£800 to spend on a bag what would you go for

[buttercrumble]

Been lusting after a bayswater for ages. But something holding me back, which other bags are classics which wont date....

[madammecholet]

Bench Brigade..... yawn.

I would choose a chloe marcie (altho heavy) or Gucci Jackie (lusted for ages) or 2nd hand chanel 2.55, or look at Anya....

I've saved a £1k recently, tempted by a handbag but ended up booking a girls trip to New York instead

[JenaiMorris]

You could buy fourteen and a half of those for the price of one of these bags.

There are children even today who don't even have ONE self-assembly garden bench :(

Some people don't know they're born

[Mrsrobertduvall]

I am going to buy a nice bag this year.
Last spring I bought a lovely buttery leather slouchy job for about £200- the most I have ever spent.
Within 3 weeks, a pen had leaked through the leather.

[BrandyAlexander]

Hi, firstly ignore the hand wringing/bench/how much brigade. Their posts are quite amusing though

The Mulberry bayswater won't date if you get it in a classic colour. I have a bayswater but not in the oak. I agree with Amber. Have you thought about a Smythson? They are such beautiful bags. My favourite one is the Nancy, but the Agatha is gorgeous too. They are about the £800/£900 mark.

Balenciaga City has been a stable for a good few years now and is now considered a classic. The really roomy bag is approx £1200, however, I saw that they have started doing smaller versions for approx £800. They are gorgeous bags.

The Chloe Marcie is new and comes in a tan. Again the really roomy one is approx £1100 but they do a smaller version for £800 ish. I agree that it is a heavy bag!

If you are thinking classic tan, then you should also think about Longchamps or Tods. Classic with a bit of twist then maybe the Madison bag by Coach (its actually cheaper approx £500 ish from memory). Also Micahel Kors do some really gorgeous tan bags.

Prada bags tend to be well made and I always think of as classic (eg more so than Gucci). I think they date well so I still use Pradas from 10 years ago.

Finally, I would also recommend Aspinal. Not as well known as Mulberry and slightly cheaper. Check out the hepburn bag which is beautiful and I always get compliments when I use mine.

Hope that helps!

[scottishmummy]

Yes to smythson

[QueenBOObread]

Jenai - at children deprived of self-assembly garden benches. If Alan Titchmarsh were to do a version of Ripping Yarns... eee, in my day, we din't have none of those self-assembly benches, noo we only had pointed sticks to sit on...

[blossoming]

Love my balenciaga classic town that I saved up for. Ten years I'd been coveting it, which does give it longevity. I use it for work and casual. I have a pencil case for my pens.

[coffeeinbed]

Smythson are much better made that Mulberry.

[scottishmummy]

Smythson are classic well made
Not blingy or fashionista, just good

[BoringSchoolChoiceNickname]

Personally I'm of the 100 quid for something I liked in the John Lewis sale/TK Maxx and spend the rest on a weekend in Rome persuasion, but I'm curious, and would like enlightening from the cognoscenti - exactly how well do these bags last? If you filled it with the normal crap and used it every day for your commute, how long would it last? Because I've never had an everyday bag last longer than a year - respectable but not high end bags, Radley, Osprey, Fossil etc, they just start looking knackered. Would shelling out for proper Mulberry make a lot of difference?

[Mrsrobertduvall]

Dh bought me a LK Bennett bag once as a surprise and I have never used it.
It is bright pink and just not me.

[scottishmummy]

Do they last?yes the leather is thick, the coloring tends to be dense,high quality
They age better,i use makeup bag,penil case,spray 3-4 times scotch guard to protect
Resale price good too

[milk]

Launer Encore Handbag is just beautiful :)

[sosooootired]

my biggest objection to mulberry bags are they're too heavy
and as with LV bags people will assume it's a fake so it looks either silly or trying too hard
i have no problem with people paying whatever they like for a bag, a beautiful leather bag will give you a lot of pleasure!

[Lizzylou]

Lula, I bloody love that Michael Kors tote!

I am not really into bags. But that is singing to me.

What does tote even mean???

[susiefen]

Just an opinion, but I had a discussion at work with someone who was very at me buying a £500 Mulberry Roxanne at the Bicester outlet, but happily spent £4k on a family cruise - for a week. i didn't get it as I don't do massive holiday spending, but several years later I still have my lovely bag and they will have spent lot more £££ on holidays. No brainer for me (and fortunately my family as we have had lots of fab holidays in the UK!)

[chickensandbees]

Dontmindifido's thread was started when i was planning to get an expensive bag for a big birthday. The bench brigade annoyed me then as they do now. . . But only enough to make me laugh! A good friend was also appalled when i said what i was planning to get.

I eventually got a Mulberry Alexa . I love it. Absolutely love it. Everytime i look at it makes me smile.

Ignore the bench brigade and get your bag.

[bunnymother]

I saw an Aigner bag in the window of a 2nd hand boutique and it looked lovely. Quite luxurious in a low key way. Celine do some beautiful bags, as do Valentino. Not v helpful w no links or style names, but am sure you'll cope

[chickensandbees]

Also agree with susiefan. If you said you were spending it on a computer or holiday noone would moan. But a good bag could last longer than both.

[Lizzylou]

I actually can't stop looking at it.

Have a significant birthday coming up, perhaps it is time to get stylish.

It is just lush.

[Allthingspretty]

I have a mulberry mabel (goat leather) has been used everyday and been soaked by the rain and still looks good around five years later. Bought in the sales.

[Internationaltraveller]

Michael kors you can get cheaper in N.america. That Hamilton tote is nice but very heavy - I saw a medium sized Michael Kors Hamilton in costco for 280 c$ - didn't buy it as couldn't justify it, and it now gone! :(