I associate fabrics with seasons; I am loathe to wear or carry suede in anything other than the dead of winter, and will only use straw or canvas in warmer weather. Of course I can ONLY wear linen in summer, even though in Texas linen is a three-season fabric.
Do you have this problem?? Do you switch your bag every summer to something straw or canvas? Is this a “thing” for you too??
I’ll be switching over to my James Perse mini canvas tote again starting Memorial Day (mostly because I’m bringing it with me to Florida) and will probably carry it all summer. It’s so good…
More canvas & straw totes I love (I try to find bags that don’t use any leather at all – one of the reasons I love the JP totes so much – but that is REALLY hard to do):
1 James Perse mini canvas tote | $195 (highly highly highly recommend!)
2 Epice canvas and mesh pouch* | $48
3 Agnes Badoo canvas/leather (buffalo) tote | $425 (love this so much…)
4 Star Mela embroidered tote | $100
5 Baggu mesh tote | $14 (I have this one and use it at the beach/lake/pool)
6 Pari Desai circular tote | $195
7 Someware tote | $88
8 Erin Templeton grocery tote | $70
Of course there are no shortage of sisal/straw market bags on etsy…
What do you think? Do you switch out your bag for summer?
*I found most of these bags at Garmentory, which is my go-to site for independent designers & boutiques. If you don’t have an account already, when you use my referral link and sign up, you’ll receive a $20 account credit.
Absolutely! Ironically, I find suede to be a fall fabric, and rarely wear in the winter (though the lack of snow & super cold temps here in NC mean I should be able to wear it more often if desired!) I definitely cannot wear linen before May (I haven’t worn it yet, though I was tempted last week when it hit 90 here – I wore a sleeveless cotton dress instead). For bags, I might still use leather but my colors are different. (every day I carry a purse and a tote and my totes are MUCH more seasonal – red plaids for winter, sailcloth bags for summer etc) I have a lot to choose from – because I love bags – but also because I keep things forever. I still use a brown leather Coach bag my mom got in 1987. I only get rid of stuff that is worn down/ripped and unrepairable. The big change for me is shoes – I switch to mainly sandals for the summer (business casual workplace that allows it for most occasions) and I’m willing to wear sandals much earlier than I’ll switch to linen or whites…..
I fell hard for linen last year and wore it through winter. I live in TN, which is perhaps similar to Texas with the weather. I layer my linen dresses with cashmere cardigans, scarves, and leggings or slim pants. Not Perfect Linen on Etsy has a wool/linen blend pant that is wonderful- soft and warm. I have a small wardrobe and this works for me. I do switch out my purses when it warms up, as my winter favorite is wool.
yes! i switch to sandals pretty early too, earlier than linen for sure, although that also depends on when i want to start looking at my toes. i’m still not really “wearing” linen much, like i don’t wear it very often yet. soon i’ll want to wear it all the time…
i wish i could wear linen for longer in the year, i think it’s just a mental “rule” for me or something, which is SO WEIRD, because i don’t care about fashion rules…it just seems wrong to wear linen before june if you’re not on a beach vacation or whatever. lol
i love the idea of a wool/linen blend! i’ll have to check those out…
I love the ones you posted — particularly the Agnes Badoo and Star Mela totes. I do have a couple of lighter colored bags that I use in the summer — a very light grey Rebecca Minkoff ‘regan’ crossbody and a very old woven geometric print shoulder bag which has seen better days. I also have a “stone” colored leather hobo bag which has a slighty more summer feel but I don’t seem to have much in the way of summer totes — no canvas. I have been tempted by various vintage sisal bags on etsy .
More thumbs up for the wool/linen blend from Not Perfect. I have overalls and a long sleeve tunic in that blend, and they’re awesome for cold New England spring and fall.
That sounds like the perfect compromise!
I definitely suffer from SFD. I refuse to use my straw French shoppers tote for anything but summer (even tho Andrea Linett tells me I must! Ugh…) And no linen until it feels right. It’s more of a temperature thing than a certain date. I use the same old J Crew tan leather tote because it’s convenient, but I’ve got SO many cute bags that I should be using.
yes, i saw that she advocated straw in wintertime. i just cannot…LOL
and it has to be consistently HOT for me to start wearing linen often – like no cool days in between. doesn’t make sense, but there it is!
Makes perfect sense to me!