Purse purchasing is more than meets the eye

Most Liked

This past weekend I decided to treat myself to a new purse. There are few things that can cheer a woman up so cheaply or as quickly as new shoes or a new purse. Now here is where the male half of my readers will likely ditch me, but I ask you to humor me here, and keep reading, for this is not a story about buying a purse. Sometimes amazing things can happen while you are busy shopping for a purse.

When I shop, I like to take my time and peruse all the selections before making a final decision, regardless of what I am shopping for. This can drive some sales reps a little crazy, so I try to warn them ahead of time. Unfortunately, they don’t always take the hint. I purchased some new furniture this past weekend and took my sweet time wandering about the stores I visited, and I think it got the better of more than a few members of the sales staff.

Oh, well. I don’t like buyer’s remorse, so I make sure I am buying exactly what I need. And the bigger the price tag, the more important it is to take my time. Plus, I can be fairly impulsive depending on my mood, so I have mechanisms in place to protect me from myself. I almost always sleep on it, or put a few days in between to make sure it’s the right decision. If a sales rep starts to pressure me about when the sale is ending, or mentions the fact that it’s the last one on the floor, I usually don’t even react. Buying anything under pressure is never a good thing for me, so I simply walk away.

Buying a purse doesn’t involve any pressure though, so I can take all the time I want. I can think about the size, the color, the strap length, the number of pockets and snaps, for as long as I need to. I can wander through the department, amused by the ridiculous variety of prices and choices. Some handbags are so large, I can’t imagine their weight once they are holding everything you need them to hold. They are almost like a suitcase.

I know exactly what I need though. I know I need a side pocket to be able to grab my phone or keys quickly, and a very handy place for my reading glasses. I don’t want a purse that gets all fat when it’s full and makes it hard to reach things quickly. I like compartments that separate all the business going on in a purse. Yes, there’s a lot to think about when choosing a purse.

There are all sorts of crazy colors, materials and textures to think about too. You have to think about the kind of person you are, and if you are the kind of person who carries something with flowers, sparkles, or chains on it. Are you a fabric or a leather person? Do you carry your purse at the end of your arm, or throw it across your shoulder so you have both hands available for other things? The purse you select is really sort of a reflection of the kind of person you are.

The crazy purse department can be a really fun place. One day I was shopping with my friend, and while looking at wallets, I decided to have some fun and put a dollar in one of them. I figured it would give someone a thrill when they found it. My friend thought I was absolutely nuts, but then surprised me by pulling out a dollar from her purse and adding it to a random wallet in the display rack. We both walked away giggling like crazy, feeling like reverse shoplifters.

Today though, as I was meandering through the forest of handbags, I noticed a woman also looking for just the right one. Only she had an assistant with her. They chatted incessantly about the type of purse she should buy, and her assistant was amazingly attentive and helpful, not to mention the fact that they were both having an absolutely fabulous time together. It was a sweet young lady of I’m guessing 9 or 10 helping her grandmother find a new purse for herself. They were enjoying each other’s company so much that I couldn’t help but be affected by their magical interaction.

What was most lovely for me was that it was actually a conversation full of lessons – although the young lady may not have realized that. While perusing the purses, Grandma talked about how certain purses were fun, but not her style, and why they weren’t practical. How buying a white purse would be a bad idea because it would get dirty very quickly. Other purses were beautiful, but Grandma was not willing to pay that sort of money for it. It was wonderful to listen to the two of them banter back and forth, the mutual love and respect in their voices obvious. I thought how lovely it was for them to have each other and to share such a great relationship. Some of their comments made me almost laugh aloud, I was so tickled with the whole experience. Little did these two awesome ladies know how much happiness they brought me that afternoon. It made me think about the fact that teaching moments are all around us, all the time. And just like Mary Poppins said, just a spoonful of sugar helps the medicine go down.

That grandma really has it goin’ on, and that young girl is very lucky to have such an awesome mentor in her life. I hope to be lucky enough to have similar conversations someday with my grandchildren.