Unutterably Silly Ladies: Why are purses so large???!

[rebarnmom]

Originally Posted by ShortNCuddlyAm

You realise you are giving me ideas here?

(I've got to live up to my nieces' nickname for me )

Which is.... ?

[dsvick]

Originally Posted by ShortNCuddlyAm

You realise you are giving me ideas here?

(I've got to live up to my nieces' nickname for me )

Originally Posted by rebarnmom

Which is.... ?

Yea, you can't say something like that and then go silent....

[ShortNCuddlyAm]

Originally Posted by rebarnmom

Which is.... ?

Originally Posted by dsvick

Yea, you can't say something like that and then go silent....

Sorry, got caught up in office gossip, the nasty stuff going on elsewhere and the realisation I needed to catch my train!

It's Indiana Am

[rebarnmom]

Originally Posted by ShortNCuddlyAm

Sorry, got caught up in office gossip, the nasty stuff going on elsewhere and the realisation I needed to catch my train!

It's Indiana Am

That is quite the nickname to live up to!

Quite some time ago I was once referred to as Mary Poppins in regard to my purse.

"Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious" (spelling? )

[phenomshel]

Originally Posted by rebarnmom

That is quite the nickname to live up to!

Quite some time ago I was once referred to as Mary Poppins in regard to my purse.

"Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious" (spelling? )

Correct. I had to learn to spell it in self defense after I won my first gold UIL (University Interscholastic League, the governing body of both academic and athletic contests in the world of Texas schools), medal for spelling/plain writing my eighth grade year.

[simplyparticular]

Originally Posted by ShortNCuddlyAm

It's called a shewee - the name should give it's function away (although I don't think I've ever had to use it outdoors - it's invaluable in some public loos though )

Learn something new every day here at MR!

To the OP, I also prefer a small purse, that I carry until it falls apart. I can usually get close to two years because I buy leather. I'm partial to purses that have a wallet built in, so I don't have to carry one separate. And it needs to be small enough to throw in the diaper bag or my laptop bag - I loathe trying to carry two bags, not to mention the baby!

I just had to replace my previous purse and after wasting a ton of time looking at the monstrosities out there now, found the best selection from Fossil and Tignanello and am happy with this one:
http://www.zappos.com/tignanello-str...dy-aqua-cognac

I bought it in black on eBay - it is slender enough to go in another bag, the wallet organizer on the back holds cash, cards and receipts, the front pocket holds my iPhone, keys and lip balm, and there is an inner zip pocket for female supplies and Advil. The main compartment is large enough to hold an iPad in a slender case, but decided I don't like lugging it around, so it holds my Opus in a hard case instead.

[Xanthe]

Always use a large, shoulder bag, usually some sort of leather (current one is deerskin), that I buy at one of those artisan craft shows. Those pocketbooks tend to wear like iron and last forever. They are almost always zippered, and have outside pockets for me to throw keys and pens into. I pick my pocketbooks for primarily for their usefulness, rather than to be stylish.

Used to have a great pocketbook in college - it was so large that it was nicknamed "The Cow" because of all the leather it took to make it.

For traveling, I usually use this Le Sportsac one:
http://www.lesportsac.com/store/7519_5205.html

I can never understand how women manage with those tiny purses - my wallet is larger and heavier than most of them. How do you even fit a hairbrush in one of them?

[KarenH]

Originally Posted by simplyparticular

Learn something new every day here at MR!

To the OP, I also prefer a small purse, that I carry until it falls apart.

~snip~

The main compartment is large enough to hold an iPad in a slender case, but decided I don't like lugging it around, so it holds my Opus in a hard case instead.

I did a double-take when I read this post - I too prefer a small purse, but any purse that will hold an iPad doesn't fit my definition of small! The one I use most of the time is about 6"x4"x2" and will just barely hold a wallet (very small, more like a coin purse with a pocket on the back for cards), calendar, pen, keys, phone, MP3 player, aspirin, comb, and usually some kind of gum or mints. I also have one that is slightly larger that will hold my Kindle. In the rare cases when I need something larger I have a small backpack, just barely large enough to carry my netbook in a neoprene case, the Kindle, and the small purse, with pockets on the outside that will handle a few other items (depending on my needs at the time).

[greencat]

I was treated to the TARDIS like capabilities of a woman's handbag last week. She was next to me in the queue at Marks and Spencer buying the biggest bottle of wine I ever saw. Must have been at least 1 litre, perhaps 2. I was utterly shocked when the whole thing slipped easily and invisibly into her handbag. It was a magical experience, only made more so by the fact that she and her friend were giggling uncontrollably throughout.

[Sweetpea]

Originally Posted by rebarnmom

One must always be prepared for anything! (What Am said!)

The torch & the knife made me pause too, but then I remembered that the torch is another word for flashlight across the pond. Knife, I'm assuming, is a pocket knife.

"Plasters" = bandages. I love the different terms used! If I asked my daughter to get the torch and the plasters, I would get the strangest look!

What's wrong with plasters? A bandage is a piece of cloth which you wrap around and around and around... A plaster is a simple piece of whatever-it's-made-from that you put on a small wound...

Originally Posted by ShortNCuddlyAm

Now that might come in handy on the underground

You'll probably have a seat without a problem

[bjones6416]

Originally Posted by rebarnmom

I'm glad you asked first!

What a brilliant idea! I think my purse needs one of those too! If I could afford it, I would get one as a gift for all of my friends! I don't see the US flag, so you must have to order them to ship over the pond.

We have our own version on this side of the pond. This is what I gave my sister for Christmas last year :

Freshette

[BearMountainBooks]

Many years ago when I was new to Houston Texas, a man ran past me at the grocery store and ripped the purse off my arm. I have not carried a purse since. When I went to buy a purse...well, you've seen the selection. I ended up with a fanny pack (waist bag) and never looked back. It might not save me from being mugged, but truth to tell, it's just convenient. It's small (and there are now wallet-sized one), my hands are free to carry other things and I never forget it or set it down (like at a restaurant.)

It works for me. Of course, I am not known as a fashionista and in fact accidentally wore purple shorts and a baby blue t-shirt into walmart the other day...to ask about color matching for paint. I do believe the paint guy thought there was no helping me when it came to color...

[SneakySnake]

yippee! Mr friend in London has bought me a shewee. with the comment. No more peeing on shoes on way to roper. They only had clear and I wanted pink. I guess you can see the product as it is porduced!

[BearMountainBooks]

Pocketbook is regional within the US. My friend from Vermont always had to "get her pocketbook" which could be a reference to her purse or wallet. In NM, Texas, it's purse or handbag. I don't hear pocketbook around here much.

FWIW.

[Greg Anos]

Y'all forgot one of the uses of a big purse is bashing blokes over the head with it. Obviously the bigger/heavier the better.