I’m sick and tired of my purse. I had a fairly nice Tommy Hilfiger leather bag that I liked but it’s gotten so ratty that it’s an embarrassment so I borrowed a purse from my daughter. The borrowed purse is OK but the opening is quite a bit smaller than the body of the bag which makes it difficult to get things in and out and makes it very easy to lose things even though, as purses go, it’s fairly small.
I could buy a new purse but things are financially tight right now and I consider a new purse a luxury since I have 2 functional purses (not pretty but functional)
So I’m considering just not carrying a purse. (most) Men don’t carry purses. Why should I? I think I might be able to make this work. But I’m wondering if anyone else has abandoned their handbag and how do they cart their stuff around.
Contents of my purse:
Wallet
Keys
Glasses
Cell Phone
Pen
3 Lipsticks
Chapstick
Powder compact
512 MB Usb Drive
Business cards
I also regularly carry a pager, another set of keys for work and my swipe card for work. Those I keep on my person when I’m at the office, in my pants pockets.
I have a purse, but I regularly go without it. I have three options:
Purse, for when I have no pockets.
No purse. This means I have to have pockets, and I carry the minimum of stuff then, just wallet and keys. Purses are convenient sometimes.
A small purse-like backpack, for when I’m going on a day trip and need my hands free.
As time goes by, though, I find it harder to go without the purse. Everything’s nice and neat and organized in the purse. I used to hate them, now I’m reconciled.
No purse. Front left pocket or tucked into front left waistband of underwear, cell phone. keys, if not left in ignition, same spot. Small wallet back left pocket. Sunglasses would go on head, front neckline, or tucked into back neckline, or back waistline if I was bending over a lot, or had a small child in hand. Haven’t carried a purse in years, never really did very often.
I have a purse, but a very small one–it pretty much amounts to a wallet on a string. So money and cards in there, anything else gets shoved into a pocket or left behind. I don’t carry any makeup with me though–the only thing on your list that I would regularly carry with me is a cell phone. Well, and glasses, but I carry those with my nose.
I carry some days, most days I don’t. I just have my cell/Palm (one device), iPod, keys, and whatever money/credit cards/ID I need. iPod goes easily in a back jeans pocket, cash/credit/ID go in the other, keys in front jeans pocket, and cell/Palm in hand. Unload everything except cash/credit/ID when I get into the office.
You sound like you have a lot more stuff to carry around than I do, though, and anytime my load gets bigger than what I listed above I carry a purse. So, you may not be able to get along without one if you’re sure you need to carry all of that stuff every day.
I didn’t used to carry a purse. I have a darling little cell-phone holder/wallet thingie which is just big enough for my cell phone and a few cards, plus a spot for my id on the back, and a pen in one side, blistex in the other. Since I found a really cute red with a white maple leaf cut-out purse (so I’m totally incognito and nobody can tell I’m Canadian unless they also are), I carry a purse. So. I carry my wallet thingie most times if I’m travelling light.
That’s a LOT of stuff for No Purse. I think men who carry that much stuff carry briefcases…but let’s face it…it’s an important-sounding name for a boxy purse.
If money’s tight, you might want to try a “high end” resale shop (from a high-end neighborhood). They tend to carry good, sturdy bags that cost a fortune brand new, but can be picked up for next to nothing at resale.
I have no problem spending $100 on a purse because I tend to carry the same one for like 10 years. I’ve been rotating three bags forevah.
Purses are an extremely difficult purchase for me. It has to be “just so”. I’ll look for months for the perfect bag, and I usually end up sacrificing some feature for another.
Thanks for your responses. I think I could do this. On a daily basis some stuff could go in my briefcase and the stuff I need to have on my in my pockets. I always wear pants with pockets.
I’m abandoning my purse as of right now. I’ll let you know how it goes.
I have a wallet on a string. It’s actually a nametag holder that I got from a conference. It has a little pouch and opens up just like a wallet. I love it.
No purse here. I have tons of bags (most of them of the messenger or backpack variety–I just like bags) but I never seem to carry any of them. I hate purses, and even with the messenger bags I’m never willing to put anything important (like keys or wallet) in them. I feel weird unless I have them in my pocket.
I usually carry keys, wallet, occasionally cell phone (which goes in a cargo pocket), a few random dollar bills, and that’s about it.
The other option is to keep a stash of stuff at the office. That way, you’d only really have to carry a little bitty purse when you go out. The other stuff would just be there at work where you probably spend most of your time anyway.
I was doing just a travel wallet for a while, then I needed to add another item and went to a pouch-style pencil case. I like this a lot, very minimalist, and there are some extremely cute, inexpensive ones if you like variety. However, I usually also have a briefcase and a PDA case in addition to the purse. And then there’s all the junk in my car just in case… I do not travel light!
I’ve reluctantly adapted to purses, even though what I always REALLY wanted was some kind of neat modular utility-belt thing. But it was always more along the lines of “silly idea” than “actual goal”. Until I got a new camera for my birthday and discovered what’s happened to digital camera cases in the last couple of years. Lowepro actually has an entire category of cases that can be attached to a belt or belt loop - lots of sizes, lots of styles, lots of colors. I’m halfway considering getting a few of different sizes and going entirely modular.
Admittedly, I’m sure it’ll look totally dorky… but just think about it!!
I hate carrying a purse. Actually, I just hate carrying anything. I’ll bring a purse only if I need to tote more than I can comfortably fit in my pockets and/or my bra. Cell phone and car keys go in the bra or jacket pockets (if I have a jacket on) if the pants pockets are too small; money, ID, and insurance card (I never go anywhere without my insurance card – my biggest fear is a “Jane Doe” toe tag) go in my pants pockets. If my pants don’t have pockets, that stuff goes in the bra, too. A small lipstick will also fit if need be.
I used to carry everything on my person while I was in high school, because I hate purses. I still do hate purses, but there’s so much CRAP that I have to keep on my at any one given time that I carry one. The only way I managed it in high school was because I wore almost exclusively cargo pants - now I have to wear business casual.
I bought myself one of those purses that has two straps and is basically a tiny backpack, and it works. Maybe you could freecycle a decent purse? I, personally, wouldn’t try to keep that list on myself without some extra accoutrements (such as a lanyard to keep my keys on around my neck, and a cell phone holder that I could clip to my belt). I hate purses, but I hate not being able to move around more.
I’ve carried one only for a year. Mom bought me one that’s absolutely perfect: it’s large enough to hold my stuff, but small enough that I can’t fill it too much, and because it’s denim I can wear it with *almost * anything. It’s not a “go to a wedding” purse, but it works for going to work.
Stuff that’s in it now:
*wallet
*keys
*an extra sanitary pad (yes, it’s that time, sorry if that’s TMI)
*a pack of Kleenex (got the sniffles)
-one of those shake-me battery-less lanterns
*my cell
-hairband
-toothbrush (I don’t have a drawer at work, can’t leave it there)
-and toothpaste (same)
The stuff marked * is what I used to stuff in my pockets.
What? What’s wrong with you people? Where do you keep your reading material? You’re telling me you leave the house without a book???
Not that I have a purse. I have a BAG. Purses are girly. Bags are where you keep your life when you’re mobile. Book(s), magazine(s), money, chapstick, someplace to put whatever I buy in the course of a day. Things I don’t think I’ll need till I do and …there they are in my bag!!!
I never carry a purse, my alternative is my jacket. I have an awesome camoflague jacket with a ton of ginormous pockets in it. Wallet in the right breast pocket, sunglasses on the left, keys and cell in the right bottom pocket, and the left pocket usually contains 3 fairly large balls (for juggling when I’m bored or have to wait for the bus) and whatever book I happen to be working on.