Sunday, January 14, 2007

The 200th Post: Domesticity's Basic Party Essentials

Video: "Faster Kill Pussycat" by Paul Oakenfold featuring Brittany Murphy... yes, folks, THAT Brittany Murphy! I know! Didn't see that coming either!

I recently gave a black vintage Nine West purse to Evie, who is in the Philippines right now working as an event planner for rock concerts and major special events. I packed her bag with what I felt were some serious essentials for an experienced girl-about-town like her: lipstick (Revlon Colorstay Soft and Smooth in Fabulous Fig), mints (from Sephora), and a “little black book” (actually a tiny black notebook from Old Navy – perfect for those rock-star phone numbers!) I think it’s so perfect for her, since the bag is small enough to carry everything she needs and the strap is long enough to sling right across her shoulder. Plus, hey, it’s black.

“Remember,” I told her, “a sassy girl always can always use a Sassy Bag.”

I don’t exactly have a “Sassy Bag” of choice right now – not because my clubbing days are over (far from it, folks!) but I’ve got the kind of life that can never fit inside just about any old designer purse. The closest I have to a “Sassy Bag,” come to think of it, is my beloved hot pink fake-ostrich fake-baguette, which I purchased at Payless for dirt cheap – it’s one of those bags that can go from church to dinner to dancing without looking too heavy. Otherwise, my life is one endless assortment of leather laptop bags, midsize knit purses, and the occasional backpack.

In honor of Evie’s new Sassy Bag, I bring to you a list of purse essentials for occasional - but seasoned - social butterflies like us:

  • A tin of multipurpose balm, like Smith’s Rosebud Salve or L’Occitane Shea Butter, to take care of even the most basic chapping on the lips and nails
  • Pressed powder (in a mirrored compact) and blotting papers, to keep your face shine-free
  • Lipstick or gloss, just because (easier to take around than eye makeup)
  • A tinier-than-purse-size container of fragrance
  • A ponytail elastic and/or extra bobby pins, for those hair mishaps when you wear your hair long
  • The tiniest camera that you can fit in
  • Mints, because you never know who you might meet
  • Band-Aids, for the unavoidable booboo
  • A pen for the little black book
  • Big sunglasses, in case you don’t get out of the club till sunrise

Of course, not too long after I gave the sassy bag to Evie she asked me for suggestions on how to take care of her eyes, which were inevitably puffy and dark from all the late nights - not just from the concerts and bar gigs, but also from typing out scripts and poring over contracts. (Take it from somebody who used to be in the biz - this job is not THAT glamorous, people.) So for Christmas I got her a tube of eye cream, along with the old trick of putting cold, soaked Lipton black tea bags over closed eyes (which has worked wonders for me whenever I pull my all-nighters). The trick is to keep the tea bags cold in the fridge - I usually save them after I've made my daily cuppa - and put them over the eyes, then following up with the eye cream to keep them from drying out.

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