The Story of the Handbag
Many women utilize some type of handbag every day of their lives, but where do they come from?
Handbags – Once Upon A Time
Although nowadays handbags are frequently a fashion statement and chosen for style, in the beginning they were purely designed for convenience. Early handbags were basically a pouch. A small circular piece of fabric had a leather strap sewn right around the circumference. When the drawstring was pulled tight, a pouch was created.
It’s interesting to note that these early variations of the handbag were almost solely used by men. They used them to carry small valuables and coins, and these items were kept safe by attaching the bag to the man’s belt. Mostly they were tied near the sword, so that he could protect his valuables easily.
The Development of the Handbag
By around the 16th century, bags had grown in size. At this point they were generally large bags worn diagonally across the body. They were popular with both men and women, and particularly with travelers who wanted to keep their valuables protected.
As the 17th century progressed, the bags evolved from simple items of plain materials to something a little more fashionable. A bigger variety of materials were used, and they became a little smaller again. Various, more intricate shapes were adopted. It also became commonplace to embroider the bags, decorating them with intricately woven pieces of art.
In the 18th century women ceased carrying a bag around the body, and instead began to carry them in their hand or tied over their wrist. They became known as reticules, and the era of a bag as a fashion statement had started. Reticules were carried because of the fashionable appearance they gave the owner, rather than just because they were useful. Women with money would have a reticule to match every outfit, or at least a range of designs, each one for a specific destination. Fashion magazines began suggesting the type of handbag that was “right for a specific event or location. Although they were often small, reticules were still used to carry a fan, rouge, face powder, scent bottle and smelling salts.
Modern Times
By the 1900’s the name “handbag” became more common, although in the beginning it referred more often to the traveling bags utilized by men. Over time, though, the term expanded to include bigger bags that became popular with women. Fashions changed through the century, from the fashion decoration of the 1920’s, through the war years when the supplies for bags were hard to get and other materials were utilized, and on to the later years of the century when fashion designers began to take an interest in handbags and incorporated them in their collections.
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