Is it normal to feel a little nauseous when purchasing an expensive bag?

Q

questforbirkin

Member
May 20, 2016
184
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#1
Hi,

Am I alone here, or does anyone else feel a little sick about spending so much money on a handbag? This is not about whether you can afford it or not; let's assume that you can. But these bags are EXPENSIVE !!! And they are, after all, only handbags. Every time I buy an expensive one, I feel a little sick at first. Yes, the feeling wears off, and I love my bags, but still......
I'm writing this now as I psychologically prepare myself to buy a Chanel Tweed bag that I am love with. I always do a ton of research before I make a purchase, and this time, my research (googling "tweed bags") led me to some Karl Lagerfeld tweed bags. Of course, they're not Chanel, but you can get a KL tweed (well, boucle) bag that LOOKS a lot like a reissue (Agyness) and it is less than $200 (as opposed to the one that I want which is around $5k). Of course the quality will be dramatically different, and the KL bag is not even leather. But it does bear a striking resemblence, which is not really a surprise because it is a Karl Lagerfeld bag. And it would perform the same general function. (The Chanel one is STUNNING, of course !! )
There is a whole psychology around purchasing luxury goods, where there is a perceived value that may or may actually not be justified. But there are homeless people in the world, and starving people, and struggling people. I guess I'm having a moral dilemma. So - I am wondering: does anyone else feels slightly nauseous when making these purchases.
 
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#3
I'm not the target demographic of this question, because I haven't actual bought Chanel.

But, this is the reason I don't buy luxury handbags. Ultimately, I just can't stomach the price. Yes, we can afford it. Yes, they're pretty. Yes, I feel the urge to buy every time I see one. But, I just can't wrap my head around a $2000+ bag when that is close to a mortgage payment or rent.

I think on the PurseForum, you do find a lot of enablers who push you to ignore that feeling and just buy the bag. (This was discussed in the Money Talks forum - https://forum.purseblog.com/threads/what-is-your-age-and-how-much-do-you-have-saved-and-where.389298).

Honestly, if it makes you physically sick, maybe you should rethink the purchase?
 
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#5
Annawakes said:
I feel sick about the price too. But I also want more, more, more. I don’t know how to reconcile the two. Sometimes I think I’d be better off selling all my luxury bags. Because if you have even one, you want more, more, more.
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This!! Lol.

I told myself no more new Chanel except for minis or seasonal to feel somewhat tamed so I don’t spend 7k or more on a handbag. I bought one small flap at 5,800 and felt guilty. Especially with NY sales tax, more like 6.2-6,300. Used the classic flaps sometimes are 4-5k, which is still a ton but I feel less sick about. Over 5k I’m like ugh... I dunno. Their pricing has gotten insane.
 
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#10
TPF is a microcosm. We all have a look at the « premier designers « forums and we all dream about getting one of those bags one day.
Most of them cost a fortune, some of us finally get used to their price and even tend to think that a 1000 euro purse from a « contemporary designer « is very cheap, after all..which it isn’t.
That’s when we realize that something is very wrong and when we start feeling guilty.
I am lucky to live in a place where practically no one carries luxury bags.
Most of my friends will never spend 200 euros on a bag ( let alone 2000) even if they can afford to.
I have a few luxury bags and finally they don’t bring more joy.
And more than that, my favorite purses are on the cheaper side...
 
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#11
I feel sick and my heart beats really fast!! But I’ve overcome this by having a “one (bag) in, one out” policy and I feel better about it. It almost feels like I’m getting the bag for free which is rubbish, I know! The last few years I only buy a Chanel bag if I’ve sold other bags to make up the cost of the bag. I didn’t do this when I bought my Trendy. I just spent money I had in my account and I do feel guilty about that as I’ve hardly used the bag.
 
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#13
Kem45 said:
Yes, the first time or two I bought a full size Chanel bag ($4000+) I definitely felt like I was going to puke. I simply could not believe I was spending that much. Somehow it got easier over time... which isn't great either, lol.
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I hear you !!! The first expensive bag I bought (2008) cost $1500, which was massively expensive for a handbag to me at that time. Eventually, I worked my way up to buying a birkin, and after that, $3000 bags seemed reasonable, which is insane !!
 
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