Tag Archives: dream wardrobe

Dream Wardrobe: Which Handbag Do You Buy?

After spending over the last decade curating the perfect handbag collection, I learned a few things about collecting couture.  If you want to buy couture, you need to buy the right bag from the get go.

What do I mean by this?

When I first started out collecting couture handbags, I bought what I could afford.  In the end, I was not happy with my choices.  So I ended up reselling those bags before I realized I needed to buy the right bag.

Each designer has their own popular classic handbag design that is sold in a variety of prints and colors.  Influencers snatch up these beauties and fill up their social media feeds with these IT bags.  They develop a culture where every girl dreams of being just like them, carrying a black Chanel quilted clutch, a Celine Luggage, a Fendi Peekaboo, Hermés Birkin, or the Louis Vuitton Neverfull.

If you are going to go designer, buy the classics that have withstood the test of time.  Not only will you love your purchase, you’ll feel happier that you chose the right bag.  A collection, after all, must begin with the basics.

You do not always have to buy brand new.  Sites like Fashionphile offer discounts on pre-owned designer handbags.  My favorite part of their site is their Last Call and Outlet (on Ebay).  Purchasing through a reputable company that backs the authenticity of their product is very important.  It guarantees you are buying the real thing.

After you add these basics, you can begin to curate your collection around your needs (i.e. evening bags, travel bags, crossbodies) and your wants (i.e. artistic bags, limited edition, that cute $5 bag you find at a flea market).  As a rule of thumb, always remember that it is better to have fewer, but better things.  The only way you can achieve that is if you buy the correct item the first time around.

The Basics


Prada Saffiano Cuir Large Double Bag, $2,980.

Louis Vuitton Neverfull, $2,500.

Céline Micro Luggage Tote, $2,100

 Chanel Quilted Lambskin Classic, $1,800
Fendi Peekaboo, $6,250

Hermés Birkin, $17,563

 


Gucci Soho Small Leather Disco Bag, $1,190

Balenciaga Blackout City Shoulder Bag, $2,950

Chloe Marcie Satchel, $1,990

Anya Hindmarch, $697 (sale)

Henri Bendel Carlyle, $264 (sale), originally $528

Rebecca Minkoff Mini MAC, $195

 

Tory Burch Robinson Tote, $519.99 (sale), originally $575

Private Designer Sale: This is a Good One

For those who dream in fashion, I have a sale for you to make your Fantasy Wardrobe just a little bit happier.

I will admit that I never announce a major sale until AFTER I’ve shopped it. What can I say?  It’s the New Yorker in me that sees a sale, hopes no one else sees it, peruses the store and then makes a mad dash to the “Checkout” when I realize other people may have stumbled upon the sale.  It’s like that infamous “Will & Grace” episode where everyone is fighting over sale items at a Barney’s sale.

And yes, I am one of those people that protects my cart while shopping because people like to shop your cart in NYC.  [I am not joking when I say that.]

Just as YOOX and Net a Porter have announced their major designer tech merger, YOOX does something just as amazing…they send an email to their subscribers alerting them of a private sale.

A YOOX 90% off clearance sale is very similar to that Will & Grace episode, except if you don’t purchase it fast enough, someone else may buy it…thus meaning it’s SOLD OUT while it is still in your cart.  The Outnet (sister site to Net a Porter) clearance sales are very similar.

What things did I score at the YOOX clearance sale?  A Roberto Cavalli bag for $73, a John Galliano tote for $68, an Alberta Ferretti bag for $53, and a Missoni scarf for $37.

Yes.  All of those prices are real.  Including this Fendi bag for $362.

I’ve been wanting a Missoni scarf for a few years now but every time I went to purchase one at Rue La La or Gilt, I just didn’t feel like that was the price I wanted to spend on a Missoni scarf.  YOOX’s price of $37…no one is twisting my arm.  That was more than just the perfect price.

The Cavalli bag for $73?  I bought a similar bag a few years ago for $550.  I love that bag so much.  I take it with me whenever I travel because it’s light, it can take a punch, and it is like Mary Poppin’s magic carpet bag (you just can’t fill the thing up).  I bought this new one just in case the other one gives out on me one of these days.  At $73, that’s a major deal for me considering I know already what I’ll get out of the bag.

Before you go running off to the site to shop the sale, you need to know a few things first.  You need to know HOW to shop it.

First, it is essential that you REGISTER for the site.  You cannot access the sale unless you are a registered customer.

Second, after you register, a yellow tab called MYOOX will pop up at the top.  Click on that tab.  It will take you to the “Up to 90% off sale.”

Right now, the sale is for subscribers only.  The sale goes public on April 2.

The reason why you want to subscribe and register now for the site: if you wait until April 2, you are basically getting the scraps.

To get a little bit more cash back, make sure to use Ebates to get 2% cash back when you checkout.  Not a user of Ebates? Register HERE.  New subscribers get a $10 gift card to a retailer of their choice.

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This is a Fantasy Wardrobe post.  Fashionistas dream of having the most amazing wardrobe, but most oftentimes don’t have the bank account to fuel their shopping passions.  Fantasy Wardrobe posts at PerfectionistWannabe.com are designed to help you find ways to make your dream wardrobe come true.  These things don’t happen overnight.  It takes time to make the dream a reality.  This site will show you how.