Telephone Cord Purse?

           

I first spotted one of these babies years ago and was immediately hooked.  Talk about funky...a purse decorated with telephone cord.  I think part of my infatuation was the nostalgia of the cord, having grown up in the pre cell phone days...sitting in the kitchen talking on the phone that was attached to a coiling cord, that was attached to the wall.  In those days, your parents could hear the whole conversation...can you imagine!?  Anyway, like I said, I spotted a black and white telephone cord clutch and had to have it.

even the bottom of the bags have the cord detail

I was at a yearly Antique Market in Moss Landing, California, cold and foggy, as it is held right next to the Pacific Ocean.  The lady selling the purse obviously didn't think it was all that special because she asked next to nothing for it....SCORE!  So, after the first purse, I wanted more...you know, like the addict I am.  I started to ask around at all the antique stores and the workers would all look at me like I had grown a second head.  A purse with telephone cord?  They'd never heard of it.  I searched it on Ebay...with no results.   I hunted for the elusive telephone cord purse for several years...with the occasional sighting in a purse book.  Each time I found one in a store, I would buy it, until I now have a decent size selection of purses to choose from.  And they are great to use....very durable and if they get dirty, just wipe them off.

At first I thought that the purses had to be newer...possibly the late 60's, but found out they were a 50's thing...a lot of great plastics came out of WWII, and the plastic technology was used to create some pretty terrific bags in the 50's and 60's.  Now, plastic is just plastic...something we debate over whether to drink water out of.  But think of a time when plastic was new and exciting...

Maybe they're not everyone's thing, but I just love them...all the more because they are not everyone's thing!

                                 

this is my absolute favorite...bright red and white with a twisted handle

                   

the purse that started it all...the clutch in the front

                                                     

More Vintage and Antique Purses....beaded

a little french bag

One of my overwhelming passions as a collector of stuff and things is purses.  I have been collecting purses, new and vintage/antique since high school.  I don't really remember an exact reason or moment when I thought, "I'm going to collect old, tatty purses..." I just think that I have always been drawn to vintage and old stuff.  Of course, the lucite handbags are a huge part of my collection, but along the way I picked up some very pretty beaded bags too.  The thing that never fails to amaze me is that the oldest of the bags were all hand beaded, using silk thread.  I don't know about you, but I don't think I would have ever had the patience.  Also, leisure time in the late 19th/ early 20th century wasn't what it is now.  Couple that with the fact that lighting was also poor and I don't know how women found the time to make these beautiful bags.  Some are marked from France, some from Hong Kong, some from Czechoslovakia...some are unmarked.  I just think of them as eye candy.  And yes, I do use some of them occasionally. Collected at thrift shops, flea markets, antique stores, and on ebay, here are some of my beaded purses:

notice the initials carved into the front of this bag

the camera does not do this bag justice
it has bright green beads - handbeaded
on beautiful yellow silk thread

the camera kind of distorted the color
the first purse is beaded with metal beads on silk thread
the second 2 bags are jet black bead

again, color is a little off, but still pretty
the front bag is black with blue stripes
the back bag is a very pretty bronze/brown

this bag is made of velvet and silk
it has gold thread throughout
with little golden beads

how I store and display
my bags
in a glass fronted case

beautiful little bag with red beading