The Bag Diaries (and an outfit)

Bag, Zara.

God, how I worked for this bag. And by working I mean running around to loads of different Zaras on their first day of their summer sale before finally getting my hands on it in the Westfield store. But it was worth the hunt, since I’d had my eye on it for months. I can’t remember when it first came into the store, but I’ve been lusting after it from the minute I saw it. It represents everything I’m into at the moment: neutrals, handles, gold hardware and butter-soft leather. But still, even though I felt the Spanish brand had nailed it with this design, £79.99 sounded like way too much to spend on a bag from Zara. So I waited. And waited…

The weeks, months passed and I kept seeing this bag in so many Zara stores – it was torture. How could such a beautiful thing not sell out and disappear from my life to put me out of my misery? Well, I guess I wasn’t the only one frightened by the price tag. I prayed that it would go – and actually still be around – on sale, and for once my fashion prayers were answered. It went down 50 percent – it was still a little pricey but I guess not that bad for a leather bag, right? Not that I struggled to justify it.

Blouse, NW3 (sample sale). Skirt, from local shop. Shoes, Zara. Ring, vintage.

This baby has made me a happy bunny and to celebrate its neutrality I matched it up last Sunday with an equally neutral outfit. Now, I have to say, I loved wearing this outfit and felt super proud of my colour-matching abilities… but after seeing it in pictures, I was a bit disappointed. These tones just don’t translate nicely in pics. Plus, I think I got carried away and overdosed in neutrals – it all looks a bit too bland. Perhaps the lighting, also very neutral due to the gray weather, didn’t help either.

Excuse the somewhat grumpy expression on my face in this last pic, I was probably trying to add some sort of toughness to my bland outfit, failing miserably. But even if I’m not 100% about these items as a team, I like them all very much as individuals. Here’s the lowdown on them…

Blouse: an NW3 bargain find at yet another sample sale at work (they’re spoiling us). It’s not a colour that I would normally go for but it was only 5 pounds and I love the cut and the print – those little white smudges are actually Scottie dogs.

Skirt: I spotted it in a local shop and fell for its beige hue. It was annoying because you’re not allowed to try anything on in the store (I know, so bad) but at 4 pounds I couldn’t resist. 

Shoes: yet another find during my Zara sale hunt. I actually got the black version of these a few months ago, and was pleasantly surprised – well, shocked – when, whilst hunting for my bag, I came across this single pair, reduced from about £39.99 to £15.99. It really was my lucky day.

Ring: a find in a vintage market. Love it, it’s my statement ring.

Strange to think that my bag is actually the most expensive part of my outfit, but I intend to use and abuse it big time. It also comes in blue and orange – I did really like the orange one as well but the rational, sensible me knew that it would be wiser to go for the nude shade. Oh well, I can always hope for further (in other words, huge) markdowns…

xxx