Clutch and cats: they have all arrived!

Last Friday, I have paid for a vintage Christian Dior clutch bag via deposit to the bank account of the Ebay seller. I was hoping to get the item as early as possible, so I was relieved when she said that she’d be shipping it the following day. Normally, when a seller sends an item on a Saturday, I receive it the following Monday — I should know that because I’m also a seller and I know very well the shipping period of both JRS and Air21.

Vintage Christian Dior monogram clutch

When Sunday came and I asked the seller for the tracking number, she said that she was not able to ship the item the day before as she ‘accidentally’ left it at home. I was slightly furious. The clutch was not meant for me, rather for Mon’s sister who will be using it for her prom. Besides, I can’t imagine myself using it at all. I was, then, still able to hold on to my promise not to buy a bag this year. ^_^

Anyway, I originally thought that Lot’s prom will take place last Tuesday but it was on Valentine’s Day, so the seller still has more time to send it. It was eventually sent on Monday so I thought it would arrive yesterday (a Tuesday). But it did not arrive until a few hours back and we can now breathe a sigh of relief.

Details of the vintage Christian Dior monogram clutch - enamel 'CD' logo and ECLAIR zippers with goldtone 'CD' zipper pulls

When I first saw it for sale on Ebay, I was really enticed by it. Unlike Louis Vuitton and Gucci monograms, the Christian Dior one is less ubiquitous and not a lot of people associate such pattern to Dior items. Dior also did similar collections a decade ago, such as the Girly collection (often in pink, accompanied by white patent leather flower appliqués
) or the Rastafari line (with leather details in the Rastafarian colors of green, yellow and red). If I’m not mistaken, the one we got from Ebay was made way earlier, probably from the 90s. I have been eyeing this item for months already but I had no justification to get it. It was indeed a pretty, typical vintage Dior but the design is a bit too feminine for my taste. And then Mon mentioned that Lot will be attending her prom, her last prom before graduating high school, so I thought it will be a nice present to her, considering she passed the UPCAT. It was the perfect reason I was hoping for.
Carrie Bradshaw late for the Stock Exchange, carrying a vintage Christian Dior monogram clutch in Season 6 Episode 1 (To Market, To Market)

Carrie Bradshaw hailing a cab in New York city on her way to the Stock Exchange, carrying a vintage Christian Dior monogram clutch in Season 6 Episode 1 (To Market, To Market)
Most notably, the clutch instantly reminded me of that SATC episode (i.e. ‘To Market, To Market”) where Carrie was running late to go to the New York Stock Exchange and ring the bell as their newspaper had gone public. Rushing from the door, to the cab, and entering the building, I instantly recognized that she was carrying a vintage Dior bag. However, the one that she had was a convertible bag — it folds in half as a clutch, then unfold to show a handle for an open tote bag. It was very nifty and versatile.
Bommie viewed from the window screen

On a different note, Mon’s adoptive kitty we named Bommie (guess the provenance of such name? LOL) gave birth to three beautiful kittens this afternoon! Since last night when Mon got home from work, he noticed that Bommie had been very agitated and constantly moving from one place to another. Then this morning, she was really having a hard time, constantly lying down and raising her leg. Mon even momentarily got a glimpse of her tummy ‘rippling’. They realized she was on labor and most probably be giving birth a few hours later.

Bommie's kitties

We had bought our dinner at around 7:00 PM and Mon got a message after from his mom, telling him that Bommie already gave birth. All three of them were fortunately
alive and in good condition, as most cats giving birth for the first time usually have some difficulty in delivery. One of the kittens totally took after Bommie’s fur, while the other two ‘sampled’ a particular shade. They were so tiny and fragile, but still amazing looking. Just imagine, a few hours ago, they were rippling inside their mother’s tummy and now they are finally out! I told Mon that I can finally recite my favorite ‘Three Little Kittens’ lines and can actually put on miniature mittens on these three. That will be extremely cute to look at! Well done, Bommie! 😀

Looking forward to seeing bag heaven: the Simone Handbag Museum

Mon and are currently drafting our itinerary for our trip to Seoul this December, and we both agree that there will be no palace tour. We have only visited two of the Five Grand Palaces in Seoul built during the Joseon Dynasty (i.e. Gyeongbokgung and Changdeokgung, the latter was very near the place we stayed in), but we think that we have seen enough. =) We also agreed on Nami Island and Neverland because we did not see those places during our last visit. But one MAJOR destination, at least for me, to be visited will be the recently-built museum in the Gangnam area: the Simone Handbag Museum. It is NOT normally what tourists tend to visit and flock over, but as a person who loves bags, I really want to check it out.

Simone Handbag Museum - The Collection , Seoul, South Korea

(Photo from http://simonehandbagmuseum.co.kr/collection.php)

Visiting this place is non-negotiable, even if we have to walk quite a distance just to reach the place. the admission fee is 5,000 won, which isn’t bad at all, given that I will have the chance to see interestingly crafted bags way back from 16th century until contemporary period. And speaking of the more recent  period, any bag lover can immediately identify wonderful pieces from “The Collection” page from their website. You can see the McQueen Union Jack clutch, a Kelly and a Birkin, a Fendi baguette (hello Carrie!), a Gucci bamboo top-handle, a vintage Moschino dripping chocolate, a Chanel Cambon tote, a Prada nylon backpack, Louis Vuitton bags, Missoni, Céline and Ferragamo.

But the question is, when can we squeeze the time to visit it? I proposed visiting the museum on our first day, mere hours after we landed, but I guess Mon won’t be too happy to go straight away to Apgujeong just to visit it. LOL But this time, I won’t be leaving Seoul without buying a bag. I’ve been wanting a canvas and/or leather backpack with a style similar to the one below, and as this type of bag looks popular in Seoul now, I will definitely look for one.

(Photo from upashion.com)

Update:

I finally got to visit Simone Handbag Museum last December 2012! See my entry about it here:

https://bryologue.com/2013/01/17/winter-in-seoul-2012-day-4-simone-handbag-museum/ 

The unnecessary boxing belts: Atelier Versace Fall/Winter 2012

It seems only yesterday when Versace presented its first couture collection in years. That first collection from January was stunning, with the usual shocking colors expected from the house. But when I saw the Fall/Winter 2012 pictures from Vogue Paris’ website, I knew right away that I’m not loving most of the looks.

Let’s start with what I did not like:

Atelier Versace Fall/Winter 2012 --- hating those boxing belts

(Photo from Vogue.fr)

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