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| Tell the truth... we don't love everything! |
As in, if a purse pattern has this particular feature, you will absolutely find some way to change it or leave it out. Or, if it's an actual purse, you'll say, "Nope, don't want it."
It can be anything from a specific type of closure to the shape of the bag. What's your personal purse pet peeve?
My answer? I've discovered that I "almost hate" flaps. The interesting thing about that admission is that I like the look of a flap. (Why else did I come up with a faux flap on my first bag pattern for sale? After all, at least fifty percent of that design was about a flap.)
I dislike having to flip something up and out of the way in order to access a bag. Note that this feeling doesn't extend to wallets... I'm perfectly fine with a wallet having a flap. A purse flap, however, invariably flops all over the place after you flip it up. Half the time it comes back down and stays in your way.
I'm currently using my customized summer sling bag. (Even though it is so clearly not summer right now; the overnight temperature — with windchill — was predicted to enter the -40 range, which is that magical mark at which the Fahrenheit and Celsius scales meet.)
For the most part, I don't need to dig around inside of it all that often, which is a good thing. The bag is too deep for easy access to things. I put up with it for the fact that it allows me to haul around more than my usual amount of stuff, and it's actually quite comfortable to carry. But yes, woe is me when I need to grab my wallet and have to deal with swinging that great big flap up and over.
Oh and this is good for a laugh — I chose a dark fabric to line this bag and therefore use this purse light on a regular basis to see "way down there".
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| I need a light to see into the depths of my Summer Sling Bag... |
What else do I find annoying?
I almost hate to say it, but a bag with a closed top zip is not my favourite. I realize — and totally appreciate — that it's a security feature, but having to unzip to get into the main compartment of a bag is not my preference. I've gotten used to carrying purses that are open across the top (secured with a magnetic snap in some cases) that having to deal with a big ol' long zipper is a hassle...
... especially if it's a zipper that's hard to manage. Check out this purse of mine.
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| A stylish crossbody bag with a perverse zipper... |
Stylish, huh? However, with regards to that steeply slanted zipper.... it's horrible — absolutely horrible — in actual use. It's fine to open but requires a two-handed struggle to close. But yes, unique looking and stylish. Luckily this bag has two other compartments alongside this centre zippered section, so I just usually make sure I have no real need to access the middle part.
But to carry on with this theme, anything on a purse that require both hands to undo or secure is a no-no for me. This sometimes includes hardware like thumb latches and so-called quick release buckles.
Oh, and I may as well confess also that although I like the look of a "zippered up hanging flap closure" — you know, the top of the bag has a zip across it and then a large section of it folds down over the rest of the bag to act as a flap — I absolutely detest using a bag so designed. (And yes, I had one. Sometime next year, you'll see the fabric I recovered from it.) It's like a double "no no" to me: "flap" plus "closed top zip". Yikes!
My last purse pet peeve usually has more to do with my outerwear than my purse, to be totally technical about it: slippery straps! I never really had this issue before I made my own purses and bags, but of course, fabric straps can be slippery against certain types of coats. Those of you who live in perpetual warm weather may not have this problem, but most of my winter-grade jackets result in slippery strap syndrome.
Did you know that they make something for that??
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| Talk about a solution for every problem! |
This is just one of the products out there. There is a bigger "Strap Gummy" as well as various sizes of something called "hideagrip". Not necessarily cheap and they may not always work, but hey, it's a potential solution. General purpose silicone grip tape may also fit the bill as a fix (not that I've tried it).
So lay it on me... what are your personal purse pet peeves?
I don't like purses that are too tall/deep, as it makes it hard to find anything inside of the purse. I hate digging around inside of my purse. I don't like a too small or too large purse either. It has to be just the right size. I like zippered closures the best. Rochelle if you don't like zippers, flaps or thumb catch closures and the like, then what do you like? I also don't care for two straps, even though I have a lot of purses with two straps. I prefer one adjustable strap so i can wear it across my body if i want to. I don't like the two straps because they do slip off my shoulder, but maybe all i need is those silicone strips to put on the underside of the straps and then I might like the two straps.
ReplyDeleteLOL... good lord, I'm hard to please, aren't I?? Since you asked a question that other enquiring minds might want to know the answer to, I'm also posting this response. I came into this blogging adventure with at least a partial goal of coming out with a purse of my own design that I truly like. I'm not sure if I thought it would be this feature-rich, complex, FrankenPurse kind of thing. In actuality, the more purse patterns I see, the more I'm convinced that complex is not what I want. To get back to your question, I prefer a magnetic snap closure. Even on my (store bought) bags that have multiple compartments, I prefer the main one to be open in that way. Which is not to say that I don't appreciate the security of zippers; I just don't like them impeding my entry into the main part of the bag. Oh, and ITA with you about digging around in my purse... not fun, especially if in line and people are waiting.
DeleteBags with flaps just don't work for me. If it's a very small flap on a pocket, as opposed to the main compartment of the bag, I cope, but not large flaps. Won't buy them or make them. I do like a zipper closure for the main compartment, but am happy with a magnetic closure on a side compartment. I find the magnetic closures harder to do up than a zipper. Happy with magnetic closures on tote bags, though.
ReplyDeletemy biggest peeve is dark linings! I do like your purse light though, but dark linings, small useless pockets you now the ones this is supposed to be a phone pocket but not for anything modern ha ha, also store bought thin linings with no interfacing or worse cardboard, our handmade designs are so far superior, and actually no pockets I mean what is that all about!
ReplyDeleteI hear you... I had forgotten about those really cheap purses with cardboard inserts inside them! And of course, modern technology has totally outstripped the pace of purse designers when it comes to the size of cell phone pockets. Thanks for contributing to the discussion. :-)
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