9 Tips for Finding The Right Handbag

These 9 tips for finding the right handbag will help you to make an educated purchase. Profit from my personal shopper wisdom, make your style choices intentional and take your personal style to the next level.

My clients often ask me tips for finding the right handbag. And of course I am more than happy to help YOU to find a prefect one. After all, I love bags – and especially practical bags that carry well but also look amazing.

A great bag sets the entire mood to your outfit and helps you to elevate your look to the next level. Just like shoes, it can make or break your outfit.

In this blog article I am giving you 9 tips for finding the right handbag. I have carefully considered the following aspects of bags and will explain each in detail later so keep on reading.

LIST OF THINGS TO CONSIDER WHEN BUYING A BAG

1. Purpose
2. Size
3. Ergonomics
4. Material
5. Color
6. Details
7. Compatibility
8. Brand
9. Budget

I am going to cover each of these points in depth soon so stay with me!

FINDING THE RIGHT HANDBAG FOR YOU

I wrote you this handy guide to help you to choose your ideal bag. These tips will help you to find a loyal workhorse that you can enjoy for years to come.

Get more out of your wardrobe by learning to accessorize like a personal stylist. Here we begin with the most practical accessory in your wardrobe: Handbag.

You will notice that most advice is written with business and work bags in mind but some style tips will apply to all types of bags.

Read also: What does your bag tell about you?

MY PERSONAL BAG SHOPPING TIPS FOR YOU

1. PURPOSE

Where are you going to use the bag? Does the style and the overall feel of the bag support the intended purpose of it? Is it elegant and professional? Or is it too young or too ladylike?

Would it look business-as-usual if you were to carry this bag right out of this store wearing what you are wearing today? You want a bag that works well with your current style but is also versatile enough for an elevated style update.

2. SIZE

What are you going to carry in it? Does it all fit in nicely? Even your water bottle? If you are in doubt, make a test: See if your current bag content fits in the one you desire.

See also if you could downgrade. Chances are you don’t need to carry all that stuff with you every single day. I am constantly guilty of carrying too much with me, so that was a mental note for myself too!

If your office is paperless and you don’t have to bring your laptop home, you might just survive with a small cross body satchel. The bags were massive 15 years ago and now I do wonder what we were carrying in them.

3. ERGONOMICS

How do you want to carry your bag? On your arm, across your body or on your back? Choosing the right strap is more important the heavier the bag’s contents are.

What’s the weight of the bag when it’s empty and when it’s full? Does it feel too heavy? Do the straps cut into your shoulders? Will it still feel comfortable after 30 minutes?

4. MATERIAL

Does it need to be rain-proof or heavy-duty? Do you prefer leather, canvas or synthetic? What are the care instructions? How much maintenance you are willing to put in your handbag?

Does the material match your ethical values? For example, would you do a vegan challenge wearing leather?

In my professional opinion your personal brand must be consistent throughout your values. It increases your authenticity and it will make people respect you more.

Good news is that nowadays there is something for everyone. There are also brands that tan their leather in an ecological way, use 100% vegan materials or just make so good quality that one bag will last a lifetime.

For the latter I do give a price tag warning though.

5. COLOR

Remember that your ideal bag doesn’t have to be black, brown or taupe. There’s a myriad of really cool colors out there and just need to pick one that you love the most.

I love red bags because that way I can wear a bright color without sacrificing my trusted neutral color palette. This is a great opportunity to inject some personality and memorability into your style!

Read also: Fashion Shopping In Amsterdam

6. DETAILS

Look carefully at the details of the bag. How lining, stitching, straps, finishing touches, hardware and other details are made gives you a good impression of the overall quality of the bag.

Avoid anything that is sloppily made and that feels flimsy. Those details will break in no time and you will experience buyers remorse. Let’s avoid that!

Look for a bag that wear nicely and is easy to open and close, even with just one hand. I have one beautiful bag that wrecks my manicure every time I reach out for my keys.

I love the bag too much to resell it so I had to change the way I organize it’s contents.

7. COMPATIBILITY

Does the bag fit with your current coats, shoes and work clothes? Do you need to buy new items because you want to buy this particular bag?

A good rule of thumb is that a new item should go with at least 3 other items in your wardrobe. For a work bag this number is definitely higher: 1/3 of your wardrobe should work with it.

8. BRAND

For many people brands are not a priority, but I know that for many people they are very important. A brand represents a lifestyle and a dream, and those aspects should be aligned with your values.

Sometimes brand value increases rapidly or declines as a result of a scandal. It’s only understandable to abandon brands that are no longer aligned with your current personal brand.

Your taste in brands can also change. You may have loved a bag when you were a student, but not necessarily anymore now that you are an adult career woman.

These changes in life and taste are normal and getting out of a style rut can be refreshing experience.

9. BUDGET

Whatever you are buying keep a realistic budget in mind. There is no point going into debt because of a handbag, or fashion in general.

Expensive doesn’t always equal good quality. There are several expensive brands out there whose quality leaves a lot to hope.

The emerging popularity of online fashion libraries, designer bag rental sites and pre-loved e-commerce have given normal people an affordable access to luxury goods.

For example, I found a Tory Burch bag, that I had missed for the original price, on a second hand fashion website for half the price. Of course I bought it immediately and I know that I will love it for many years.

This approach might work for you too. However some bags will keep (or even increase) their value so if you want a Birkin (Hermès), a Soho (Gucci) or a 2.55 (Chanel), you just need to work on that big promotion a little harder.