How to choose your handbag?

The Top 6 Best Tips

Like all women, you wonder at some point how to choose the handbag that will suit you best for your daily use. In terms of women's bags, there are so many choices, and with prices that can quickly soar, it is sometimes difficult to find your way to make the right choice.

Although it is not at all necessary to spend several hundred euros on a branded handbag, the first question to ask yourself is whether the purchase of this new bag is more of a fashion accessory or, on the contrary, a practical item?

Of course, most women want a mix of fashion, comfort, and functionality. We have therefore prepared below the top 6 questions to ask yourself to choose the handbag that will suit you best.

#1 The choice of your bag’s material

In the world of leather goods, you can choose between a  genuine leather bag  or rather a  synthetic leather bag, made from an artificial substitute for animal leather. Many people today defend animal rights and refuse to wear genuine leather items, since they require killing the animal to extract its skin. Depending on your values and beliefs on this subject, it is therefore appropriate to ask yourself this first question. 

What we can tell you for sure is that genuine leather is quite heavy to carry, even when your bag is empty. If you are someone who walks a lot and prefers a bag that is not heavy to carry, we then advise you simply to avoid choosing genuine leather as the material for your handbag.

Resembling animal leather and having the advantage of being lighter to carry, synthetic leather bags, called faux leather or polyurethane leather, are a very good choice. Great progress has been made in recent years in these types of synthetic leathers, especially for their use in making armchairs and sofas, to the point where it sometimes becomes difficult to tell the difference from real leather. Today, you can find very good quality polyurethane leather handbags, and this is the choice we recommend if you want a leather bag that is not heavy to carry.

Also, other more exotic materials such as straw, wicker, rattan, or bamboo are light and allow you to have a handbag as light as a feather. Generally, choosing a bag in these light materials is preferable for warm days to avoid the burden of carrying a heavy bag during hot weather.

#2 Purpose of your handbag

Take a few moments to think about your handbag and how it accompanies you in your daily life. If you don’t need to walk long distances, for example going to work by car, you don’t necessarily need your handbag to be absolutely light. On the contrary, if your daily life often involves walking, such as frequently using public transport, it is then preferable for you that your bag is as comfortable to carry as possible, favoring a secure closure to prevent malicious hands from rummaging through your bag unnoticed during rush hours.

Other women will be more involved in managing their household and spend a certain amount of time shopping, dressing children, or decorating and furnishing their home. For all these moments, we advise you to opt for a  crossbody bag that you wear across your body, as it is much more practical and comfortable for this type of activity to have a bag that leaves your hands free. 

Also, the  amount of things you need to carry with you is a determining factor in choosing your handbag. If you don’t carry many things with you, then a smaller-sized bag is preferable. Conversely, if you work, for example, in a company and need to carry a laptop and current files, then a large shoulder bag is the most sensible choice for you.

#3 What shape or size handbag?

Without paying too much attention to fashion trends, many women will choose a handbag that primarily matches their body shape and lifestyle. If your daily style is rather formal, we then advise you to opt for a structured and good quality handbag that will perfectly match your outfit. If, on the contrary, your style is closer to streetwear fashion, then the choice of a soft and unstructured handbag will best accompany your outfit.

Also, there are certain rules to follow when choosing a handbag to be sure it perfectly suits your body shape. Petite women should rather favor small to medium-sized handbags to avoid appearing even smaller with an oversized bag.

Conversely, tall women or those with a larger body shape should not opt for a small bag, which would make them appear even taller than they are. The rule we advise you to follow is to choose your handbag with a shape that is completely opposite to your body shape. For example, if you are a petite woman with curves, choose a structured bag with straight lines. If, on the contrary, you have a slim silhouette, the choice of a  round handbag will give you the appearance of more curves. 

#4 Backpack or shoulder bag?

For several years now, women have increasingly appreciated using a  backpack to carry their belongings. If you have not yet taken the step to carry a backpack rather than a handbag, it is never too late to try. The main advantage of using a backpack rather than another type of women's bag is that it prevents all kinds of muscle injuries when all the weight of your bag is on one single shoulder. The women's backpack is especially an excellent  everyday handbag if you use public transport or frequent crowded places, as you can wear it comfortably in front of you against your chest, thus avoiding malicious hands that would want to rummage inside your bag. Also, using a backpack allows you to comfortably carry heavy and bulky items like a laptop, a water bottle, current office files, a thick book…

If you are one of those with a dynamic daily life and would like to frequently change bags to adapt to each change of situation, then we advise you to choose a versatile bag with handles and straps to wear it both on the shoulder and as a backpack.

The  shoulder bag which has been very popular with women for a long time, also allows you to have your hands free like a backpack. One of the great advantages of shoulder bags lies in the fact that you can adjust the length of the strap as you wish, depending on the effect you want to create or  if you want your silhouette to be flatteringly highlighted. For example, you can draw attention to small hips with your shoulder bag hanging near your hips. If you have wide hips, shortening the strap length so that your bag sits closer to your waist is what will attract attention further away from your hips. 

#5 Compartments are essential

One of the (very) important elements for many women in their decision to buy a new everyday handbag is the storage it offers. Indeed, having different pockets and separate compartments to organize belongings is a real asset to feel efficient daily.

Being able to quickly find what you are looking for in your handbag (keys, smartphone, wallet, lipstick, transport card, bank card holder, entry badge, earphones, tissue…), without having to search through a bunch of other things, is a real comfort gain.

Having a bag with all our belongings properly stored in specific places is also what most women look for in using their handbag, as it particularly avoids stress, annoyance, and the feeling of wasted time.

#6 The best handbag colors

A color that is easiest to wear with your everyday outfits is obviously black, because black is the color that goes with everything. Moreover, if you tend to wear colors often, it is then wiser to follow the few recommendations below to avoid fashion faux pas.

If you prefer colors like beige, cream, brown, taupe, dark red, orange, or the palette of earthy tones, then your outfits will be properly enhanced with a handbag in dark red-orange or burgundy tones.

If you often dress in blue jeans, then a dark blue or dark green bag will add a nice trendy touch to the finish of your outfits.

Also, know that green, beige, teal, and metallic tones are handbag colors that easily match any clothing color, and this for all seasons of the year.

In summary, to choose the best handbag, you must think about the comfort you will have when carrying it, its functionality and practicality, its style and the finishing touch it will bring to your outfit, as well as its size taking into account our recommendations above according to your body shape.