CC 255: A Three-Year Update from CC 151

Today, we’re catching up with a past confessor, CC 151, who is sharing an update on how her collection (and life!) has changed since we last published her Confessional in early 2022. This handbag lover has since moved from Hong Kong to London, and her collection has doubled in size.

While CC 255 still shops thoughtfully, putting time and effort into researching each piece and making sure the purchase is one she won’t regret, what has changed is some of her shopping habits. While she used to be heavily influenced by influencers and YouTubers, these days, CC 255 has stopped most of her consumption of luxury content.

As she’s gotten older, this collector has honed in on her tastes and what she likes. She has also become a lover of the secondary market, with all the insane price increases pricing her out of the primary market. Read the full CC below, and don’t forget to submit your own!

Basic Bio

Your Age? 28
Your Gender Identity? Female
Where do you live? London, UK
What is your occupation? Recruitment Consultant
What industry do you work in? Consulting
What is your annual salary range? Total household income? $80,000.00
Are you a PurseForum member? No

Onto The Bags

How many bags do you own? 41

What bags are in your collection? I was CC 151!!!!! 🙂 Just sharing an update on all the bags that I’ve acquired since the last time I wrote here a few years ago.

• Birkin 35 etoupe clemence leather with palladium hardware (I thought my mom’s birkin was a Birkin 30… my bag knowledge has grown a lot since then)
• YSL sac de jour baby in beige
• Celine teen triomphe black calfskin
• Kate Spade polar bear bag
• Dior saddle in amaranth calfskin
• Christian Dior 30 montaigne bag in blue oblique (regular size)
• Coach empire carryall 26 in lime green
• Ralph Lauren andie brown bucket bag
• Givenchy mini antigona in black (omg that was amazing to be able to afford the “real” thing after buying the MK Ciara many years ago as a “Dupe” for the antigona!)
• Karl Lagerfeld Laptop Bag (the one given by my company I guess wasn’t posh enough! :P)

the rest of my collection remained sort of the way it was:

• vintage Gucci jackie in brown canvas
• vintage LV greta hobo in white multicolor canvas
• YSL le 5 a 7 in beige
• Michael Kors bedford zipped backpack
• Gucci 1955 horsebit shoulder bag (regular size) in canvas with white trim
• black Gucci marmont small shoulder bag (regular size)
• Gucci marmont mini camera bag in dusty pink
• Gucci marmont super mini bag in white
• Michael Kors medium selma crossbody in beige
• Michael Kors pink shoulder bag whitney
• Michael Kors red shoulder bag whitney
• Coach studio bag in white
• Coach white baguette
• Tory Burch mini boston bag in black canvas
• Michael Kors pink mott bag
• Gucci mini half moon bag in canvas with navy blue trim
• Michael Kors lita in avocado green
• Kate Spade wine red shoulder bag (very similar looking to Celine Ava)
• Celine Ava in regular size in pink flamingo
• Michael Kors white ciara large satchel
• LV Neverfull PM in monogram canvas
• YSL Small Loulou in grey with silver gunmetal hardware
• LV large half dome travel bag in damier ebene
• LV vintage Monogram Batignolles shoulder tote
• LV tilsitt in black (vintage)
• Michael Kors Nola Clutch large in black
• Michael Kors esther white satchel
• 4 more travel totes (3 x michael kors, 1 x burberry)
• sold/donated a bunch!

How much is your collection worth? $30,000+ I think 🙂 I try to not know the full number lol!

What is your most expensive bag? My mom’s Birkin still

Do you ever experience buyer’s remorse after purchasing a bag? If so, how do you deal with it? It’s so weird – I’ve found that the act of giving my card to the Sales Rep makes me having MORE buyer’s remorse? Like the feeling of my money actually being taken away, if that makes sense. Whereas, the last few bags I’ve bought they’ve been online, somehow, online transactions make me less remorseful. Lol.

Do you feel a desire to downsize your collection? If so, what factors are driving that decision? Not necessarily downsizing, but I’ve definitely spent more effort than the last time I shared here in terms of curating my collection to reflect my most current style. I have sold and donated a lot of bags. After I moved to London and settled in my current job, I need to carry a laptop bag and a nice mid-sized bag, which turns out my absolute favorite are my mid-sized bags with a crossbody strap (like my Coach Empire 26!)

What age did you get your first designer bag, and what was it? 22, when I bought my first premier bag which was my Gucci Marmont Mini Camera bag, still here in my collection.

Do you have a ‘holy grail’ dream bag you’ve always wanted to own? I wish I was a few years even older, but I was so grateful that I started collecting the majority of my collection around 2020-2022, because the price rises in 2023 and 2024 have definitely priced me out!!! Now at 41 bags, I can’t believe it, well – restricted by my shelf space too (lol!), I think I can say I have achieved purse peace.

Any particular bag that holds a special sentimental value? My mom’s Birkin still – but a few others since I have accumulated new bags, and lived life

• YSL Sac de jour baby beige – I bought that to celebrate my promotion in my current job
• Givenchy Mini Antigona – my most recent/engagement bag to celebrate, yes, my engagement to my fiancé 🙂 – and it was so special since I bought the MK Ciara a few years ago really dreaming about the Antigona
• Dior 30 Montaigne – my first bag that I bought in London, I remember it was a VERY cold wintry day (well at least for me, I’m from Asia!) it was my first time in the New Bond St boutique!

Do you feel like your bags change people’s perceptions of you or how you’re treated? I honestly don’t care how people’s perception of me are – I work in recruiting, so I’d like to think that it’s my personality and people’s skills that get me by, not my handbags. I rock my Coach Empire 26 just as proudly as my Dior 30 Montaigne, anytime, anywhere (well not in drenching rain of course for my Dior 30 Montaigne.)

How do you take care of your bags? Tbh I’ve never used any leather creams or anything else, handbags are there for me to use! That said I try to be mindful of my movement when I use it in public (like not bumping it against a wall/scratching it/I would NEVER set my handbags on the floor unless I really need to…), and I try to trim my fingernails!

On Shopping

How often do you buy new bags? Maybe 2/year? But honestly I see myself slowing down stepping into 2025, barring insufficient shelf space, but also I feel being priced out, while designs have mostly stayed the same – I don’t need another Marmont when I already have 3 GGs!

How has your bag collection changed during the past few years, and why? I became a lot more mindful of what bags actually fit my lifestyle the best, and look, I realize I’m probably not the wealthiest CC-er here, but I’m still in a very lucky position in life, so of those bags that are gone now (e.g. the Montsouris backpack), the majority I have donated them.

Do you prefer shopping for bags online or in-store? Why? Online!!! No sales associate following me, I can browse newest collections from the comfort of my home. And man, retail is hard, I find that the last few times I was out in the malls (which was nearly 3 months ago I think) SAs are coming across more desperate than usual. Maybe because of the declined sales?

Which stores do you frequent the most? I love going on Dior, Celine, Gucci and YSL website still – even in my “purse peace” era, but with my collection now, yes, I do find myself easier to justify why I DON’T like something vs why I like something. Maybe it’s a part of getting older?

Have you ever returned a bag after purchasing it? Why did you make that decision? Nope – I carefully think about every single new addition into my collection, I save each wishlist item into my browser for a good 3 months before actually buying it. My delayed shopping was there since my last entry here a few years ago, and it’s still the same now.

Do you ever buy second-hand bags? Where do you buy used? Yes – I used to not look at pre-loved, but starting end of 2022, and especially the 2023-2024 price increases cemented it! For example, when I received my promotion in the Summer of 2023 and I went to Saint Laurent and looked at the SDJ baby, I was actually kind of disappointed at the bag itself. The bag was great but there was NO WAY I would pay £2,200 for new from the store. So I bought it at a killer deal from a reputable consignment store. Since then the last few bags were all pre-loved.

Do you ever donate or gift your old bags? If so, to whom? I like to donate it to charity, or gift it to my nieces and aunt.

Do you feel that social media or influencer culture pressures you to buy more bags or certain brands? I used to, but I’ve since stopped. Work is busy! And I’ve also started to prioritize other savings and financial milestones in life. I still love watching Cassie Thorpe though, just her only now.

Do you consider your bag purchases financial or emotional investments? Not financial, but many of my bags I can attach a great memory/story behind it. 🙂

Do you follow the latest fashion trends when deciding on your next purchase, or do you prefer classic styles? Absolutely not – in fact I really don’t like a lot of recent handbag trends – I don’t like slouchy bags, East/West bags aren’t practical for me as my crossbody for work, The Row Margaux just looks like a Doctor’s Bag to me (shrugs – please don’t kill me lol!). I’ll always prefer a more classic, structured style.

Are sales associate relationships instrumental to your shopping? Nope – I always prefer online shopping

Do you enjoy shopping beyond just acquiring something new? It’s celebrating a milestone? Haha, or maybe I’m just justifying 🙂

Have you ever felt you received inferior service at a store or boutique due to your appearance, ethnicity, or gender? Thankfully never – but when I used to go to the boutiques more frequently, I find being respectful to SAs goes a long way.

What factors may dissuade you from buying a bag, even if you like it? PRICE. Seriously, I would not buy many of my wishlist bags from 2022 (that I didn’t end up buying) in the current 2025 prices.

Is there a brand you outright refuse to buy? Why? Not really outright refuse, but to this day, Loewe and Bottega’s designs still confuse me and I don’t think I’ll understand it.

How do you feel about the concept of “quiet luxury” vs. “loud luxury”? I’m indifferent – silhouettes and functionality matter more.

On Budgeting & Perceptions

Who pays for your bags? Most of them are me! A few were gifts from my fiancé – he’s the sweetest.

Do you set aside a budget for your bag purchases? Yup – I find the bag fund has been useful (and my wishlist) has been very useful in keeping my focus on the end goal, and not getting side tracked, by colorful SLGs for example. I set aside around $200 a month now.

Have you ever purchased a counterfeit because you couldn’t afford a designer item? Never – I respect how everyone spends their money, but I personally don’t support counterfeits.

Do you use financing or payment plans (like Afterpay or Klarna) for bag purchases? Nope – handbags are at the end of the day still non-essential purchases, if I couldn’t pay for it in one go, I shouldn’t buy it.

Do you think owning luxury bags helps you in professional or social situations? How so? Luxury bags help dress up an outfit and add that finishing touch, but the rest of me? It’s all me 😉

Do you ever hide purchases from your significant other? Have you ever lied about the cost of a bag to avoid judgment? No – I’m very lucky. My fiancé comes shopping with me sometimes at the malls and he is very familiar with all the luxury brands now (GG vs CC vs CD lol!)

Do you ever resell bags on platforms like The RealReal, Fashionphile, or Vestiaire Collective? Yes, I love Vestiaire, I have heard mixed reviews on it but so far it has helped for me.

Have your friends or family ever criticized your bag-buying habits? If so, how did you respond? Never, I’m too mean 😀 Haha – no one cares really in my family, and tons of my friends and colleagues also own tons of luxury bags.

Do you think your shopping is ever a problem? Have you ever felt like you were struggling with a shopping addiction? Thankfully never. I have filled my shelf space 🙂 – and I’m happier than ever.