Did you know the earliest purses were actually carried by men! That's right. During the Middle Ages both men and some women wore what was called a waistbag or chatelaine. This little bag was worn at the waist to carry money, keys, and small tools. By the 1500's carrying a purse with a drawstring was a status symbol and you will find many paintings of this time showing people carrying bags with tasseled drawstrings. The development of the metal frame allowed the size of the bag to increase and provided more structure, however it was still worn around the waist. Size mattered too...a large bulky bag implied a hard day's work and was for peasants while the smaller bags implied class.
The 1600's saw skirts grow quite voluminous which forced most women to stuff their valuables into the folds of their clothes and even up their sleeves. That did not last though, the 17th century provided both men and women with the pear shaped pocket. Women would wear them tied to each hip beneath their petticoats while men had them sewn into their clothes. And so we begin man’s departure from the purse. So now you ask why the women did not follow the course the men took and begin sewing pockets into their garments? It turns out that women’s fashions were evolving towards more delicate handiwork and there simply wasn’t any room for built- in pockets. When the sheer empire-line dresses from Paris were introduced around 1790, the handbag or "reticule" was truly born.
The separate pockets worn around the waist gave women a taste for carrying around their personal effects, a liberty few women would relinquish even today. This became the real renaissance for the purse and very large handbags carried by long strings or chains became a popular look. By the end of the 1800’s women’s bags became a permanent fixture. Most were sturdy, would snap shut, and offered more privacy to the secrets of what was inside.
So what did a fashionable lady of the early 1900’s carry in her bag? Not much. Visiting cards, a handkerchief, and a change purse were the usual find. No makeup you say? No, makeup was still considered slightly immoral and only a few would carry a discreet powder puff and a little cologne. Ok so how about some cash? No need! Most shopping was still charged to the family account. Ah, no leaving anything in the trunk and sneaking it in later!
As dresses continued to slim down, purses headed to the forefront and haven’t slowed down a bit. They serve as both a fashion statement and a utility. Is that what they mean by having your cake and eating it too???