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Megs Mahoney Dusil    August 01, 2008    Blog Debates

Weekend Debate: One bag or many?

The handbag on my holy grail list is a 30 cm Hermes Crocodile Birkin. I don’t need it to be diamond encrusted, I don’t need 100 of these, just one would be amazing. And with a price tag getting in the realm of a brand new car, this bag will remain on my holy grail list as of now.

There are some that put all handbag money aside into a jar for one specific bag. Waiting for the money to build up so they can buy that one holy grail. And there are others that simply buy a few new bags every year, wanting more bags rather than one super pricey bag.

Where do you fall? Do you save for one or buy many?

  • hautegirly

    It’s hard to say…I have no problem buying several handbags a year but if there were one that I really wanted and it was really expensive, then I would definitely put some money aside every month until I save enough. But then again, with price increases every so often, who knows if I’d ever be able to save enough money! :lol:

  • janis

    I like to buy at least a couple of bags each season. I find I tire of the same style easily, so I won’t spend over $2,000. on a bag. So I guess that means I won’t be getting an Hermes!

  • Joyce

    With prices soaring again and again, I can never save enough to buy the ultimate holy bag- Hermes Croc birkin. So instead,
    I will buy many Hermes leather birkin(s) and be happy with it. :razz:

  • mette

    I know that I´m a hopeless woman. I prefer my bags to be one of the kind and then really there is no price limit. Luckily I don´t bathe in money, so I only buy a few a year. YSL is my favorite and when they show their new bags, I feel very weak. Then comes the last act when I beg,borrow and tell my HB that this will be the last one…I´m a quick decider and so far there actually is only one bag I regret buying cause my daughter encouraged me. It is a purple Lanvin and I would be happy if anyone pref. in Europe would be interested. It is in perfect condition and I would sell it real cheap.

  • baglover88

    I think I do both. I want a birkin though, I have a kelly and waiting for my birkin. I buy at least 4 bags a year and two are at least over 2 grand. I hope I can continue to do so when my parents stop paying for everything and I start paying myself. LOL!

    • dela

      LOL baglover88! I know how you feel.

    • Kaytey

      You know what? I think your opinion will change when you start having to buy your own bags. I just bought a Botkier gladiator small shoulder bag in black, a SUPER cheap thrill of $225 (at Shop Bop!), and even though I like it, it’s just not the same as having to scrimp to afford that bag that’s just beyond your means. When you’re using your own money, you’ll find that too, I think. Bags are nice now, but when you cut the apron strings, they’ll represent an investment – not only of money, but also of time. Gradually watching your bag jar (or account, or whatever) fill up, knowing you’ll soon have something you worked so hard for, knowing you’ve earned it, is an awesome feeling. I did that for my large YSL downtown, and when I first brought home that bag, it was suh an intense feeling, like some sort of emotional, b-spot orgasm. I’m more than halfway towards my first Chanel purchase, and I’m starting to get really psyched already! Only $1, 782 to go. :D

      Sorry for writing a novel, I just wanted to let you know what you have to look forward to when you’re finally on your own, it gives you such an intense feeling of pride and satisfaction. Good luck!

    • porcelain_ninja

      When that happened to me I stopped eating, travelling and borrowed clothes from siblings so i could justify bag expenses.

      Looked great in a bikini and had one great bag a year. :eek:

  • lunatwinkle

    I definitely buy many. I’d rather be able to rotate my handbags regularly or depending on my mood and outfit.

    • Marlena

      Same here! :grin:

      • Wendy

        Double ditto for me!!! :wink:

  • Tara Sauvage

    I buy two or three handbags over $500 a year and only one per year that is over $1000, its more a matter of income, then what I like. If I had the money I would buy at least two luxury bags per season, but alas money does not grow on a tree in my backyard right now, actually to be honest we don’t even have a yard (we live in a condo) so I guess the money tree is not going to happen anytime soon. :mrgreen:

  • william

    If it’s love, it’s love. I’m not crazy about exotic skins, so a five digit price tag isn’t something I have ever considered – but I do know I would go to almost any length to find my holy grail shoes (bags don’t excite me quite as much).

  • dierregi

    I’d rather have a couple of nice, good quality ones in different colors (obviously) rather than a single, very expensive one. I like a bit more versatility when it comes to colors and shapes and since I care also about my clothes, for me the bag is the final touch to an outfit.

  • Graciella

    I don’t mind saving up, but I keep changing my mind when it comes to the bag I’m actually saving up for. Right now, there are many bags that take my fancy, but none that make my heart skip a beat…(perhaps an Hermes HAC, but again, not sure!)

  • dela

    It also depends on your lifestyle. My birkin and kelly bags are mostly hand-me-downs from my mother and despite being my favorites I don’t feel like they actually suit my needs just yet. I find it hard to cope with the elements of weather or just running around because I simply refuse to treat my bags like a child when being caught in rain etc. My mom, on the other hand, has always stuck with Hermes or Chanel. Despite buying a lot fewer but well chosen pieces over the years, now she has a collection that speaks for itself.

    • Graciella

      ^you’re right on the lifestyle thing there – I’m a student, so a birkin or kelly wouldn’t be very usefull during the week (I really can’t see myself with any $1000 or up bag on a train every day). I only carry my expensive bags during the weekend, only when I’m shopping or visiting a museum or something, not for supermarket visits of course. So I guess the HAC has to wait until I get myself a nice job at a museum or something.

  • w.y.h

    I am actually quiet extreme (as I did the two extreme ends). In one end, I will save to buy less (means one or two only) of the best bags I like that I can afford for the moment and sell/get rid of the rest (of my bags). It used to be Burberry then LV then Chanel and now Hermes. I would be contented only to have 2-3 of my grail Hermes Bags.

    However, when I buy cheap trills bag (still one or two though), they will be really cheap trills. For example for white/light color bags, I will not spent more than $100 for those bags. In this way, I will not be plagued with heartache if after 2 months they turned ugly :wink:

  • http://anilumagloire.blogspot.com Anilu Magloire

    I won’t spend thousands on a bag. Definitely not. I buy as many high quality bags as I can, but I am very careful about what I buy. No impulse buys for me.

  • Miss Marina

    I save my money for when I go out of town, and into the big cities: NYC,LA, Florence, Milan, etc. because where I live there is just Saks and there isn’t much going on. I rather save my money and get what I really want and have been thinking about. :razz:

  • Cadence

    I have resisted spend great amounts of money on handbags. Mostly, like the others said, my lifestyle doesn’t support it financially. But also because when I go to work, I lock my purse away for the duration of my work time (it seems like a waste of a purse :???: ) Then, when I go shopping, I am in a town that is so small that they are not likely to understand the beauty of Hermes so it would be an entirely selfish purchase which would lead me to the guilt factor. SIGH. But if I ever came across one….you know…in my limited budget :lol: I wouldn’t hesitate to snap it up!

    • Lyns

      I totaly know what you mean about living in a smallish town. I’ll be out with friends and say, I’ll be wearing my fendi spy bag and there will be like 10 people wearing guess bags, and everyone oohs and aahhs over the guess bags and not a peep about mine. Anyways back to the topic. Hermes are beautiful bags, but I don’t own one. My mum is in love with hers and offered it to me to wear whenever I want, but it’s just not me.. luckily my taste are the “cheaper” bags so I can have quite a few.. but that could always change!!
      ps – I’m so friggin glad I found this site!!!!!

      • asiamb

        In my “small” town, they ooh and ahh over coach. :???:

  • MM

    sometimes I buy many, but I usually buy one per year that is “luxury”. However, I am always saving for that bag of my dreams, the birkin as of right now, used to be the kelly in red croc, who knows what it will be when I actually have the money.

  • Pursechazer

    i save for that coveted bag!!!!

  • hawaii2484

    i will never buy a hermes, not because i don’t like them – i love them – but any handbag costing over a couple thousand dollars is too expensive for me to carry. i try to be careful with my pieces, but i always seem to scratch the leather, drop it, or be caught out in the rain with it. i like to have an array of handbags, so i opt for spending less and getting more.

  • bag_and_boots_girl

    I agree with hawaii2484 and lots of others. I love Hermes, but there is a limit to how much I am willing to spend on a bag, and my limit is probably not considered that low compared to average.
    Remember when Luella bag first came out in 2003? It was around $600 range, and most of the it bags were as well. Now, If you can find an it bag discounted to $1,000 at the end of the season sale it sounds like a huge bargain. If I am right, as the rest of the it bag prices went up, so did Hermes the ultimate bags to balance with the rest.
    I may not poor, but I am not rich either. So, to buy maybe one bag a season is still a big luxury I need to save up for, and I am cool with it.
    I just splurged today and bought a pink patent Mabel at Mulberry store in NYC. This was an ultimate luxury spending of the season for me. Not only Hermes can make you happy.

  • JNH14

    Variety is the spice of life, so I’d say I’d rather have more than one pricey one! When I was in Vienna I went into the Hermes store-I just couldn’t justify spnding $7,000 on a bag that is leather and unlined! It’s just paying for the name in my humble opinion. I’d rather have more variety in nice handbags than fork out the $$$$ for a Hermes. :roll:

  • Suki

    I have a couple of expensive LV pieces that I bought with annual bonuses. The other 51 weeks of the year though, I’m too poor to even consider it, and have to spend all my spare cash on the much-hated “work clothes” as they take priority. So if I feel like buying a handbag most of the time, it has to be something seriously throwaway-cheap-and-cheerful. But I have decided that as soon as I get financially stable, I’m going to start saving to buy myself a Chanel 2.55 that I’ll have for the rest of my life. I couldn’t care less about having “It Bags” every year. Half the people I know wouldn’t recognise them anyway. But everyone would recognise LV or Chanel! And I love the idea of having a bag that’s an “old friend” that ages right along with you and carries so many memories.

  • Brooke

    with the economy in that state that it is, i don’t see spending as much as i use to on handbags, regardless if i can afford it or not, lately i have just been feeling guilty. although they are incredibly beautiful and real works of art in terms of fashion, i could never in a million years spend that much on an hermes. My limit is about $2500, because like others have mentioned, variety is fun and there is always that water bottle that leaks or that surprise afternoon rain or that unexpected scratch.

  • Livia

    Less is more. My plan is to own about 6 bags. Don’t care about the price I just have to love them. None will be a Hermes though. They’re nice enough but I’m not loving them.

  • porcelain_ninja

    Thank goodness I am not in love with Hermes Birkin or Prada so I can buy two bags per season in the $1000 to $3000 bracket. I have learned not to settle because I end up unhappy and just buy or save up for the bag/s I want.

    My favorite is still my black Gucci Queen medium top handle and the most expensive I own is the Mulberry Purple Ostrich Bayswater (thank you hubby.) Currently hoping to save up for the Ralph Lauren puffy Ricky and promise not to buy another bag for six months.

    Latest cheap thrill is Kenneth Cole’s twice as nice satchel in black for $300.

  • raspberry

    I guess owning classics are value for money as you can keep them for almost forever and pass them onto your children (Hermes birkin or kelly). I am saving up for my Kelly in gold. Already put myself on the waitlist.

    But, some of the seasonal stuff / fashion bags are really pretty and it is hard resisting the temptation to get one. I get bored carrying the same thing all the time. :oops:

  • VANmiracle

    I had quite a few of the so called season bags, but somehow they did nothing to me. No faster heartbeat, no satisfaction. When I opened the box of my Herm̬s bag РI can tell you Рthe feeling was so much more different. I never had that before with any purchase. Because of that: I wote for THE one Grail Bag.

  • mette

    P.S- no Lanvin worries longer. I gave it to a very sweet woman, who was thrilled about it. And I´m happy too.

  • http://www.shopcoutureonline.com Mispellled

    I am definitely the type that goes for the One Holy Grail of bags. Seasons come and go. But finally getting that special handbag after years of waiting? That’s a feeling you get only once in a lifetime, for some of us morals.

  • http://baglove.blogspot.com BagLove

    What a tough question! On one hand, I do splurge on one or two great bags a year (It’s just the middle of the year and I have reached my quota!). Quality for me is really a big thing. I want to buy something that will lasts so I never go for the “It” bags per se.

    However, I do have my cheap thrills which I occasionally indulge in. But then I think, the money spent on this throw-away bags could have gone into a bag I really really like. So yeah, a couple of good bags are better than a dozen not-so-great, impulse buys.

  • sndc99

    If I’m buying a bag to carry forever than yes you spend the money. I want to have those great purses when I need them but I like the color purple and grey for this season and those purses will cost between 500 and 1000 I won’t waste my money on a expensive trend. I would on the other hand spend it on a nice black bag.

  • Jen

    Somewhere around four a year make me happy. I like to have a variety of colors and styles to work with in case my outfit color schemes change. Anyways, before I buy a Birkin I’d need a new car and new living room furniture. I think there’s a happy medium in which I’m not buying tons of bags, just enough, and they’re of fairly high quality.

  • Cindy

    I guess I never love one bag THAT much that it would eat 25% of my after-tax monthly income. So it is really not a problem for me! LOL!

  • Empress

    One or maybe two a year are me. I use one for fall/winter and then switch for spring/summer.

    I am saving for an Hermes by the way. I like the Birkin and Kelly and I don’t need it in trendy colours or skins either. One or two investment pieces are all I need. The real question for me is, would these pieces be included under home owners/renter insurance??

  • doozer

    I can only covet these pricey beauties until my children are grown or I sell one of them.

  • Pinx

    It’s hard not to want the Birkin in any collection, the bigger problem is actually trying to decide if it’s wise to buy a traditional color or a color that stand out or the always recognizable Hermes orange.

  • angelchick182

    I’m a many-bag-gal myself. I tend to switch bags alot, so this is a good option for me. While I would never turn down a Hermes if it were just given to me, I just couldn’t bring myself to spend that kind of money on a bag.

  • Oliana

    Neither. Every woman needs two new bags per season. I am completely against byuing non designer labels, a handbag needs to be from a well known (or up and coming) fashion house, but there is absolutely no need to spend above a certain amount – say $2,000 to feed the need. As someone who has had many Birkins I assure you that after a while ( a short while) you want something new, fresh, more fashion oriented than a luxurious bag that has become – sorry to say – common. Kind regards to you all.

  • Clarkson

    Wow!!! The color looks plain. Anyway, I’ll buy many bags in order to fit my dressing. voguelande.com Won’t just buy only one bag.

  • pursefan

    I´m not so much of an it-bag fan. Luckily I´m really into timeless pieces but there are still too many “wanna have”-purses out there. Not to forget that one shouldn´t leave the house naked. Fortunately, with some sense of style, clothes don´t have to be very expensive to look good, but they should definitly have some sort of quality. An expensive purse may help, but it can never completly save a cheap looking outfit. Can´t say if I would ever buy an exotic skin if I were rich enough. Right now that’s way beyond my saving patience and financial means. It´s already hard enough now to save up for something and not letting other things come inbetween and also not changing my mind all the time, especially when it comes to colors and sizes. :grin:

  • brittany

    Personally, don’t have a problem treating myself to a new bag every so often but I’m not the type of person that would save money for one specific bag, especially if it is as expensive as Hermes. Yes, I enjoy the feeling of getting a new bag, especially when I buy it with my own money, but it isn’t a necessity for me in life. Instead of having only a few expensive bags, I would rather have many bags that aren’t expensive because then I have more of a selection based on where I’m going and i can spend my money on things that I really want at the time. Also, with the lifestyle I have, it’s more sensible to have cheaper bags because if one gets ruined, it’s not as devastating as an expensive bag getting ruined.

  • ashley

    i would just save for one birkin a year and thank god i’m not a fan of crocodile skin…

    my list:
    black 35 cm with gold hardware
    gris tourterelle 25 cm in ostrich with palladium hardware

    and, i do not know, we’ll see

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