👜 October 10 – Handbag Day: It’s in the Bag, Darling 💁♀️
Let’s be honest: handbags are the real MVPs of everyday life. They carry our keys, snacks, secrets, stress, loose change, emergency lip balm, and that one receipt we swear we’ll organize later. On October 10, we celebrate National Handbag Day, a holiday dedicated to our stylish sidekicks and the statement they make.
Whether you’re a tote girlie, a crossbody connoisseur, or a clutch queen, this day is your excuse to flaunt your bag game without shame—and maybe give your overstuffed purse the cleaning it desperately deserves (we see you, mystery gum wrapper from 2018).
Affiliate Disclosure
Just so you know, this post may contain affiliate links. That means if you click through and buy something, I might earn a tiny commission—enough to keep the lights on and maybe snag a celebratory cupcake. It doesn’t cost you anything extra, pinky promise.
👛 The Origin: A Holiday That Holds Up
National Handbag Day was first coined by PurseBlog (yes, that’s a thing, and yes, it’s fabulous) back in 2013, as a way to spotlight the artistry and personal style behind handbags. What started as a celebration of luxe designer bags has evolved into a wider appreciation of ALL purses, from thrifted treasures to DIY duct tape creations.
So basically: if it has a strap and holds your stuff, it’s worthy of celebration. 🙌
👜 Fun Facts That’ll Have You Clutching Your Pearls
The word "handbag" first popped up in the 1900s, originally referring to men’s hand-held luggage. Yep—men had the first handbags. 👀
The world’s most expensive handbag? The Mouawad 1001 Nights Diamond Purse — priced at $3.8 million, encrusted with 4,517 diamonds. Casual. 💎
In ancient times, people used pouches tied around their waists to carry essentials. So basically, fanny packs walked so handbags could run.
Queen Elizabeth II famously used her handbag to send secret signals to her staff. For example: if she moved it from one hand to the other, it meant "Get me out of this convo, stat." 🫢
The average woman’s handbag weighs around 6.27 pounds. Translation: your shoulder deserves hazard pay.
💼 10+ Delightfully Quirky Ways to Celebrate Handbag Day
Host a Handbag Swap Party 👯♀️
Invite friends over for wine, snacks, and a no-pressure handbag exchange. It’s like thrifting—without leaving your house.Take Your Bag on a Date 💅
Snap some cheeky selfies of your favorite purse living its best life. Caption? “Just me and my emotional baggage.”DIY Your Dream Bag ✂️
Get crafty with fabric, patches, beads, or even duct tape. There’s nothing more satisfying than saying, “Thanks, I made it.”Do a Purse Purge 🗑️
Dump it all out. Toss the crumbs. Organize your lipstick army. Rediscover that gift card from 2021. It’s basically self-care.Rock a Different Bag for Each Outfit 💃
Channel your inner fashion icon and build your look around your bag. Matching is optional. Drama is not.Write a Love Letter to Your Handbag 💌
It’s held your tears, tampons, and snacks. Doesn’t it deserve a little affection?Post a #What’sInMyBag Video 🎥
Spill the contents of your purse to the world (with tasteful edits). It's part confessional, part time capsule.Visit a Bag Museum (Virtually or IRL) 🏛️
Yes, they exist. For example: the Museum of Bags and Purses in Amsterdam (formerly real, now online). Fashion history? We love to see it.Treat Yourself to a New Bag 🛍️
Big budget? Go wild. Small budget? Hit up a thrift store and find a hidden gem with character and questionable stains.Give Your Bag a Name 🧸
Like Beyoncé and her alter ego Sasha Fierce, your handbag deserves an identity. “This is Francesca. She holds snacks and secrets.”Donate Gently-Used Bags to Women’s Shelters 💖
A good purse can mean more than style—it can be function, dignity, and empowerment.
👜 Dinner Theme: “What’s in Your (Picnic) Bag?”
Let’s pack a glamorous, cozy indoor picnic basket—filled with perfectly packable, flavor-packed dishes that feel like you pulled them out of a vintage wicker bag… alongside your lip balm, 12 receipts, and a mysterious mint.
🧺 Main Dish: Pesto Chicken Hand Pies
Why? Because they’re tidy, elegant, and just like a good handbag: compact on the outside, full of delightful surprises on the inside.
Ingredients:
1 sheet puff pastry (or pie dough), thawed
1 cup cooked chicken breast, shredded
1/4 cup basil pesto
1/4 cup mozzarella or fontina cheese, shredded
1 egg (for egg wash)
Instructions:
Preheat oven to 375°F (190°C).
Mix chicken, pesto, and cheese.
Cut pastry into squares or circles, fill with mixture, fold and seal edges.
Brush with egg wash, bake for 20–25 minutes until golden and puffed.
Serve warm, maybe from a faux designer handbag. (Optional, but iconic.)
🥗 Side: Mini Mason Jar Salads
Layered and adorable, just like that lipstick you forgot you had.
Layer like this:
Balsamic vinaigrette
Cherry tomatoes
Cucumber
Crumbled goat cheese
Mixed greens or arugula
Croutons on top (or a tiny baggie in your purse, for crunch control)
Screw the lid on and shake when ready. Bonus points if served out of an actual picnic tote.
🍸 Drink: Sparkling Pear & Sage Mocktail (or Cocktail)
This is the "elegant clutch purse" of drinks—refined, a little mysterious, and oh-so-seasonal.
Ingredients:
1/2 cup pear juice
1 tsp lemon juice
2 sage leaves
Sparkling water (or prosecco if you’re feeling fancy)
Optional: 1 oz vodka or pear liqueur
Instructions:
Muddle sage and lemon juice in a glass.
Add pear juice, ice, and top with bubbles.
Garnish with a sage leaf and a tiny slice of pear.
🍬 Dessert: "Chocolate Ganache Purse Truffles"
Elegant, poppable, and mysterious — just like the best bags. These truffles are rich, velvety, and easy to make ahead… and yes, they fit perfectly into a tiny tin or wax paper pouch in your picnic setup.
👜 Ingredients:
8 oz dark or semi-sweet chocolate (chopped)
1/2 cup heavy cream
Pinch of salt
1 tsp vanilla extract or espresso powder (optional, for depth)
Cocoa powder, crushed freeze-dried raspberries, chopped nuts, or edible glitter for coating
🪄 Instructions:
Make the ganache:
Heat cream until steaming (not boiling), then pour over chopped chocolate. Let sit 2 minutes, then stir until smooth. Add salt + flavorings.Chill:
Refrigerate mixture for 1–2 hours until scoopable.Scoop & roll:
Use a spoon or melon baller to form small balls. Roll quickly in hands, then coat in desired toppings.Chill again to set, or serve immediately if you like them soft and melty.
🕯 Bonus Vibe:
Lay out your dinner on a vintage scarf or handbag-themed tea towel. Maybe light a candle in an old perfume bottle. Maybe write a haiku about all the granola bars at the bottom of your purse. Who’s gonna stop you?
🎒 Elementary (K–5): “What’s in My Imagination Bag?” Creative Writing + Craftivity
Theme: Creative storytelling, personal expression, fine motor fun
🧠 Objective: Students will use a paper handbag template to create a “bag” filled with imaginative items, then write a mini-story explaining what each item is and why it’s in their bag.
🛠 Materials:
Printable handbag template (can be simple or decorative)
Construction paper scraps, glue sticks, markers/crayons, scissors
Optional: yarn, buttons, glitter, stickers for handbag "bling"
“What’s in My Imagination Bag?” writing sheet (lined with sentence starters or open-ended)
🧾 Directions:
Warm-Up Discussion (5–7 min): Ask students what kinds of things they carry in a bag or backpack. Then ask: “What would go in your imagination bag?” 🌈🦄🚀🍕
Prompt ideas: A rainbow seed? A tiny talking kitten? A pizza that never gets cold?Craft Time (15–20 min): Students decorate their handbag template and cut it out. Then they create 3–5 imaginative items (drawn or crafted with scrap paper) to tuck inside their bag.
Story Share (15–20 min): Using the writing sheet, students describe each item and what it does. You can provide sentence starters like:
"In my bag, I carry a ___ because..."
"One of my favorite items is a ___. It can..."
"If I lost my ___, I would feel ___."
Optional Extension: Have a "Bag Show & Tell" where students present one item and share why it’s special.
🎉 Quirky Twist:
Turn the handbags into a hallway display titled “We’ve Got Bags of Imagination!” and let the creativity shine beyond the classroom.
🧳 Secondary (6–12): “The Handbag Speaks: History, Identity & Hidden Stories”
Theme: Object analysis, social commentary, character exploration, mini-research
🧠 Objective: Students will explore how handbags reflect identity, culture, function, and history—and create either a character-based “bag dump” analysis or a historical “Bag of the Past” artifact profile.
🛠 Materials:
Printed “Bag Dump” graphic organizer (or digital version)
Option to use real bags or images of bags (you can project various styles on screen)
Research materials (books, Chromebooks, or guided articles)
Writing tools / presentation slides if desired
🔍 Activity Options (Choose One or Let Students Pick!):
Option A: Character Bag Dump
Intro Prompt: “You can tell a lot about someone by what they carry…”
Choose a character from a novel, short story, or historical figure you're currently studying.Task: Students fill out a "bag dump" — what 5–7 items might this character carry?
What do these items say about them?
What’s hidden? What’s revealed?
Is there an item that contradicts their public image?
Write & Share: Students write a paragraph or short creative piece from the point of view of the bag, narrating what it holds and why.
Optional Presentation: Present their "bag dump" to the class.
Option B: Bags of the Past: A Microhistory
Students choose a decade or cultural movement (e.g., 1920s flapper clutch, WWII utility purse, 1990s grunge backpack).
Research what kind of handbags were used then—what did they look like, and more importantly, what did they hold?
Create a one-page “artifact profile” describing the bag, its contents, and what this tells us about the people and culture of the time.
Include visuals, sketches, or mood boards if possible!
🎉 Quirky Twist:
Hold a quick “Runway of Reality” session at the end of class—students come up and describe their bag's most interesting item as if it's a prized accessory on the catwalk. 🎤👜
👜 Quirky in the Workplace
A.K.A. “Because what's in your bag says just as much about you as your LinkedIn endorsements.”
Sure, National Handbag Day could be about celebrating designer purses and tasteful totes…
But here at Celebrate Quirky, we say: let’s unzip the chaos. Let’s dump out the professionalism and dig deep into the bizarre, the bedazzled, the oh wow, is that a taxidermied squirrel keychain? Yes. Yes it is.
👜 "What’s Not in Your Bag?" Office Show-and-Tell
Forget what’s in your bag. That’s expected. Phones, snacks, existential dread? Snooze.
Instead, each team member must bring a handbag—or any kind of bag, really—and present the one ridiculous, impractical, or wildly niche thing they WISH it contained.
Think:
A live pigeon that offers unsolicited career advice
An emergency karaoke machine loaded only with ABBA songs
A portal to a meeting-less dimension
A tiny lawyer who handles email disputes
Set up a quick round of “Bag Brags” during a team meeting or lunch break.
Encourage dramatic reveals, bad PowerPoint slides, or interpretive dances (optional but encouraged).
🏆 Prize: A glittery fanny pack filled with mystery office supplies and one lone Altoid from 2003.
Tagline for the day:
“Handbag Day: Because professionalism is just chaos with a shoulder strap.”
🎬 Movie Pick: The Devil Wears Prada (2006)
Why it fits: This fashion industry classic is overflowing with designer handbags (and other luxury items) that are central to the story. Miranda Priestly (Meryl Streep) and her entourage use handbags as status symbols, and Andy Sachs’ transformation is marked partly by her upgraded accessories.
Perfect for Handbag Day: The movie is a love letter (and sometimes a critique) to high fashion, where handbags aren't just accessories — they're power statements.
📺 TV Episode Pick: Sex and the City – Season 4, Episode 13: “The Good Fight”
Why it fits: Carrie Bradshaw’s designer handbag obsession is on full display throughout the series, but in this episode, handbags symbolize personal space and identity. Her relationship hits a snag when Aidan moves in and questions the need for all her clothes and bags.
Iconic Handbag Moment: Carrie fights for her right to closet real estate – and implicitly, her right to her handbags. Classic Carrie.
🧵 Final Thought:
On Handbag Day, celebrate the beautiful chaos that is the inside of your purse. Whether it's an overpriced designer bag or a canvas tote that came free with your favorite magazine, give your go-to carryall a moment in the spotlight. After all, it's been carrying you—literally and emotionally—for years.
✨ Hashtags to Tag Your Tote Tales:
#HandbagDay
#ToteAllyFabulous
#WhatsInMyBag
#BagGoals
#CelebrateQuirky
#StyleSidekick
#BagItLikeItsHot
#PurseFirst
#BagLadyEnergy
