Why can't I be happy with less $$ purses?????

You are not alone!!! I used to like bags for a long time but I just bought one and used it for a couple of years but than I met Alma. Before I thought that LV is just for old ladies and the fakes for certain girls with a horizontal job. I got really obsessed with LV and bought all the ones I own within 2 months but my real down fall started with you girls:lol: :lol: because I learned so much about new designers and new bags I got into Chloe and Balenciaga. But seriously I have to stop now!!! I almost bought one bag every 3 weeks. (Un)fortunately I work immediately on the street where all the designer shops are (5th avenue of Germany)so it makes it easy to track them down. My last bag just arrived last week but I already want the next (Dior Gaucho).
I love this place so much that my hubby locks the internet between 3pm to 6pm so that I study instead of talking to you girls:love: :love: So I'm at least protected from myself in the afternoon. I don't know where this is heading but I enjoy it!! I used to love shoes but I have problems with my toe nails so my choice is pretty limited now (just sandals and comfy shoes:sick: ) I actually excuse my addiction with being a lioness:biggrin: . Just my 2 cents: I love you girls!! Sometimes you and the bags are the only ones who are keeping me from getting insane IRL!!
 
I completely agree with everything everyone said. Except that I enjoy the HUNT for a bag almost as much as the bag. I get bored so quickly and need to HUNT again. My daughter says it's my addiction. I must stop, but it's oh-so fun.
 
kathyrose said:
I've always loved bags. I have bags that cost almost nothing and bags that cost $$$. As long as I like it, I get it.
I used to, I have loved and used bags that cost £5. I still love them, but I'm now into a different world.

Until recently I never used anything made of leather, but once I did the floodgates have opened for me and the world of designer bags is all accessible! ;)

I'm actually buying FEWER bags now - back when I'd buy a £30 - £50 PVC/fabric bag eg from Liz Claibourne or Fiorelli, I'd get a new one every month or so, but while I was saving for my Miu Miu (£315 so not incredibly high-end) I didn't buy anything for a few months.

And now I'm hooked there is no way I'll ever waste £40 on a passing fancy when it could go towards a gorgeous lasting piece of handbag art by a master designer. Cheaper bags also tend to closely copy designer style and that's another reason they're not an equivalent product - thought went into Chanel's quilted flap-bag, M&S's copy has none of that behind it.

Bags are like a statement of our femininity and organisation, a summary of our style and a reflection of our desireability - why feel bad about wanting them to be as gorgeous, classy and expensive as possible? ;)

And as has already been said all over the place, clothes don't last as well nor do they have much resale value - and to dress head-to-toe in say Chanel you'd have to have huge amounts of spare cash, while a Chanel bag is far better value.

Bluxcape, just try to spend time enjoying the bags you have - it's like with food, eat slowly and enjoy the taste and that way you want to consume less while thoroughly enjoying what you already have. :biggrin:

Cx
 
Don't discount the marketing because a huge portion of the price for any luxury handbag/car/whatever is the $$ they spent creating that luxury image. A Lexus is just an overpriced Toyota (they're overpriced as well), and while I love some of the Chanel bags, they also produce items that cost a fortune but are made of rather inexpensive materials. What you're paying for are those interlocking Cs more than anything. When I sold the line, I was shocked by how crappy some of the items were, but oh those prices!

A lot of times, prices are high just because they can be, and unfortunately it's no indicator of quality. Outside of more stitching, I'd put my Sigrid Olsen bag up against the Paddington I returned any day. I love my LV Babylone, but I'll be the first to say that half the price I paid was due to marketing, and a sizable chunk of the rest was the expensive mall location and fixtures.

lvobsessed said:
I think its about quality. Like many have said, Once you own a bmw,lexus you cant go back to the honda,ford or whatever.

You pay for what you get and when you're happy with that price and quality its hard to change.

I used to have a ton of handbags( i've always had a thing for handbags) but anyway... after buying my first LV forever it, I cant go back. I have a 300$ roots bag that i use on occassion. Its a nice bag but even its hard for me to use.

All the cheapo's are gone and I cant ever look at a bag that isnt leather and of good quality.

I think this happens more so when you're buying a bag for you and not *to be like others* yknow. I think that's why its easier for you to justify spending that kind of money whether its for chanel/lv or mj/fendi.

the name speaks for itself.
 
Ammietwist said:
Don't discount the marketing because a huge portion of the price for any luxury handbag/car/whatever is the $$ they spent creating that luxury image. A Lexus is just an overpriced Toyota (they're overpriced as well), and while I love some of the Chanel bags, they also produce items that cost a fortune but are made of rather inexpensive materials. What you're paying for are those interlocking Cs more than anything. When I sold the line, I was shocked by how crappy some of the items were, but oh those prices!

A lot of times, prices are high just because they can be, and unfortunately it's no indicator of quality. Outside of more stitching, I'd put my Sigrid Olsen bag up against the Paddington I returned any day. I love my LV Babylone, but I'll be the first to say that half the price I paid was due to marketing, and a sizable chunk of the rest was the expensive mall location and fixtures.

i agree. it is an addiction, though, and i have found myself lusting after more and more expensive bags. it's beginning to feel like a conquest to me :shame: .
 
Forgive me if I look at it from the marketing and fashion angles, but two of my degrees are in those fields so I can't stop myself.

Part of it is the brand marketing, and the fact that handbags are the accessories of the moment. If anything is truly "in your face," it's which celeb is carrying which handbag, and now you've got all the companies mailing out bags, or coddling someone when they buy, so they'll hopefully be photographed with whatever bag it is. I always think back to Shannon Doherty asking Kelly Ripa on her show if she liked Hogan, and Kelly was very diplomatic and said, "Yes!" She didn't know who Hogan was, but they sent her two bags.

Never underestimate the marketing though. You've got parents now buying designer duds for their babies, and teenagers are now well aware of the big names. There's no real reason for that famous Tiffany necklace and bracelet to cost what they do, but they were marketed well and became a must-have accessory.

If you want a bag to last years, you can find it at Target, or Chanel, or LV or Le Sport Sac...or a thousand other places. Oh yeah, you can have some really crappy leather on some really awful bags, but you can also find great leather on a whole host of bags that cost less than $250--even $50! Some of these bags used to be made in the U.S., too.

Then you've got the trend followers. Between their wanting the latest thing, the fact that handbags are hot now, and the successful marketing of the name, they'll literally pay anything to get what they want. One of the fashion mags had an article about the psychology of wanting to have the elusive whatever bag, and the lengths they'd go to get it in their hands.

I'll admit the marketing has worked on me, but it hasn't 100%. Selling designer handbags and accessories really opened my eyes about what is or isn't worth the bucks, and to see a luxury line like Chanel sell cheapo keyrings for an exorbitant price makes you wonder who buys this stuff. Oh the crappy sunglasses they had in the line, too!

I'd love to see consumers get really educated, and to train their eye to discover what's worth paying for and what should be left on the store display. IOW, buy the name AND the quality, but don't just think that "designer" means better. As someone who sold the stuff, it isn't half of the time.
 
Oh yeah, despite everything I've put into my two big posts, there's the odd bag that I lust after as well. There's a Salvatore Ferragamo I adore, but I'm trying to keep it real and not go there. :P

mahbag! said:
i agree. it is an addiction, though, and i have found myself lusting after more and more expensive bags. it's beginning to feel like a conquest to me :shame: .
 
Oh what a great thread!

I'm with all of you!!! Years ago, certain bags were untouchable for me. Now, they're right at the tip of my fingers. Why is that? It's not like I won the lottery and came into lots of money? My tastes have changed and there's no stopping me now! Oh boy..:cry:
 
Ammietwist said:
Don't discount the marketing because a huge portion of the price for any luxury handbag/car/whatever is the $$ they spent creating that luxury image. A Lexus is just an overpriced Toyota (they're overpriced as well), and while I love some of the Chanel bags, they also produce items that cost a fortune but are made of rather inexpensive materials. What you're paying for are those interlocking Cs more than anything. When I sold the line, I was shocked by how crappy some of the items were, but oh those prices!

A lot of times, prices are high just because they can be, and unfortunately it's no indicator of quality. Outside of more stitching, I'd put my Sigrid Olsen bag up against the Paddington I returned any day. I love my LV Babylone, but I'll be the first to say that half the price I paid was due to marketing, and a sizable chunk of the rest was the expensive mall location and fixtures.

Thank you for putting it into prespective! Please don't apologize. I really try hard to be an educated consumer. I think this is why I have yet to buy (if ever) a piece of Tiffany jewelry. My gosh, the prices on those sterling silver pieces! :wacko: But that's just my opinion. :noworry:

That said, I have bags that I love, from various price points. But I won't deny the allure of high end bags, ha ha! ;)
 
addicted said:
Oh what a great thread!

I'm with all of you!!! Years ago, certain bags were untouchable for me. Now, they're right at the tip of my fingers. Why is that? It's not like I won the lottery and came into lots of money? My tastes have changed and there's no stopping me now! Oh boy..:cry:

tell me about it :lol: