Jamin Puech of Paris – Not Just Any Old Handbag

A woman’s mind is as complex as the contents of her handbag; even when you get to the bottom of it, there is ALWAYS something at the bottom to surprise you! (Billy Connelly)

I suspect one advantage of being married to Pamela Stephenson is that you learn never to take women for granted!

I was never a prolific purchaser of handbags kind of girl when I was younger. I was more of the ‘why would I need more than one?’ school. This may have had something to do with the fact that I tend to carry a fair amount of ‘stuff’ in my handbag, so transferring everything just to colour co-ordinate seemed like too big a chore.

My prerequisites for the appropriate bag-du-jour were not too complicated – a quality, mid-sized, black number that was capable of being carried over the shoulder AND one that zipped up (to stop any potential wandering fingers) and preferably had rivets on the bottom so that the leather wouldn’t scratch when the bag was on the ground.

This rule stood me in fairly good stead through my teens, twenties and well into my thirties. Somehow, I have now come unstuck. I say this, because I have this week started a serious wardrobe clean out*. I have discovered more handbags than I realised I had. There are two reasons for this.

Reason number 1 – LM. He is responsible for the purchase of three handbags (including the quirky purple Jamin Puech number pictured above)

Reason number 2 – the older I get, the more I like to wear colour. My plain-Jane black number is fine for everyday, but sometimes a girl just needs to inject some colour into her outfit.

Which brings me to Jamin Puech, another label I plan on checking out when I am in Paris. In a market that is becoming more and more uniform, personalised creativity and quality have allowed the duo at Jamin Puech to build up a strong reputation for designing unique handbags.

I like the brand’s quirky style – Whilst retaining its own identity, the trademark Jamin Puech relies constantly on new inspirations to create surprises. Evening and day hand bags exist in hundreds of shapes and forms: purses, pouches, reticules, shopping bags, clutch bags, bags or satchels. They are made of traditional materials as well as of modern ones and mix raffia, wood, wool, horn, plastic, with simple cottons or precious silk or special leathers.

Here are a few of the ones I particularly like – and I do realise the first one is black BUT check out the texture!:

Now, I do have to add a small disclaimer. Not ALL the Jamin Puech bags are for me – after all, I’m just a conservative Kiwi girl from the bottom of the world and some of their bags can get pretty avant-garde BUT I just love my purple number with its pink & orange detachable pom-pom, and I am confident there will be plenty of choice for me when I visit the store in Paris!

If you would like to check out the Jamin Puech site to find out where your closest store is, or perhaps buy from their on-line shop, you can access it here.

In Sydney, Jamin Puech is stocked by Belinda at 29 William Street, Paddington.

* because I am putting off the under-bed clean out