Maybe this is slightly dating me, but I'm wondering if the reason I like bagmaxxing so much is because it reminds me of the handphone charm era. I had so many of those charms hanging from my handphone case, to the point that my grandfather wondered if they would crack my screen 😂 the challenge is, as you said, how to maintain some level of individuality when theyre trying to pre-fab it for you. I can't imagine the trash that's going to be created when everyone gets rid of the charms they never had any connection to in the first place...
I really enjoyed this essay! Fun to see you settling down onto a topic—eager to read more in this vein.
I wonder how bagmaxxing manifests around the physical expression of parental stress and anxiety: the diaper bag. That's a bag that actually does require careful packing and SO MUCH GEAR and I imagine that for some new parents it would be comforting to be able to cover the outside with junk that's just for them instead of the baby. (And which can be repurposed as a teething toy in a pinch.)
The diaper bag!!! It’s amazing how curated my diaper bag was for my first kid and then for my 2nd (pandemic!) baby, I started reducing it to a random tote.
I did the same thing, except much faster. For kid 1 we had this amazing diaper bag with so many compartments and a built in changing pad and room for EVERYTHING -- and it was so bulky that after three months we quit using it and instead went for the Skip Shop portable changing pad that had a zipper pocket with room for wipes and a couple of diapers. It worked great until the day my kid had a blowout in Washington Square Park and I had to go around asking other parents for an extra diaper 🤦🏽
This was so good and so infuriating… consumerism is exhausting (not that I don’t fall for it from time to time). The icing on the cake was visiting Lily Allen’s instagram and seeing her reading a very prominently placed Hilbilly Elegy in two pictures. Who reads that on vacation lol
“You can now buy that same experience — the patina of a life fully lived — fresh from the factory.” I don’t know whether it’s my age (middle) or just personal taste however I look at those bag accessories on bags being carried around by adult women and can’t help but think it’s another way of infantilising women and girls (alongside convincing them to spend the 70 something cents that they earn compared to the $1 earned by a man on uselessness) Children accessorise their school bags and backpacks as a way of asserting identity or signifying belonging. All of these items look childish & meaningless (unlike Jane Birkin’s organic self styling) I’d be embarrassed to purchase any of them let alone attach one to a bag. As for the Stanley cups…🤦🏻♀️ Great article.
Loved this! Did not realize we had a term for acccessorizing bags 😂 Jessica Defino sent me here and I immediately subscribed. Would love to read more about the Stanley cup craze!!
I loved reading this post! I had been seeing charms for sale (in particular from Coach that nearly tempted me) and wondered when/why this was trending. Thanks for breaking it down! I'd love more posts like this one.
Love this essay!! Bloody spot on take. Recent holiday to a luxury wine region in Aus confirms that bagmaxxing is well and truly here, I noticed so much of it after reading this
Really great piece and I think speaks so much to how trend cycles have changed post-pandemic/post-Tiktok. People have such an obsession with curating a Look, a Vibe, a Persona that sometimes we forget to just be authentic, personal, and ourselves! The Stanley craze is also insane. I can't help but think (both about maxxed out bags and stanley's), isn't that so heavy???? And bulky? Would love more pieces like this!!
Fascinating. I am on a movement to lessen the load of the whole kitchen sink in my purse. I can't even fathom adding paraphernalia to the outside of my purse. Great essay. Thank you.
I wish we could comment on specific lines because this "Bagmaxxing is an attempt to monetize that French fashion icon’s laissez-faire attitude towards luxury items and penchant for personalizing her possessions." !!!
Loved this essay! Would take 5,000 words on Stanley’s, Nalgenes and what your water bottle says about you
Maybe this is slightly dating me, but I'm wondering if the reason I like bagmaxxing so much is because it reminds me of the handphone charm era. I had so many of those charms hanging from my handphone case, to the point that my grandfather wondered if they would crack my screen 😂 the challenge is, as you said, how to maintain some level of individuality when theyre trying to pre-fab it for you. I can't imagine the trash that's going to be created when everyone gets rid of the charms they never had any connection to in the first place...
I really enjoyed this essay! Fun to see you settling down onto a topic—eager to read more in this vein.
I wonder how bagmaxxing manifests around the physical expression of parental stress and anxiety: the diaper bag. That's a bag that actually does require careful packing and SO MUCH GEAR and I imagine that for some new parents it would be comforting to be able to cover the outside with junk that's just for them instead of the baby. (And which can be repurposed as a teething toy in a pinch.)
The diaper bag!!! It’s amazing how curated my diaper bag was for my first kid and then for my 2nd (pandemic!) baby, I started reducing it to a random tote.
I did the same thing, except much faster. For kid 1 we had this amazing diaper bag with so many compartments and a built in changing pad and room for EVERYTHING -- and it was so bulky that after three months we quit using it and instead went for the Skip Shop portable changing pad that had a zipper pocket with room for wipes and a couple of diapers. It worked great until the day my kid had a blowout in Washington Square Park and I had to go around asking other parents for an extra diaper 🤦🏽
We’ve all been there!
This was so good and so infuriating… consumerism is exhausting (not that I don’t fall for it from time to time). The icing on the cake was visiting Lily Allen’s instagram and seeing her reading a very prominently placed Hilbilly Elegy in two pictures. Who reads that on vacation lol
I also noticed one of her bag ornaments in the pics above was a box of Nurofen
jesus christ.
“You can now buy that same experience — the patina of a life fully lived — fresh from the factory.” I don’t know whether it’s my age (middle) or just personal taste however I look at those bag accessories on bags being carried around by adult women and can’t help but think it’s another way of infantilising women and girls (alongside convincing them to spend the 70 something cents that they earn compared to the $1 earned by a man on uselessness) Children accessorise their school bags and backpacks as a way of asserting identity or signifying belonging. All of these items look childish & meaningless (unlike Jane Birkin’s organic self styling) I’d be embarrassed to purchase any of them let alone attach one to a bag. As for the Stanley cups…🤦🏻♀️ Great article.
those stanley videos, at some point, HAVE to be rage bait
Letting you know that i loved loved loved this essay. You had me laughing out loud.
Loved this! Did not realize we had a term for acccessorizing bags 😂 Jessica Defino sent me here and I immediately subscribed. Would love to read more about the Stanley cup craze!!
I loved reading this post! I had been seeing charms for sale (in particular from Coach that nearly tempted me) and wondered when/why this was trending. Thanks for breaking it down! I'd love more posts like this one.
Love this essay!! Bloody spot on take. Recent holiday to a luxury wine region in Aus confirms that bagmaxxing is well and truly here, I noticed so much of it after reading this
Love this essay, and fascinating how bagmaxxing also ties into the jewellery trend of charms and necklace layering being major right now
love love love this longform trend report!! please keep sharing
Really great piece and I think speaks so much to how trend cycles have changed post-pandemic/post-Tiktok. People have such an obsession with curating a Look, a Vibe, a Persona that sometimes we forget to just be authentic, personal, and ourselves! The Stanley craze is also insane. I can't help but think (both about maxxed out bags and stanley's), isn't that so heavy???? And bulky? Would love more pieces like this!!
Fascinating. I am on a movement to lessen the load of the whole kitchen sink in my purse. I can't even fathom adding paraphernalia to the outside of my purse. Great essay. Thank you.
I loved this essay & would love to read more deep dives like it :)
I wish we could comment on specific lines because this "Bagmaxxing is an attempt to monetize that French fashion icon’s laissez-faire attitude towards luxury items and penchant for personalizing her possessions." !!!