Perfect (casual) summer bag

Oh, the irony: browsing for summer bags in a 58 degree house while the repairman fixes our heater.

The motivation is facing, for the third year in a row, the pressure to find a suitable successor to my original perfect summer bag, which is fast reaching retirement age.

To qualify, a Perfect Summer Bag needs to:

• be made of fabric
• be large enough to double as a beach bag if necessary
• have space to store a water bottle and kids’ snacks for the playground
• have a vaguely ethnic vibe, and
• include a bunch of colors, preferably slightly off colors, so I am happy wearing it with everything

Unfortunately, I found the Perfect Summer Bag … several years ago. And it has pretty much ruined me for other summer bags.

Until now.

Witness this lovely, from Anthropologie.

Did I mention the Perfect Summer Bag should be a little whimsical, with a subtle-yet-over-the-top embellishment? (The right side of my current PSB is opalescent sequins — love!)

Well, if you look close at this bag from Anthro, that white stuff is … beads.

I’m not sure this QUITE lives up to my first love, but it is pretty darn close. I’ll wear it with everything come summer. Heck, I might not wait much past April.

Ketura Persellin is a DC-area image consultant, writer, and sales consultant for Etcetera, www.etcetera.com She specializes in helping real women look and feel their best. See what happy clients say about her here or contact her for a complimentary get-acquainted session.