Help with Mother of the Bride bag recommendation!

[ItsPurseonal]

My mom told me that she wants to buy a bag for my upcoming wedding and this was BIG NEWS. The most interest she has ever shown in bags is when she was buying a new backpack a few years ago and decided to go with a ~$400 Tumi (which is a great bag and has held up amazingly well!) even though she felt like it was excessive to buy a backpack that expensive.

I would love to get suggestions as I want to make sure I'm thinking of all possibilities before making a recommendation to her.

• Dress color: Gold, embellished
• Bag requirements:
  • Must have a shoulder strap (fine to tuck in on occasion)
  • ideally versatile enough to wear to dinner or even for daytime after the wedding
  • no monogram or excessive logos
  • must fit her phone
• Budget: I think probably < $5k - money isn't a problem for her but I think she would have a hard time wrapping her head around anything more expensive. She is open to new or preloved
• About my mom:
  • In day-to-day life, she dresses mostly casually (athleisure/golf clothes or a casual dress)
  • She carries her Coach wallet as her handbag when she is not at work, and carries her Tumi backpack to work
  • She is NOT a careful/cautious person (and would not do well with a delicate leather like lamb or smooth calf)
  • She is tall, has an athletic build and a larger frame
  • She wears dresses but they are mostly casual jersey dresses - I would not describe her as delicate or ladylike in the traditional sense of the word (for example, a Lady Dior would NOT go with her wardrobe)
  • Her favorite color is purple but the wedding color scheme is "desert neutrals" - I don't think it matters much if she is on the color scheme but she will probably want to be

I was thinking about a Chanel mini reissue but I'm not sure she'll like the distressed calf.

Would love suggestions! Thank you!

 

[lill_canele]

Congratulations on your wedding/marriage! Exciting news indeed, I'm still waiting for my mother to say the same thing to me! (sadly she did not tell me this when I got married lol)

From your description a Chanel mini reissue sounds good!

Have you thought of a WOC? Does you mom like to carry a decent amount of items around or is she more of an essentials person?

Does she have any bags that she currently uses for more special occasions? Maybe see what she tends to gravitate and also not get something too similar to what she already has.

 

[880]

Congratulations on your wedding/marriage! Exciting news indeed, I'm still waiting for my mother to say the same thing to me! (sadly she did not tell me this when I got married lol)

From your description a Chanel mini reissue sounds good!

Have you thought of a WOC? Does you mom like to carry a decent amount of items around or is she more of an essentials person?

Does she have any bags that she currently uses for more special occasions? Maybe see what she tends to gravitate and also not get something too similar to what she already has.

+1 chanel reissue

dont know if a preloved TM knot in metallic with shoulder chain can hold a phone, but preloved BV might be a well priced beautiful bag. I think the Olympia is the BV answer to the reissue, but I could be wrong.

i tend to think they are overpriced for what they are, but a dior Caro. Lots of finishes. MGC uses a lot of GHW. Or a preloved diorama (they come in gorgeous metallics.

it may be overplayed, but I always liked the YSL Lou Lou or gucci Marmont

congrats!

 

[l.ch.]

PS11 clutch? Or something from Valentino? Like a small rockstud spike?

 

[JolieS]

My mom told me that she wants to buy a bag for my upcoming wedding and this was BIG NEWS. The most interest she has ever shown in bags is when she was buying a new backpack a few years ago and decided to go with a ~$400 Tumi (which is a great bag and has held up amazingly well!) even though she felt like it was excessive to buy a backpack that expensive.

I would love to get suggestions as I want to make sure I'm thinking of all possibilities before making a recommendation to her.

• Dress color: Gold, embellished
• Bag requirements:
  • Must have a shoulder strap (fine to tuck in on occasion)
  • ideally versatile enough to wear to dinner or even for daytime after the wedding
  • no monogram or excessive logos
  • must fit her phone
• Budget: I think probably < $5k - money isn't a problem for her but I think she would have a hard time wrapping her head around anything more expensive. She is open to new or preloved
• About my mom:
  • In day-to-day life, she dresses mostly casually (athleisure/golf clothes or a casual dress)
  • She carries her Coach wallet as her handbag when she is not at work, and carries her Tumi backpack to work
  • She is NOT a careful/cautious person (and would not do well with a delicate leather like lamb or smooth calf)
  • She is tall, has an athletic build and a larger frame
  • She wears dresses but they are mostly casual jersey dresses - I would not describe her as delicate or ladylike in the traditional sense of the word (for example, a Lady Dior would NOT go with her wardrobe)
  • Her favorite color is purple but the wedding color scheme is "desert neutrals" - I don't think it matters much if she is on the color scheme but she will probably want to be

I was thinking about a Chanel mini reissue but I'm not sure she'll like the distressed calf.

Would love suggestions! Thank you!

What about a Bvlgari Serpenti Forever mini or a Ferragamo mini Bow or a Delvaux Tempête pochette?

All designer handbags, have shoulder chains, can fit a phone, and costing less than your budget.

 

[ItsPurseonal]

Congratulations on your wedding/marriage! Exciting news indeed, I'm still waiting for my mother to say the same thing to me! (sadly she did not tell me this when I got married lol)

From your description a Chanel mini reissue sounds good!

Have you thought of a WOC? Does you mom like to carry a decent amount of items around or is she more of an essentials person?

Does she have any bags that she currently uses for more special occasions? Maybe see what she tends to gravitate and also not get something too similar to what she already has.

Thank you!! I'm worried a WOC will be too small for her and that she'd want something a bit more substantial. But I have both a mini reissue and a WOC that she can try so I will definitely let her try those when I present the final options to see what she thinks! It's one of those situations I want to handle delicately because I know if I overwhelm her with bag talk she'll just give up and say never mind

Looking at her current bags is a great idea - I actually thought about this today and I think she quite literally only has the Coach wallet and the Tumi backpack. I think she probably has an evening bag somewhere but it's likely in storage?? Like I said, BIG step for her to say she is interested in a designer bag lol!

 

[ItsPurseonal]

+1 chanel reissue

dont know if a preloved TM knot in metallic with shoulder chain can hold a phone, but preloved BV might be a well priced beautiful bag. I think the Olympia is the BV answer to the reissue, but I could be wrong.

i tend to think they are overpriced for what they are, but a dior Caro. Lots of finishes. MGC uses a lot of GHW. Or a preloved diorama (they come in gorgeous metallics.

it may be overplayed, but I always liked the YSL Lou Lou or gucci Marmont

congrats!

LOVE the Knot bag and will need to do some research on whether or not it would fit a phone. They made some really beautiful ones that would be up my mom's alley - interesting, but not too feminine. I also love the Olympia! I hadn't seen that style before. I think the small Olympia might be too large at 9" width but I will do some research to see if they make it in a smaller size. It seems super functional but also very versatile.

I agree the Caro and Diorama are cute! I think I'll end up presenting her with a few options ranging from understated to flashy and maybe a metallic or embellished Dior could the flashy option.

Thanks so much for your input!

 

[ItsPurseonal]

PS11 clutch? Or something from Valentino? Like a small rockstud spike?

I think she would really like the PS11 clutch! I hadn't seen this bag before but I think it's up her alley - the Coach wallet she uses has a somewhat similar style with a unique piece of hardware at the center, so she may really like this one. And great price point! I think she'd say the Valentino is too edgy/young for what she's looking for (not that I think it is too edgy or young, but I'm just trying to put myself in her shoes) but I'll think some more about that. Thanks for your input!

 

[ItsPurseonal]

What about a Bvlgari Serpenti Forever mini or a Ferragamo mini Bow or a Delvaux Tempête pochette?

All designer handbags, have shoulder chains, can fit a phone, and costing less than your budget.

OMG I think she would really love the Delvaux! This color specifically I think she would love. But I'm not sure about the dimensions - it is the same width as the BV Olympia above but for some reason it appears smaller on the model. It also looks like the strap length might be a bit short but I will certainly investigate this one some more.

Selfishly I would love for her to get the Bulgari and give it to me afterwards but I think she'd be turned off by the serpent head. The mini bow is cute but I'm not sure if it's too "cute" for what she'd be drawn to.

Thank you for the suggestions!!

 

[Jktgal]

What about Polene? There are a few with chains and they come in colours that would fit the theme.

 

[ItsPurseonal]

What about Polene? There are a few with chains and they come in colours that would fit the theme.

I'll have to check out their styles! These seem a bit too casual for what she'd be looking for to use at the wedding, but I could see her using something like this day-to-day. Thank you for the advice!

 

[ItsPurseonal]

I'm curious what everyone's thoughts are on the mini Capucines or Fendi mini peekaboo as a bag to wear to a wedding (likely both in black, without the strap). Is it dressy enough? It dawned on me this morning that this type of style could be a perfect post-wedding bag for my mom and they are potentially dressy enough to wear to an evening event.

Back when she carried more bags, she was always in too much of a rush to close the flap on her bags (which drove me nuts when I was a little kid and I would zip/fasten them for her!). I think this style of bag could be a perfect everyday bag for her because it's pretty versatile with the top handle and shoulder strap, but still really easy access. The leather is also quite durable compared to some of the other options I was considering. Thoughts??

 

[JolieS]

Both the LV and Fendi are beautiful bags, but IMO in black, pebbled leather are not dressy enough to go with your mother’s gold embellished gown, even if worn without the straps. Maybe consider the Fendi in smooth leather without sellier stiching, and in a light colour?

 

[ItsPurseonal]

Both the LV and Fendi are beautiful bags, but IMO in black, pebbled leather are not dressy enough to go with your mother’s gold embellished gown, even if worn without the straps. Maybe consider the Fendi in smooth leather without sellier stiching, and in a light colour?

I think you're right unfortunately - I was hoping that my view was distorted and the grained leather would have been fine. And I agree the smooth leather could work, but I'm curious about your light color comment. Do you think lighter colors are inherently "dressier" than darker?

At this point I'm wondering if I should encourage her to get 2 bags, one less expensive for the wedding night itself (maybe preloved Diorama WOC or Bottega knot) and one more durable but fashionable everyday bag, total budget ~5-6k.

 

[JolieS]

Two bags sounds like a realistic option.
I suggested a lighter colour than black on the following assumptions:
-your wedding will be this spring/summer, so lighter colours more appropriate
-your mother’s gown is gold embellished which would work better with a lighter bag IMO
-the two bags you’re considering, although minis, are still substantial bags and would be quite a colour contrast with her gown.
Just my 2 cents.
Good luck!