£1m for a handbag

[loulou]

Valued at £1m, the diamond-encrusted platinum handbag will go on display at jewellery shops around London to mark the inaugural London Jewellery Week.

Created by Japanese designer Ginza Tanaka, the bag has been set with more than 2,000 diamonds.

The organisers of the event say the handbag will be available for sale.

If you are wavering about whether or not the price represents value for money, its promoters point out the versatility of the bag.

Its diamond shoulder strap can be detached and worn as a necklace or a bracelet, while the 8-carat pear-shaped diamond centrepiece surrounded by a cluster of eighty-one smaller diamonds can be taken off and worn as a brooch.

That's me convinced then.

[oldspice]

A few weeks ago, at a staff conference off site, a member of a different department came up and asked me where i got my lovely bag. When I told her I got in in a charity shop for 3.25 she was horrified. She actually recoiled. I explained it was new, and was donated to the charity shop as an unwanted gift. She was still horrified. 'why do you use charity shops? It's not as if our pay is not quite decent. Surely they're for unemployed people and old people'. I told her I often use charity shops, it's my duty as a citizen. She was completely freaked out by me. She then went on to tell me her bag cost over 200 pounds. It was my turn to be horrified. 'You paid over 200 pounds for a bag you use for work???"  She got quite sniffy with me and stormed off in a huff. She has since been telling everyone I am a total fruitcake, a bag lady and probably an alcoholic and that's why I have to use charity shops.

I am going to forward Lou's post to her in the morning and sign it 'with warmest best wishes to you from the bag lady'.

[loulou]

£200 for a handbag?  I can get a whole outfit , shoes and bag for that.

[smurfboy]

She's obviously a very insecure person who can only feel good about herself if she buys expensive things. Seeing someone clearly not impressed by that forces her to look at why she needs material things to make her happy. Your bag was 'lovely' before; suddenly because it didn't cost a fortune it's old tat and you must be mad. That says a lot about her.

And that's my pop psychology for the day. On a totally unrelated topic, I just bought two new bedside lamps that I love to bits. 

[goldencup]

Ah, but did you get them from a charity shop?

[smurfboy]

  How very dare you! You wouldn't get me in one of those places 

[goldencup]

 

[loulou]

Is that a yes then?

[oldspice]

I am proud to use charity shops. I haven't been brave enough to buy many clothes from them, but have bought a very nice skirt and dress recently. I don't spend a great deal of time looking at the clothes however. I look at books and bags and china and in Oxfam they do beautiful crafty things made by cottage industries in developing countries.

Celebrities often auction their old designer stuff off at charity bashes and they get snapped up so I don't see much difference really.

[loulou]

I think it is good you use charity shops oldspice and make use of things other people no longer want.  It's no different to buying from ebay.

[smurfboy]

Is that a yes then?

Nah. I got them in a closing down sale.