Purse-ona

My sister has fantastic taste, especially when it comes to clothing and accessories.  Earlier this year, in preparation for a trip abroad, she bought the most amazing purse.  To me, it was perfection:

It's a gorgeous color and has a cross body strap.  It's incredibly roomy, with loads of compartments to keep things organized, but much smaller than a typical messenger bag.  It's beautifully made and will last for ages.  Basically the perfect bag.  I wanted it.  Badly.  After a couple of months, this Daily Brights bag by Lucky Penny (an Anthropologie brand) got a lovely markdown.  I paid a mere 42% of what it cost originally.  Katie was thrilled when I tracked one down for myself because that meant I wouldn't try to steal hers (believe me, the thought had crossed my mind).  I have to say, I have been exceedingly pleased with my purchase (I'm definitely under $1 per use and the bag still looks new).  It has served as a diaper bag/first aid kit/emergency make-up supply carrier/gorgeous statement piece all summer.  I've gotten loads of compliments and been able to schlep all the stuff a mother of four on the go needs--in style.

But carrying the exact same bag as your sister all the time can be dangerous.  Think of that old episode of Mad About You (it's called "Purseona" and it occurs halfway through season 3 if you want to watch).  Jamie and Lisa also have the exact same bag (I think that's pretty normal with sisters) and they mix theirs up during a hectic day in New York.  Jamie's is perfectly organized and has all the things one would need to survive the big city, including subway tokens, pens, gum, extra pantyhose, make-up, tissue, an umbrella, and money--not to mention the passport Paul desperately needs to make his flight to Canada later that day.  Because she's so well equipped, Lisa meets a cute guy on the subway, makes it to appointments in style/comfort, and snags herself a much-needed job.  Jamie, on the other hand, has to put her day on hold as she tries to track Lisa down (side note: it's funny how 90's sitcoms tend to hinge on situations that could easily be solved with a cell phone).  Unfortunately, Lisa's purse just has an empty jar, a hot water bottle, a half-eaten sandwich, a yo-yo, a horseshoe, a stun gun, and plenty of other random junk that is no help at all in their quest to find the sister/passport.  Jamie has to blow her nose on a newspaper and beg money for the subway.  Hilarity ensues as Paul and Jamie deal with all the setbacks.  At the end of the day, Jamie is a complete wreck and Lisa tries to clean her up (a complete role reversal of their normal relationship).  It's pretty funny. 

The Sisters at the Start of the Day (you can see their black totes)

The Sisters at the End of the Day

If Katie and I accidentally switched (which, quite frankly, is a real possibility), our purses are definitely like those Jamie and Lisa carried that fateful day of their mix-up (although much cuter than the black totes they had, in my opinion).  Katie's is filled with random wads of cash, old receipts, change, several pairs of earrings she got sick of wearing, gum wrappers, parking validations, and exploded lip gloss tubes (Katie has a real knack for making sticky substances explode out of their tubes).  Not exactly Lisa's disaster area (because at least she has cash and a wallet in there), but not terribly organized either.  Mine, while not quite as well equipped as Jamie's, does contain lots of "in case of emergency" items:

Full Listing of Contents:  wallet (pen, money, credit cards, coupons, health insurance cards, temple recommend, loyalty cards, pictures of the next hair cut I want), make-up bag (blush, High Beam, lip gloss, concealer, perfume, loose powder, make-up brush), hair brush, ponytail holder, blotting papers, two types of sunscreen, diaper, wipes, tissues, first aid kit (Neosporin with pain relief, bandages, gauze, alcohol wipes), Shout portable wipes, Tide pen, cold pills, bottle of ibuprofen, Pepto-bismol tablets, ear plugs (how did those get in there?), hand sanitizer, Band-Aid Friction Block, two packs of gum, spare pair of contacts, sunglasses, cell phone.  Car keys, house key, and key to my place of employment are in there when I'm out and about (otherwise they're on the key hook in the entryway so I don't lose them).   I need to add hand lotion, bobby pins, and little girl hair ties.

 See?  This bag holds a LOT!

We've only had one mix up that I can think of and it played in my favor.  Katie accidentally ditched a pair of earrings into my bag instead of hers.  If a full blown switch does happen, we're all good.  We do have cell phones after all.

What about you?  Is your purse more on the Jamie/Kelly end of the spectrum?  Or do you have some interesting goodies in there like Lisa and Katie?  What do you always carry in case of emergencies?