With medium to large-sized bags on the rise, we are already looking for ways to make them more interesting and unique. Enter, the bag charm. The trend was epitomized by fashion icon Jane Birkin and how she chose to accessorize her Birkin bag. Nowadays, any and every bag can be decorated with charms, ribbons and more. The trend thus far as seen on Pinterest and VSCO has been to drench a leather tote in pearls, beads, charms and buttons for an ‘I just threw these on here without even trying’, effortlessly cool look.
Personally, I think they are a great way to make a staple black bag a bit more interesting and trendy without breaking the bank. Why get a new bag when you could just switch out your charms? Here is some inspiration I have gathered from my feeds as of late.
Who says purses can’t wear jewelry too?
Charms
Scrolling through my Tiktok feed as of late I have found that at least once a day I get a video of a lovely coach worker showing me what different bags look like 'with a cherry charm'. Their account is @BranBran1997 if you're curious. I'm not sure if this is a common experience or just another brilliant way the algorithm has discovered it can get me to spend money, but either way, it got me interested. I started searching the e-commerce world for what many are calling 'bag charms'. Chunky and clunky charms that can be clipped to your bag to give it a bit more personality. Here are some of the gems that I discovered in my research
Coach
Coach is one of the most prominent bag brands that I could find that is selling these charms for somewhat reasonable prices. Emphasis on somewhat. However, this clearly isn't a new item for Coach. A couple of searches on Poshmark or Vinted will uncover some vintage Coach charms from what appears to be the early 2000s based on their Juicy Couture, borderline gaudy aesthetic. I will list some down below in the second-hand sections of this post.
Clearly the most popular of Coach's bag charms is their cherry charm, with many people often pairing it with their demi bag in brass/green. The bag retails for $360 CAD and the charm for $120. If you want to see more, this creator has a great video pairing the two together.
As for other charms, the brand has surprisingly few. My guess is they didn't anticipate the popularity of charms and were only met with an influx of sales because of the employee's video. As such I won't be surprised if next season we get an influx of new charm offerings from them. That being said here are a couple of others that they do currently offer. Click the image for the link.
Etsy
Now although arguably the recent resurgence of this trend in terms of charms rather than bows and beads can be majorly attributed to Coach, I am always an advocate for supporting small businesses when you can. It also helps that many of them sell charms for a whole lot cheaper. Here are some of my favourite Etsy finds.
Ssense
If you don't mind a higher price tag I found quite a few quite charms on Ssense from various designers.
Ribbons
Aside from charms actually marketed for use on bags, there are other thrifty ways to dec out your bag. Ribbons and bows are likely the most affordable, and feminine, way to accessorize your purse. Head to any craft store or even just take a look around your house. Silk, satin, lace, velvet - anything goes as long as you like it.
Rosaries
Another way that Pinterest girlies have been decorating their bags is with rosaries. I can’t exactly blame them the holy beads are quite chic. The catholic church really does turn it when it comes to aesthetics. However, I can see why some people may not be comfortable putting a religious object on their purse, especially if it isn’t being used for worship. Instead, I suggest watching for beaded necklaces or strings of pearls on your next trip to the thrift. Or if you’re a gemstone girly - get a strand of your favourite stone to wrap around the handle of your bag.
Keychains
After a bit of time researching bag charms I started to realize that term is a great way to overprice a keychain and justify it. So my suggestion to you is to look up keychains rather than bag charms if you are looking for a specific symbol or look. For example, look for a dice keychain rather than a dice bag charm. Even rummaging through your old junk drawer could lead you to rediscovering a keychain you forgot that you had. Through it on your bag! But you know I always come with inspo receipts so here are some of my faves that I’ve found.
That's all I have for you today darlings. Please like this post if you enjoyed and subscribe to be notified when I post.
Talk soon Xx
- Vanilla Darling
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