Charmed I'm Sure

aka some ideas on how to Jane Birkin-fy your personality packed bag

Oh hey, bonjour, hello….as a millennial whose girlhood was defined by the best friend charm necklace, I am SO here for the charm revival. Unlike the best friend charm era which is giving such a myspace top 8 friends vibe in retrospect and which is very limiting on jewellery layering options the bag charm adornment gives the perfect amount of peeking into wearers unhinged personalities without looking like a fashion clown…well, at least it does for my unhinged fashion clown personality.

The bag charm phenomenon (I am choosing to call it a phenomenon and not a trend or fade cause I hope that it is here to stay) is especially magic to me cause it is a curation of your tastes, peak personal style and basically a wearable form of autobiographical art…the self portraits of the fashion world if you will - no one bag will ever look the same, everyones is a pure reflection of themselves and it is something that is built and can be added to throughout a lifetime with each charm a memory.

My friend Karlie is especially amazing at the additions reflecting adventures - I spy a new addition after all her holidays or adventures with her micro and her speedy is one of my favs to pop up in my insta feed.

I copycatted dirty ratted Karlie and bought a speedy also (not really, but we both happened to buy vintage speedy’s in the same two week period so it defs felt like it) to be my charm bag…mainly cause I liked the size of the bag but think the LV print is kinda boring so it is a nice base for the charms and I know I will use it for life anddddd I can’t afford a birkin ( I found mine for a bargain here after seven months of stalking and waiting for the right price).

Birkin Bags on Birkin Bags at Milan Fashion Week

I am still in the process of building mine up and only have a few charms thus far but watch this space on insta as I start making more additions - in the meantime I thought I would share the open tabs I currently have of additions I would like eventually for some inspiration for yours.

LV Croissant Bag Charm (if I had a spare $1500 atm this would be mine….but alas that money will be for more fucking vet bills still…I did splurge for my birthday and drunkenly purchased the eclair version so who knows, I might drunkenly buy this for myself at Christmas)

Coach T-Rex Charm (clever girl)

Loewe Chow Chow Charm (I one hundred percent bought this one though cause it reminded me of the fluffs)

Tamagotchis (old school cool…I would totally opt for the Hello Kitty version…also great to keep micros entertained on the go)

Fendi Fortune Teller Charm (without hyperbole, I NEED this)

Vintage Polly Pocket Locket (more old school cool and as someone who was never allowed a Polly Pocket growing up cause my “little sister could choke on it” this is also a must….side note - Etsy is full of great vintage kitcshy charms)

Glomesh Pacman Ghost Charm (this comes in a variety of colours….not just the pink one…but obvi I have hearted the pink one)

Jellycat Charms (all of them are so cute…but if you know me you know I am team croissant….you can also buy these from so many places, I just linked the online store with the most in stock)

Anya Hindmarsh Dog Poo Bag Charm (I also have this one…it is the most functional charm I own and I ended buying another one cause I use it SO much)

Anya Hindmarsh Diet Coke Coin Purse (another not a want but a NEED)

Maison De Sabre Hello Kitty Charm (these double up as air tag holders which is functional AF)

Vintage Miss Piggy Charm (or if you have old happy meal toys from when you were a micro you could easily DIY them into something like this)

JW Anderson Suede Crystal Penis (obvi I also own this one….duhhhhh)

Fenty Beauty Gloss Bomb (I love the functionality and also love Rihanna so obviously opted for Fenty but you could easily DIY any lipgloss)

Sonny Angel Charms (if you are apart of the Gen-Z craze but don’t want to DIY your own collection hit up this Depop store….another hot tip, depop is another option filled with heaps of cute charm one offs)

Zimmermann Ice Cream Charm (cute AF)

Hot Cossie Livs Tip - If you like designer but not the price you can also find some GREAT options on Vestiaire here.

Also I think bag charms are the perfect chance to get your creative on and DIY….you can use old jewellery, ribbons, beads, old toys, pouches and lipglosses…pretty much anything your creative genius can think of (or anything you can find in the spotlight aisles) but if you are tight on funds but want to get creative these Juicy Couture bracelet boxes are SO good…you get heaps of beads, charms and cord - basically everything you would need in the one purchase (instead of a whole basket in the craft store which can add up).

We are also heading into the silly season which seems irrelevant but you can get some crazy fun ornaments which would make such great charms….I love these ones from Revolve and might buy some for some bag DIY and my Christmas tree.

I find DIY easy (one of the only advantages of having a creative based career) so I assume most people do but if you want more info on how to DIY bag charms let me know and I will add some how to’s to insta over the upcoming weeks while I am making my own (not to repeat myself but again, I am a millennial so reels and videos are not my natural online skill set so I will only do it if people are interested…either hit up my dm’s or comment below and let me know).

Cute Carabiners are also a really functional addition to any bag charm-ed bag and great for adding multiple keyring and DIYS’s too (or anything that doesn’t have a strong attachment). I found some heart shaped ones at Spotlight, Amazon and Temu - not sure how great the quality would be but the price is great….if anyone has any reviews on the quality of these or any hot tips of their own finds please share them below for everyone!

Finally, the last bag charm hot tip is to wrap a scarf around the handle for some extra colour and fun (and to also protect that leather handle from discolouration from the dirt and oils on our hands while we carry it….cute and functional, we love to see it). I am planning on covering scarves in the next few weeks so will share my Wishlist then in more depth.

If there is anything else, other than the Bag Charm DIY’s that anyone specifically wants covered or that I have missed hit up my dms and if you have a curated charm bag please show me - I love to see everyones!

Merci Beaucoup & Reste Bizarre Boos x x