Besides the movie reminding me of my childhood, I love Mary Poppins because it reminds me of one of my favorite people in the world, our own HHH blogger, Meredith. She and I went to see the musical version of Mary Poppins when it came to Cleveland last summer. The musical itself was mind-blowing and fantastic, as the theater usually is, but it's what transpired before the curtain even rose that gave me one of my most cherished moments with a friend. You see, as we pulled into the parking garage at the theater (having driven about 25 minutes across the city to get there) we suddenly realized that the tickets to Mary Poppins were back in Meredith's car....at the restaurant where I picked her up! So instead of relaxing on a hot summer's night at a nearby Starbucks waiting for the show to start, we blazed across Cleveland again, racing toward the outer suburbs to retrieve our tickets from her car, then charged all the way back to the parking garage. We arrived, minutes before showtime, running, sweating and panting all the way to our seats (this was a humid August day!) To this day, I'm not sure how we made it to our seats before the show started! I do know, though, that it's one of my favorite stories in the world, and I wouldn't have traded that anxiety-ridden adventure with Mere for anything!
Lastly...I love Mary Poppins because I, too, always carry a bag loaded with all sorts of crazy and uncommon things. Okay, maybe I can't pull a lamp or a mirror out of my purse, but I can produce all sorts of random items and things. Over the counter medication of any kind? I've got it. (in its own zippered pouch, no less!) Make-up? Yes. Lip balm? Sure...I have straight-up soothing chap stick, plum-colored lip gloss, and salve in a tin. Pens, mints, paper? Got them! I always make sure that my purse is large enough to carry around all the essentials (and non-essentials) that I've somehow realized I need. Just last month, after coming home from a trip, I carried around my big purse for a week...yes, a week...before realizing that I had unknowingly been hauling around my digital camera (in its bag) a pack of D batteries, and, most alarmingly, a packet of beef jerky! (story on that another time...) My general rule of thumb is, my purse always has to be large enough to throw a book inside. Pretty much anything can find its way inside my purse. And the best part is....I have family members who hand-make my own Mary Poppins bags!!
I always carry purses that my mother-in-law and my sister-in-law make. First of all, I love the cute designs and fabrics they use. Second, I carry a unique purse that doesn't require me shelling out $75 to display lots of corporate logos or crazy designs. Third, since the bags are made out of light-weight fabrics, they never become back-breaking or ultra heavy, even with the random assortment of things I carry (which is why I didn't realize I was carrying around a camera, batteries, and jerky!) Think about it...if you're toting around a heavy leather (or fabric) bag, then add all of your stuff to it, soon enough your shoulders start getting strained and the whole enterprise becomes painful. With these bags being lightweight to begin with, you don't have the added weight of a bulky purse to carry when hauling around your life. Fourth, they're handmade and the work of my family...how could I carry anything else??
Over the years, I've had the fortune of being able to walk into my mother-in-law's sewing room and go purse shopping. How fun is that?? I plan to eventually blog about all the different purses I have that are handmade, but for now I want to focus on the two new ones I have...which are possibly my favorite designs of all. My sister-in-law Stacy made them a few weeks ago, and they are simply lovely! Made from a jelly roll of coordinating fabrics, each stripe is different but contributes to an overall lovely dynamic. The handles are great...and the size of the purse is perfect! I can throw everything into the purses and have room to spare. Without further ado...let me share!
The second bag Stacy made for me this summer...in orange!
The inside of the blue and pink purse...note the cute stripes and the large interior!
Up-close detailing of the handles...each handle is different. Love it!
And an up-close detail of the handles on the blue purse...note the knot!
I guess there's simply no denying the fact that Mary Poppins rocks. The movie takes me back to being a little girl, the musical reminds me of my lovely Meredith, and the no-nonsense yet loving British nanny simply had the right idea when she carried around her amazing purse!
1 comment:
Those bags are gorgeous! Do they ever sell the bags they create?
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