Tag Archives: purse

6 Ways to Keep a More Organized Purse

6 Ways to Keep a More Organized PurseI am a bag lady if there ever was a bag lady. And not in the cute, boho, Olsen twin way. In the I’m close to needing a shopping cart to push around all my junk way. I can keep a fairly minimal house and desk at work but I rarely go out with a bag smaller than a three-year-old child.

A perfect fit!

But for the last few weeks I’ve kept an organized and minimal (to me) bag, Here’s how I’ve been doing it.

  1. Inventory and Prune
    Dump everything out. It’s going to look scary at first. It’s ok. Prune out extras. You don’t need 15 pens and 5 tubes of lipgloss. Ditch the extra weight.
  2. Bags within bags
    Putting smaller bags within my large bag has been the key to my organization. No longer do I have loose pills and pieces of candy floating around in my bag. Oh no! Now I have a place for those things within the bag. Group like items together and keep them in a smaller bag. May I suggest making a bag? My OUCH! clutch is a lifesaver and cute– if I do say so myself.
  3. Clean out the clutter weekly
    Another excellent trick is to clean out that clutter weekly. Don’t let that random paint sample from 3 weeks ago take up space in your life. I’ve started to clean out my purse during the last 15 minutes of work on a Friday. It helps me clear my head and prepare for the upcoming week.
  4. Don’t be afraid to carry things you might not need today
    If I wasn’t carrying such a big bag, I’d invariably forget something or the law of physics would happen and I’d loose a contact lens or get a massive headache. Don’t be afraid to carry a few extra things, but be aware when things might be getting out of hand. Band-aids and Neosporin are ok, but you probably won’t need an entire first aid kit. By carrying just a few extra things in my bag, I’ve saved money and my sanity.
  5. Consider other convenient places to stash stuff
    Not everything is going to fit in your purse or will be convenient to carry around. I stash my tweezers in my car. I always manage to find a stray eyebrow hair when I’m waiting at a red light. My car tweezers have saved me from being a unibrowed bag lady more than once.
  6. There’s an app for that
    If your wallet is stuffed full of reward cards, consider going wireless. Many major retail stores have an app with your rewards cards built in!

What kind of organization tips do you have for your bag?

Let me know in the comments!

love,
melanie

DIY Leather Clutch

DIY Leather Pouch ClutchI have the worst time trying to keep a purse clean. My purse is generally filled with crumbs, random medications and crumpled papers. And it seems that I never carry exactly what I need. Why is that?! Rules of physics?

After cleaning out my purse and accidentally throwing one of my favorite earrings away, I decided I need to get organized. Not only will this help me in my time of need, but it will help me to save money. I won’t buy 50 bottles of eyedrops because I have it on hand when I need it.

Here’s how I created this cute clutch to store band-aids, eyedrops and alcohol wipes for life’s little ouchies.

Here’s what you’ll need:
A piece of leather or faux leather (mine was 16 inches in length and 7.5 in width)
A threaded sewing machine or a thread and needle
A piece of chalk
Scissors
An alternate color leather
Fabric glue
A leather snap and a hammer

Cut your leather to size. Fold the leather up to create the pouch. I made my pouch 6 inches in length. Sew each side together, leaving the flap on top open on the sides. I then sewed the top edge to make a neater line. Take the chalk and trace an outline for the letters on the alternate color leather. Cut out each letter. Glue the letters to the bag. Let dry. Cut a hole for the snap in the middle of the bag using a pair of scissors or a knife. Hammer the leather snap into the leather on each side of the flap.

Instant purse organization! I feel like Wonder Woman some days.

love,
melanie