The Coach Bag

Of Course!  Of course on the week that I decide to buckle down and get serious about controlling my financial future, the bag I have been hunting for for 6 years makes its appearance:

Before the world financial crisis hit in late 2008, Coach had created a beautiful bag named Maggie. (how fitting!)  They have since had other Maggie's, but as with cars (I'll tell you my Volvo concerns in the future) and many other things, the materials used in the last few years have been less than incredible.

Having just moved to New York City at the time, I was holding onto my purse strings.  But strings on purses in New York City were never a safe option.   You needed a zipper.  So like all smart and savvy ladies of the city, I made sure to carry something fabulous.  I used Bag Borrow or Steal, which is a service lending normally out-of-budget-reach bags for a low monthly fee.

The service ended up costing me more than the bag that I refused to give up, until I had paid well over twice the cost of the bag.  TWICE THE COST!  I finally decided to send it back.  If I had been patient, and just saved for two months, that baby would be mine forever and always.  While many of bagborroworsteal.com bags were rent to own, this one did not have that option.  And the saddest part, when we parted ways, I couldn't find the bag for sale anywhere.  Coach had already changed the design to adjust to designer and economic conditions.  But I did get BBoS credit to make the same mistake again …  if anyone needs $46.08 toward their BBoS obsession … what am I saying, stay away!

Since then every bag has been the stand in.  They have all been fabulous, every one has gotten amazing reviews from random passerby's, and all of them have been purchased at my favorite discount bag stores Marshall's and TJMaxx for a the low low price of $29.99, but my heart is obsessing over the Coach bag.

The heartbreaking thing is, the reason I love it so much, is that this style does not have a Coach logo on the bag.  It has an inconsipicuous tag on a bead chain that you can take off the handle.  I love that it's not free advertising for them.  Momma always refused to buy us clothes with labels on the outside.   "Why am I paying for you to be a walking billboard for them."  And she's right.  If you are going to be a commercial you should be paid for it.

So I was really proud of myself.  As the minutes and hours passed by on the auction, I let it go.  I let the bag that I've loved for 6 years, in mint condition, with dust bag and all, go.  And then it reposted.  And my agony began again.  Ladies, the thing is, if the bag were discounted, you wouldn't be able to hold me back.  If that $349 bag was now $275, watch out.  But since they are charging the original price, and shipping I'm sitting there staring at my dreams thinking, I've lived this long without it.  I'll let it go.

That's the emotional justification cycle.  But the numbers game makes it easier.

The reality is that $349 going toward the bag instead of debt that I already have would in the end cost me an additional $365.44 in 6 years.  So not only would I have paid for the bag twice already, but in the end I would have paid 4 times the cost or $1460.  I could buy 48 of my TJMaxx bags for that price.

I love the bag, I REALLY do, but if I'm going to get ahead of myself and take care of future me, I need to delay these types of purchases for as long as I can.

Welcome to the 21st Century...

So I know Maggie wrote a little bit about me, but she was very kind to not tell all of you that I'm her technologically-challenged friend. Over the past decade of friendship, Margret has set-up my first email account, my Facebook page, Pinterest account, has written numerous letters of recommendation and edited many papers for my MBA - she's my go-to when it comes to technology and the latest trends. She's always encouraging me (and sometimes getting annoyed) by my lack of curiosity into the newest site.

That being said...I have made a new discovery. I realize that I'm 32 years old (whoops! 33...I just turned 33 this month - might need to come to grips with that)...but I just found online shopping. WELCOME TO THE 21st CENTURY!! NOT just online shopping...online deals!! It's amazing how much money you can save by shopping sites like Zulily, Groupon and Priceline (I'll be talking more about these sites throughout the blog). I'm a believer!! For example, I recently did my Spring cleaning and got rid of tons of clothes - you know the jeans that have holes in them (not cute, intentional holes), but just old, worn out holes and shirts that you tell yourself you are going to wear again when...you lose a few lbs or when it comes back in style or because the shirt is a memory...I've done this for years. Hence, the need to get rid of tons of clothes! That being said, I have been left without much of a spring wardrobe. I desperately turned to a site that Maggie had told me about ages ago...Zulily. It just so happened that they were having a sale on 7Seven jeans - I bought four pair!

I know this is a blog about financial strategy, but it's also about making smart decisions when making purchases - these jeans were only $20/each. Meaning that for the price of one pair of jeans in the store, I now have a new wardrobe of jeans (light pair, white capri pair, dark pair and one with "intentional" holes). If you have been in the dark like I have, I strongly encourage you to check it out! It will save you tons of money in the long-run and you will still be able to make some of those important purchases. The money that you save, you can actually save for that rainy day.

Our Quest For Financial Success

We are college roommates turned best friends.  In college our greatest concerns were getting through classes and convincing guys they were crazy to propose after dating us for 2 weeks.  Sure we wanted the fairytale, but we wanted to be wise when we made those decisions.  Unfortunately, the trap of giving up early marriage and holding onto late marriage expectations means that our financial present and futures are in our own two hands.

Taxes and spring cleaning led us to discussions about where we want to be in our finances and how we each plan to get there.  Our circumstances are very different, as are our perspectives, but there are principles on which we both agree.  There are a lot of financial planning guides that take into account children and families.  But living alone while trying to keep a social life to get to that happily ever after point has financial challenges of its own.  We thought a dual authorship approach may open up a helpful window into those specific challenges.

Here's a little about us!

Tara:  Native Texan living in Utah, loves a good workout, golf, the beach, and tending to everyone in her path.  She has an MBA and a BS in Public Health and currently is a Marketing Manager for an international electronics company.

Maggie:  Native Jersey girl living in Jersey, enjoys photography, travel, golf, and the shore.  Her degree is in progress as she is often side tracked with career moves.  She currently works in New York City in the entertainment industry.