said, I do really want to try to stick and stay with enjoying my collection not buying new “just because”.

We’re only 38 days in. Lol! How are you feeling about your goals and your resolve to enjoy what you have vs. buying more? Are you on mission? Or are you lost in the bag searching / hunting / buying abyss?

My goal is to buy less bags because they really are the most expensive thing I buy as part of my wardrobe. I realized that I always love the look of leather jackets but felt that it was too pricey of a garment so I finally splurged on one and making that my treat instead of a bag and hoping to hold out on getting another bag until may

 

[dcooney4]

I have velvet jeans from two brands. 7 for all mankind and INC (Macy’s house brand). Love them!
I really need to track my clothing usage. I’m so spotty in doing so which is weird because I always track bag usage. I’m going to commit to starting today.
Jewelry is my weakness but I’ve grown very planful.

I finally decided to get serious with my everyday items - for me that means pretty, sparkly, non branded white gold and diamonds. I wanted 3 sets (earrings, bracelets, necklaces) that I can rotate and semi mix and match. Some selling, some buying and some restyling has gotten me to just about complete with that project.

And, because I’ve collected jewelry since my teens, I already have a number of yellow gold items from when that color was more popular. However, I sold / gifted a lot (anything 10k, 14k or generally blah) and only kept the best pieces. Most of what I kept were pretty chains for which I upgraded / restyled pendants so that the stones were a good size. One of my favorite is a yg drop pendant in which I set the 1ct diamond that was in my mom’s engagement ring. It means a lot to me to wear that. I have a couple pair of pretty yg earrings but, need to work on that a bit too.

And, I’ve sold off almost all my sterling silver (lots of Tiffany’s stuff) and just about all my colored stone jewelry except for one killler earring / necklace set I adore and one bracelet. Sterling silver gets on my nerves with the tarnish. Colored stones just don’t make my heart go pitty pat as much as diamonds. (Plus the price I’d rubies has gone through the roof. It was a good time to sell mine.)

What’s slowing me down is that I only want to add super extra special pieces at this point. And, most of those are 5 figures in cost. Not the kind of items I can just run out and impulse buy. So, Mr. Sparkle has his marching orders and I expect him to look neither to his left nor right til he’s done.

Seriously though, I’m really not thinking more bags right now. I’m really focused on jewelry. I have about 12 pricey items at the consignment jeweler right now. I need some hungry buyers to buy so I can get moving with what I want to get. Lol!

I encourage you to sell what jewelry you aren’t wearing. It feels as good as getting rid of bags and clothes we aren’t wearing.
I can’t window shop or I will buy. So, I just have to stop cold turkey.

In contrast, TPF doesn’t tempt me. It helps me refine my choices so I make better purchases. It stops me from making purchases as I get the inside scoop on bags and learn of deal breakers. And, this thread gives me healthy peer pressure to resist buying into external buying / marketing / keep up with the Joneses messages. So weirdly, TPF stops a lot of my buying and makes what I do buy much smarter choices.
That orange bag is so happy!!!!

I have an anti tarnish jewelry box . You put it in clean and the silver doesn’t tarnish. It made me really enjoy my silver stuff.