What not to forget when packing for Paris? It’s not Prada.
I just loved the colours and the offbeat bags in this photograph.
Last weekend I packed for Paris in a ridiculous rush and missed my train. I ended up in the right place hours later but completely frazzled. I don’t know why as most of the time I am the most organised person I know. Rushing is for others, (I always say) and now I know why.
I made it and had a wonderful time so none of this really matters but I did forget one small item.
The good news was I packed the right blouse and shoes; the bad news I forgot my handbag. I had a large bag with all the paraphernalia to get me from A to B but not a small one to take me out once I arrived. I tried to squish all my ‘everything’ into my wallet but that was never going to work.
For some reason small bags have escaped my radar recently.
Ever resourceful, I used the shoe bag in the hotel for my wallet, phone and all the “girly” rest. As I headed out the front doors, puzzled looks passed between the staff; I promised I wasn’t stealing their bag just “borrowing” for a night out. They either thought I was telling a big tale or completely avant garde with my dress sense. Neither was the truth; simply a practical decision.
The shoe bag, while embarrassing as an accessory, did the job although it paled in comparison to my companion’s beautiful evening bag. We did have a laugh over my “cotton clutch with drawstring” look.
Which brings me to the point. Which bag to pack?
The cross body is a fabulous day bag but sometimes at night they look too casual or don’t work with what I’m wearing. In my next pack I am including a small clutch/envelope in my suitcase. A “clutch” to clutch that takes no space and to double up as a wallet, handbag and holder of many small things. For travelling it’s all that is needed and while something more glamorous and more exciting would be fun, it would take up too much space.
If there is one promise I have made to myself it is to travel more often and more lightly. It is the weight and bulk of what we carry that is fatiguing and awkward.
That’s why I am looking for an elegant envelope to replace the “shoe bag” (which I did return); a clutch to hold not only the necessary at night but also to flat pack in the suitcase.
Shoe bag or clutch? You choose ;) xv
I Won’t Forget This
claire v silver || claire v gold || comme des garçons black and pink || comme des garçons gold
eric javitz pearl embellished || mansur gavrel grossgrain nude || mansur gavriel grossgrain red
and then there is this one (bee-ware)
