Market Buy

I’ve written before about shopping adventures in Hong Kong markets, and mentioned the expensive purchase of a buffalo hide handbag. At last it makes its appearance on these pages!

My friend Aurora and I spent the day at Stanley Market, and I saw the bag early on. However, it was quite expensive, and I decided to ponder its purchase while I frittered away small amounts on other fripperies (a cream cashmere shawl that I still regularly use; a rhinestone belt triumphantly discovered, but never worn yet as it’s too big for me, etc).

Eventually I decided to have another look at the bag before I made my final decision. When we arrived back at the stall, I found an American woman looking the bag over. Imagine my fright! I cursed my indecision. Fortunately, she decided against it, and before she could change her mind, I snatched it up and made it mine.

The bag has been with me for several years now, and has been admired by many. My sister Star has laid claim to it in case I should ever tire of it (unlikely). I am well-practised at making the right shopping decision, and there are few things I buy today that are soon discarded. If you stay true to your style, take your time to shop, and buy the best quality you can afford, you’ll rarely make errors – even when souvenir shopping in overseas markets. 

The Baubles Come Off…

Boooo to broken souvenirs! Well, alright, so these cute Vietnamese slippers cost about US$9 (and I thought that was a lot of Dongs at the time), but they broke the first time I wore them. (It may have had something to do with the fact they were like boats – little Vietnamese boats – on my feet, and one edge caught against something whilst I was walking, thereby ripping the thong out of its socket. But still: BOOOO!)

However, all is not lost. The balls have had the snip, so to speak, and one day soon they shall be reincarnated as a pair of dangly earrings. Although it still does not make up for the fact that I never got a chance to wear out all that pretty rick-rack and turn these embroidered slippers into disgusting shoddy souvenirs fit only for the dustbin.

So once more: Booooo! 

The Amazing Boots

These boots that I pounced upon a few weeks ago are so amazing that I thought they deserved another story dedicated just to them. Here they are in all their glory.

I wore them for the first time on the day I bought them, and I caught a tram into the city. I felt rather conspicuous as I climbed aboard, for a trio of middle-aged men were staring. I tried to ignore them on the short trip into town.

They disembarked a couple of stops later, and as one gentleman (old enough to be my father!) passed me, he paused, tapped me on the knee (the impertinence!) and said sotto voce, “Those are amazing boots.”

Yes. Thanks for letting me know—dad. 

Umbrellas Anonymous

It’s the last day of winter! I don’t know about you, but I shall be celebrating with my annual ritual of throwing one umbrella into the rubbish bin.  

I bought this cute polka-dotted umbrella to replace my beloved old one (which itself was not very old). Knowing full well how fragile they make them these days, I treated this one tenderly, hardly daring to use it; only taking it with me if possible showers were forecast – merely as a precautionary measure. If thunderstorms were assured, I took my sturdy black vintage umbrella with me instead. It defies a gale.

So I cannot understand how, after three or four gentle uses over the space of a month, three (THREE!) spokes on this umbrella have snapped. It’s a disgrace.

This has happened to other people too. I know, because they all poured out their tales of woe when I aired my rage. What is to be done?

I think I shall start a group, and call it Umbrellas Anonymous. People of the world unite! Let us all take our broken umbrellas with us to China and whack the CEOs of these shoddy manufactories over the head. That’ll teach them to rain on our parade. 

How Many Years Bad Shopping Luck?

A few weeks ago I was shooting a whole bunch of accessories photos (which you haven’t seen yet) that required me to rummage around in my closet for suitable items to match my theme. Let me add that the flooring in my apartment consists of ceramic tiles that not a few dishes and glasses have fallen victim to in the past ten years.

I can now add a handbag to that lamentably lengthy list.

Admittedly this bag was a cheapie, new old stock found at a Salvos’ for $10. What do you think it went for retail? Forty bucks? But I liked its brash studs, chain handle and the super-size bling in the form of copper-coloured, mirrored glass. So Eighties. It was a bargain … except for the fact it only had one real outing!

As I poked around in a large cloth bag where I keep some of my small evening bags, it fell out. This should not have been enough to cause damage, but the cheap glue attaching the bling to the faux lizard skin gave way, and one of the little mirrors went smash on the floor.

…one of the little mirrors went smash on the floor.

I gazed at it mournfully for a few moments before I tenderly picked up the fragments and placed them on a bench. I knew I would never find a replacement piece. Ever the true professional, I decided instantly that the bag would have a lovely send-off in the form of a SNAP tribute … and then I carried on with the business of the day. The bag still featured in the accessories shot, its disfigurement obscured by a gold metal mesh bag.

But surely for such a little fashion crime I would only be penalised a few days’ bad shopping luck? Certainly no more than a month …