2017 resolution - shopping my own bag and wallet collection. Any one else?

[HopelessBagGirl]

I can pull off white and not look markedly uglier. Only slightly more ugly.
But any other neutral near my face and it is just not doing me any favors relative to how I look with an intense cold jewel tone shining bright near my face and underneath my hair. I used to pull off black better with golden blonde hair for all my life, but now that I’m 5 years in to my brunette journey, it doesn’t seem to look as wow on me. Not even close. Maybe also because I was young enough to look fantastic in a bright red lipstick with the blonde hair and black outfit, that it was kind of a nice look with lots of contrast. But somehow with progressing through my thirties + darker hair + less often use of strong deep lip colors, black just doesn’t work for me the way it did when I was a young blonde with red lipstick on.
But the bright, cold jewel tones seem to somehow make me look halfway lovely with a more sheer lip tone and my long, brunette hair, which is the look I’m rocking these 5 years, so.... electric blue and fuschia and few others are my best friends. My lower half is always in very dark navy or black, but my tops/tunics/dresses have color for the most part.

I would totally add more white tops. BUt I’m a clutz! Wore a white top on tuesday and before I even paid for my cafeteria lunch there were two yellow spots on it from the curry sauce in my food.

 

[HopelessBagGirl]

Here’s my typical uniform of everything neutral but the top, and a bright color for the top. It just happens that this plum pebbled midi selene zip (massaccesi) is precisely the same shade as the cashmere kimono wrap sweater so I think I can pull it off with the bright top, but it’s not the exact same shade as any of the other deep pink in my closet so ....today is plum pebbled day!

 

[HopelessBagGirl]

You guys think I should toss the scarf into the ‘offer to my daughters one day’ pile because it looks just a bit OTT for a woman my age to wear it? Can I still wear it until I turn 40 and not look ridiculous? What do you all think? I get that it’s a statement piece, and I am kind of a statement gal, but I also don’t want to look like I haven’t updated my look since my twenties either. Which is actually kind of the case, much of my stuff I have collected around the time I turned 30 and a bit after, and I haven’t changed my style much during my thirties. Too busy with having #3 and #4 to really consider a total style overhaul, so maybe I need to slowly start thinking about that as I’m 2 years away from the big 4-0 now and somehow that seems like an age where you are entering grownup-proper-territory and should settle into a more timeless, elegant wardrobe..... or then I just need to face the fact that I’m not really a timeless, elegant woman. I’m the daughter of a total hippie and colorful knitted colorways are always going to capture my heart and just go with it? My mom still has the pale flowing hair down her back and style she wore in her youth in general, and it looks right on her, although it’s more silver than pale blonde as it was in her youth.
I think if I could pull off my grandmother’s style at any point in her adult life I would look super chic nowadays, as style seems to come back after skipping a generation (no one wants to adopt their parents’ style except me it seems) she was one of those scarlet O’Hara type southern bombshells who always wore a hat pinned just so to her hair, 18” waist cinched probably with some hideous corset or some such nonsense, and had lipstick on into her 90s. A real lady. I wish I could kind of inherit some of that from her, but after 15 years of primarily being a SAHM I am all about the comfort and casual style. on top of that the country I live in is SUPER casual, no one dresses up ever. I cannot remember the last time I saw a woman walking in heels. MAYBE 3” chunky heeled boots, and even then you know right away the woman is not a native, but an Eastern European or Russian transplant. I try to blend in around here so I pretty much keep it casual.

 

[dcooney4]

Re. “that crazy thing of rebuying a bag after you’ve sold it,” have any of you done that? If so, could you share the feelings and circumstances?

The bag in question for me is the Bal City. I had a gray one that I used to death and eventually it stopped working for me. I sold it, got the itch again, bought a black one. Wore that one only a few times and realized it wasn’t working. Sent it to consignment, had a meltdown and had them send it back to me. Never used it and sent it to consignment again, this time for good.

But I see them around and consider it again. The bag has never had enough structure for me, so if I were to rebuy, I’d get chèvre instead of lambskin. But then I think I should just focus on getting a bag that works better overall and move on.

Anyone else rebuy, or have a bag they do mental bag ping-pong with?

I have not bought the same bag back but I have bought similar ones. Hoping that a slight change will make it work.

 

[dcooney4]

My lovely red cherry Longchamp Cuir (small) today with white blouse, grey cropped pants and light grey flats. Friday is casual wear day.
View attachment 3894688

Cute outfit!

 

[dcooney4]

You guys think I should toss the scarf into the ‘offer to my daughters one day’ pile because it looks just a bit OTT for a woman my age to wear it? Can I still wear it until I turn 40 and not look ridiculous? What do you all think? I get that it’s a statement piece, and I am kind of a statement gal, but I also don’t want to look like I haven’t updated my look since my twenties either. Which is actually kind of the case, much of my stuff I have collected around the time I turned 30 and a bit after, and I haven’t changed my style much during my thirties. Too busy with having #3 and #4 to really consider a total style overhaul, so maybe I need to slowly start thinking about that as I’m 2 years away from the big 4-0 now and somehow that seems like an age where you are entering grownup-proper-territory and should settle into a more timeless, elegant wardrobe..... or then I just need to face the fact that I’m not really a timeless, elegant woman. I’m the daughter of a total hippie and colorful knitted colorways are always going to capture my heart and just go with it? My mom still has the pale flowing hair down her back and style she wore in her youth in general, and it looks right on her, although it’s more silver than pale blonde as it was in her youth.
I think if I could pull off my grandmother’s style at any point in her adult life I would look super chic nowadays, as style seems to come back after skipping a generation (no one wants to adopt their parents’ style except me it seems) she was one of those scarlet O’Hara type southern bombshells who always wore a hat pinned just so to her hair, 18” waist cinched probably with some hideous corset or some such nonsense, and had lipstick on into her 90s. A real lady. I wish I could kind of inherit some of that from her, but after 15 years of primarily being a SAHM I am all about the comfort and casual style. on top of that the country I live in is SUPER casual, no one dresses up ever. I cannot remember the last time I saw a woman walking in heels. MAYBE 3” chunky heeled boots, and even then you know right away the woman is not a native, but an Eastern European or Russian transplant. I try to blend in around here so I pretty much keep it casual.

Just be yourself and don't worry about what anyone else thinks. I love your style. I am older then you but I have no intention of dressing in anyway that does not suit me. I dress for what I do and what fits my body type. Of course I have more elegant outfits when needed but not many.

 

[dcooney4]

My November and year to date stats,
Bags
- NOV: 0 in, 0 out
- YTD: 3 in, 3 out

SLGs
- NOV: 0 in, 0 out
- YTD: 1 in, 1 out

Great Stats!

 

[dcooney4]

November stats:
Bags: 0 in, 1 out.
SLGs: 0 in, 0 out.

Year to date:
Bags: 5 in, 4 out
SLGs: 4 in, 2 out (although one was a gift from DH — do gifts count, or only purchases?)

Anything that goes on my shelf and takes up space counts for me, but that is how I control my collection . I go by how much available space I have whether I can buy a bag or not.

 

[westvillage]

There are two BV pinks that are very similar, Dusty Rose (an older color that is more pink) and Desert Rose (the color of my Cervo Loop and a newer color). I think Desert Rose is still available in the boutiques. Not sure about Dusty Rose; it may be at the outlets?

Thanks for that background and explanation. I haven’t followed the BV colors over the last few seasons and I do believe I may be mixing these two up. Got to go check those two sites

 

[catsinthebag]

You guys think I should toss the scarf into the ‘offer to my daughters one day’ pile because it looks just a bit OTT for a woman my age to wear it? Can I still wear it until I turn 40 and not look ridiculous? What do you all think? I get that it’s a statement piece, and I am kind of a statement gal, but I also don’t want to look like I haven’t updated my look since my twenties either. Which is actually kind of the case, much of my stuff I have collected around the time I turned 30 and a bit after, and I haven’t changed my style much during my thirties. Too busy with having #3 and #4 to really consider a total style overhaul, so maybe I need to slowly start thinking about that as I’m 2 years away from the big 4-0 now and somehow that seems like an age where you are entering grownup-proper-territory and should settle into a more timeless, elegant wardrobe..... or then I just need to face the fact that I’m not really a timeless, elegant woman. I’m the daughter of a total hippie and colorful knitted colorways are always going to capture my heart and just go with it? My mom still has the pale flowing hair down her back and style she wore in her youth in general, and it looks right on her, although it’s more silver than pale blonde as it was in her youth.
I think if I could pull off my grandmother’s style at any point in her adult life I would look super chic nowadays, as style seems to come back after skipping a generation (no one wants to adopt their parents’ style except me it seems) she was one of those scarlet O’Hara type southern bombshells who always wore a hat pinned just so to her hair, 18” waist cinched probably with some hideous corset or some such nonsense, and had lipstick on into her 90s. A real lady. I wish I could kind of inherit some of that from her, but after 15 years of primarily being a SAHM I am all about the comfort and casual style. on top of that the country I live in is SUPER casual, no one dresses up ever. I cannot remember the last time I saw a woman walking in heels. MAYBE 3” chunky heeled boots, and even then you know right away the woman is not a native, but an Eastern European or Russian transplant. I try to blend in around here so I pretty much keep it casual.

Just be yourself and don't worry about what anyone else thinks. I love your style. I am older then you but I have no intention of dressing in anyway that does not suit me. I dress for what I do and what fits my body type. Of course I have more elegant outfits when needed but not many.

I totally agree: Be yourself! HBG, I’m also a bit older than you and remember having the same thought as I approached 40. Heck, even now I question if my style (such as it is) suits me. I think it’s good to keep asking the question, so you don’t suddenly wake up one day and realize you’ve been wearing the same stuff for 20 years and it no longer suits you! And really, I think the thing to make sure of is that your style does indeed suit who you are. If you don’t see yourself as a “timeless, elegant” woman, trying to dress like one will make you feel like you’re trying to put a square peg in a round hole. You won’t look comfortable so it won’t work on you.

I think of the (few) good things about getting older is you do know yourself better and you get more comfortable with who you are and what works for you. One woman’s “timeless” is another woman’s “boring!”

If you love the scarf and it “fits” you, keep wearing it. I envy that you love your mom’s style — you’re right, most women don’t want to look like their mothers!

 

[HopelessBagGirl]

Anything that goes on my shelf and takes up space counts for me, but that is how I control my collection . I go by how much available space I have whether I can buy a bag or not.

I kind of appreciate this logic. But by that metric I can get no more. The nice display shelf areas in my walk-in closet are already full of bags. Not to mention that there are several more on the way. Bah, more reasons for me to live on Ban Island.

 

[tenKrat]

My lovely red cherry Longchamp Cuir (small) today with white blouse, grey cropped pants and light grey flats. Friday is casual wear day.
View attachment 3894688

Very nice outfit, @msd_bags! Grey and red is a chic combo.

 

[westvillage]

Thanks for that background and explanation. I haven’t followed the BV colors over the last few seasons and I do believe I may be mixing these two up. Got to go check those two sites

So I did go to the sites and the difference in the colors is marked and again the Dusty Rose looks beige/taupe but now I know it’s not ...thanks again.

 

[HopelessBagGirl]

I totally agree: Be yourself! HBG, I’m also a bit older than you and remember having the same thought as I approached 40. Heck, even now I question if my style (such as it is) suits me. I think it’s good to keep asking the question, so you don’t suddenly wake up one day and realize you’ve been wearing the same stuff for 20 years and it no longer suits you!

I think that’s exactly right, I just want to make sure I haven’t ended up in a decades long rut and forgot to update my look as my life stages tick by. I don’t think most women look best wearing at 40 what they did in their twenties, so I want to likewise evolve my fashion choices.
I don’t however plan to buy any clothes in the coming year, so it is what it is for now. Maybe in 2019 as my fortieth birthday approaches, if some new opportunity after this masters program is done presents itself, I can buy some new clothes that fits with that new role, and in honor of the milestone birthday. But I have almost 2 years until that, so....I’ll just start to think about that now and maybe collect some ideas from you stylish ladis in the meantime.

I decided to chuck the scarf, because it is super annoying to wear.

 

[tenKrat]

Before I moved, I don't think I could have said that, but now I can. I wish you well in your 2018 goals.

Funny how moving can change your resolve. I also moved recently and feel the goal is doable, but only after unpacking and organizing all of my bags. My first thought after seeing all of them laid out was “no more!”, and it’s been fairly easy to say no to sales thus far.

@Hobbsy, maybe you and I can team up next year and be the “OBG”, the “One Bag Girls”, lol.