| Have you ever wondered about the origin of the handbag, or the tote bag? Bags have been essential to daily life ever since people have had something precious to carry around with them and only what we carry in them has changed over time. The very first mention in written literature comes from the 14th century, although Egyptian hieroglyphs show pouches that our very similar to our Slingfings Hipster Holster carried around the waist! Embroidery and jewels adorned these articles and were used to show status - the richer the person, the more elaborate the bag.
In the 16th century, handbags started to become a lot more practical with the use of everyday materials such as leather with a drawstring fastener on top. During this period the sling or tote bag started to be more popular. They were larger than a handbag, used by travellers and carried diagonally across the body, leaving the wearer hands free to engage in other tasks. In the 17th century a much larger variety of bags became available, and both fashionable men and women carried small purses with more complex shapes. Young girls were taught embroidery as an essential, if one was to marry well, and we see the rise of beautiful and unique stitched artwork in handbags.
Neo-classical clothing became popular in the 18th century with a reduction in the amount of underclothing worn by women. Wearing a purse would ruin the look of this clothing so fashionable ladies started carrying their handbags which were called reticules. Women had a different bag for every occasion and every fashion magazine had arguments on the proper carrying of these purses. In the reticules one would find rouge, face powder, a fan, a scent bottle, visiting cards, a card case, and smelling salts.
The term 'handbag' first came into use in the early 1900's and generally referred to hand-held luggage bags usually carried by men. These inspired a whole new version of the bag, which became popularized for women, and included complicated fasteners, internal compartments, and locks. The 1920's saw a revolution in fashion with varying hemlines and lighter clothing. Bags no longer needed to match the outfit perfectly and the rage was for the stylish lady to carry a doll dressed exactly like herself, complete with matching bag for her miniature companion! The discovery of King Tutankhamun's tomb inspired Egyptian art on purses.
The 1940's saw new austerity in clothing, including handbags with the war effort in mind. Metal frames, zips, leather, and mirrors were in short supply so manufacters used plastic and wood. The 50's saw the rise of important designer houses including Chanel, Louis Vuitton, and Hermes and the 60's and 70's saw the breakdown of old notions of the classical and the rise of youth culture.
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