My handbag has been driving me nuts. I’m running from appointment to appointment. Throwing things in there… Taking stuff out… It’s really time to get it sorted. We’re known to carry everything but the kitchen sink in our handbags. What do you load your handbag down with? Common things found in bags are:
- purses stuffed with receipts, store cards and old shopping lists
- ticket stubs, rubbish
- snacks and water bottles
- cosmetics and emergency tissues, bandaids and mini sewing kits
- notebooks and pens
- phones and accessories
- if you have kids: toys, spare nappies and dry lumps of play-dough
- unidentifiable objects ;)
Lighten the load
It’s time to get real and take out what doesn’t need to be in there. Tidy up the rest, and return to a lighter handbag!
- Pull everything out, including everything out of your purse.
- Group like items together (e.g. money, papers, cosmetics, kid stuff, food, stationery, mobile, electronic items, shopping bags, keys, bits and pieces).
- Throw out the rubbish.
- Be ruthless. Take out anything you haven’t used in the last 3 months. You don’t need to be carrying it around on your shoulder daily!
- Put the essentials back in – your purse, keys and mobile.
- Consider using the pockets, mini cosmetic bags or zip lock bags to group items together (and keep them together). Having a home for everything in your handbag will make it easier to find things.
Be real about the items you put back in. Do you really need three lipsticks, a comb, a hairbrush and seven hair-ties? Consider the worst-case scenario. If you didn’t have it, would it be the end of the world? Only put in the essentials. After all, it’s only a few hours before you get home again. (If you tend to carry a lot when you travel, I have a blog on that too!)
Ideas to keep things better organised
- Use Stocard to store your store and loyalty cards on your mobile instead of in your wallet.
- Try to only have your debit card and one credit card in your purse (for emergencies). This can help minimise over-spending, lightens the handbag and causes less issues if you ever lose your purse.
- Group like items together. For instance, store all of your gift cards/vouchers together in your wallet so you can find them easily. If you use an Everyday Rewards card, or Myer card etc – consider putting these behind your debit/credit card if you find you always use them at the same time.
- Get in the habit of throwing out your receipts on the spot (if you don’t need them for tax or your budget tracking) or file these regularly (daily even).
Is your shoulder always sore after shopping or is not being able to find what you need frustrating? Then I expect you are motivated to clear the crap from your handbag. I hope these tips help.
Tell me, what’s the load in your handbag? What are your handbag organising tips? Would you like to share them in the WellSorted Facebook group?
