Handbags can be tricky to store, especially when you have many of them and closet space is limited. If you swap them out frequently, they should ideally be visible and accessible. They need enough space so that they’re not squashed together and losing their shape, or fighting for room at the bottom of the coat closet. 

Handbags are my favourite wardrobe item. I lead an urban walking lifestyle so bags are not only the visual cherry on top, but a practical necessity. I currently have 25 wardrobe pets which I’ve carefully collected over time. They range from one month to 26 years in age. I swap them out as regularly as twice a day because they’re very much part of my signature look. I keep them looking pristine, wiping them down after every few wears and handling them with care.

 Here are my current handbags in a collection:

Over the years I’ve stored my bags in different ways, depending on what worked best with the spaces available to me. I’m currently storing 23 of them on a very wide shelf above a set of built-in drawers in the walk-in wardrobe of our new apartment. They are perfectly visible, have plenty of room, and make me happy every time I walk into the space. My bags are structured, so most of them stand upright on their own. A few of them are stuffed to retain their shape. The Chanel bag is kept in its original black box on a shelf above the hanging space. And my two very casual crossbody bags are hung on a rack where I keep my trousers and jeans.

Handbags

Drawer

Hanging

I’ve also stored my bags on the shelves of a walk-in wardrobe, on an over-the-door hanging purse organizer, on hooks behind doors, in drawers, in wardrobe boxes, stacked neatly in an armoire, or on the shelves in a closet. I’ve seen clients keep them in see-through containers so that they stack easily at the bottom of a closet or under a bed. I’ve seen them stored neatly in an antique chest, placed in closet cubicles, or hanging on hooks, racks, and purse organizers in the coat closet.

Over to you. How do you store your handbags?