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Tuesday, March 08, 2011

spring cleaning: handbag

 1. contents of my purse spilled onto table


2. voilà, organized and reshuffled contents in spring straw handbag

my, oh my. why do we carry the world in our bags?
when i dumped the contents of my beloved, well worn 4.5-year old anna corinna city tote (love!), i found items i've been toting since india. seriously!

i mean, i don't need an assortment of bindhis for everyday city living. or 2 burt's bees lip balms. or 2 red lipsticks. or 2 noir eyeliners. or 2 pair of armwarmers. or paint chips for art journaling. or multiple mini parfums. these are not everyday necessities (at least not in doubles . . . or triples).

my bag is feeling lighter, fresh, and well-organized
(especially now that i have no pockets to hide things in).

handbags are good metaphors for life.
what are you carrying around that you no longer need?
can you let it go to make space for something new?
are there things in your life simply taking up space and providing no benefit?
what begs for space and reorganizing?
let the spring cleaning begin.

bisous. x

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7 comments:

Vintage Butterfly said...

lol, I had to laugh at this post, as my "bag" is a vintage evening bag that I only keep a little cash, my license and credit cards, keys, one lipstick and noir eyeliner and lip balm and a pen...but...I put it in a tote (TranquiliT) that houses my planner, cd's, hand cream, book that I am reading at the time, crosswords, sunglasses, checkbook etc. I keep the tote in the car and just take out what is needed for wherever I am going...but usually I only carry my vintage bag with me. :) helps keep the weight off my shoulders. ;)

Carrie Writes said...

I alternate between a red hobo and a pink tote purse.
my contents
wallet
blackberry
journal
pens and pencils
lipstick
some times a small camera
or ipod
have a great day
carrie

LiziLifeCoach said...

Hilarious, we are indeed long lost twins! My bag is worse & probably weighs more than me LOL someone asked me for aspirin the other night at a party and when I dug in to my beloved I whipped out:
Dental Floss, extra everything, doubles & triples of everything. If I was on survivor everyone would want to be on my team! Too crazy...time for decluttering of bag too! I've been decluttering the entire house for the past two weeks & I have to say it feels great!
Love the post as always! Thank-you!

Cherie said...

My chiropractor brother-in-law got onto me years ago about carrying a heavy bag. Now my set up is similar to darlingcoquette's. I carry a small clutch (got a great Kate Spade last year) that has my necessities: small wallet, cell phone, lip gloss, sunglasses, pen, index cards. I put the clutch in a "purse extender" tote that carries my planner, my nook,my ipod, magazines, etc.

whitneygc said...

I believe there was an article about this very thing on msnbc.com this week!

whitneygc said...

http://today.msnbc.msn.com/id/41908962/ns/today-today_health/

kimberly wilson said...

wow, lots of great feedback here. indeed, we tote a ton and what a fun article! thank you for sharing AND great idea on carrying only a clutch (vs carry all) to force less toting! x