Travel Light

Ever had that first-world problem of which beach bag to take on holiday with you? Oh, the agonies!

Stylish straw, a la Toast or Plumo, is earthy, worthy and organic but doesn’t double up very well as an in-flight bag. It doesn’t fold away neatly into your tiny suitcase either. Giant woven flat-bottomed confections, with neon tassels, pompom trim and dangly charms are cute but the same applies (plus, IMHO, they are naff and incongruous back home, unless you live in Rio, which I don’t. Accessorising a day-trip trip to Humanby Gap usually includes waterproofs)
I toyed with the idea of taking a sensible foldaway Ikea tote that we’ve had kicking about the house for years, but being a spoilt spendthrift I went on the hunt for a new solution instead. I found it in an unexpected place, for an unexpected price. Presenting the Primark foldable shopper. (Buy one, get one half price) I paid the princely sum of £1.50 for this gorgeous indigo shibori design, and my daughter proudly sports a cute flamingo print one. Roomy, quick drying, and being 100% polyester, folds to almost nothing inside its own dinky little pouch which is stitched in so that you can’t lose it.
Also, I enjoy the juxtaposition of this ‘disposable fashion’ item next to the fine Japanese cotton shibori scarf which, if you read my Japan blog, you’ll know took me an eternity of painstaking wrapping, pleating and dipping in real precious indigo last autumn.
Pictured with my bargain beach bag solution, as well as a copy of the latest blogospheremagazine.com, are some brand new feet; model’s own, that a well built hotel spa therapist called Gisela has just soaked, scrubbed, filed and lacquered into existence for just €20. Seriously, she actually used a tool that would not be out of place in my husband’s woodworkshop. I told her that I’ll have to get some smaller shoes, which I thought was hilarious, but I think the joke was lost in translation…

#holiday #travel #primark #bargain #travellight #fashion #accessories #shibori #blogospheremag