Obsession Diaries: Every Tote Tells a Story

I began collecting totes on my trip to Scandinavia in 2011. I bought a tote in every city I visited and thought that would be it. Little did I know how much my collection would grow in the coming years. In recent years I bought a tote on almost every vacation and every city I visit. 
However, after assuming such an extensive inventory, I am considering scaling back and only buying totes when I encounter something truly unique or am in a very memorable place. 


Here are the stories of my tote obsession:

Nakameguro Blue Bottle store tote, purchased online, 2019

Korres tote, purchased online, 2019

Cycladic Museum tote, purchased in Athens, Greece, 2016

Delfonics tote, purchased in Tokyo, Japan, 2017

Livraria Lello bookstore tote, purchased in Porto, Portugal, 2018

Korean tote, gifted to me from a woman on the street in Seoul, Korea 2014

Astrup Fearnley Museum tote, purchased in Olso, Norway, 2011

Shimanekko tote, given to me in Shimane, Japan in 2014

Praha tote, purchased in Prague, Czech Republic, 2008

Rijksmuseum Tote, purchased in Amsterdam, Netherlands 2016

Brookyln Bar tote, purchased in Tokyo, Japan, 2017

Taipei MOCA tote, purcahsed in Taipei, Taiwan 2018

Marimekko tote, purchased in Helsinki, Finland 2011

Ornig and Reda tote, purchased in Stockholm,  Sweden 2011

Onsaya Coffee tote, purchased in Okayama, Japan 2013

The most well made tote I've received is from Monocle. It is made from sturdy canvas and has inner pockets for pens and phones. This was a gift for a subscription. 

Obsession Diaries: Handbags

When I step back to think of the things I "collect" handbags would definitely be another category. When I looked through my collection, three main brands emerged. I document those collections here.

Ippolito

I can’t remember how and where I first heard of ippolito. This Greek leather handbag brand is one of my favorite handbag brands, and I I’ve bene buying from them for the past three years. I will buy a new piece when the collection interests me and if it will hold a unique place in my overall handbag collection.

Vintage Louis Vuitton

I started buying vintage Louis Vuitton as a college student because I could not afford new models, however, I grew to like the look of the vintage models better. I like the faded, worn look and some of the older pieces are a lot classer and more timeless than the new collections.  

Vintage Coach

I inherited my first coach bag from my mother, who bought it at a time when it was not vintage. I kept it and carried it from time to time, and ended up purchasing my own bags over the years. I really love the look of them an the feeling of old leather. 

Obsession Diaries: Delfonics

It’s no secret I'm obsession with planners and stationary in general, but Delfonics occupies a special place in y heart. I have been using this Japanese brand for my planners, file folders, pencils, cases, notebooks, totes, and pouches for a decade now, and the end of my addiction is no where in sight.

Every time I got to Japan I stop by the Delfonics  shop, although you can buy their products in many stores throughout Japan. Finally, Delfonics opened a shop online and also sells on Amazon, which is incredible.

Here is my collection as of 2019:

Delfonics Journals from the last ten years. I experimented with size and cover, deciding I like the bigger sizes better, and trying to find the most interesting and colorful patterns each season. 

Pouches, used for pens, receipts, odds and ends, and a special one for Monocle Magazines.

 Canvas pouches for stationary and pens. I have one big enough fro laptops and a smaller one for art supplies. They are too cute I almost don't want to use them!

Obsession Diaries: Korres

This is the first post in a series on Obsessions. 
Recently I have become intrigued by the things I get obsessed with: the things I collect and hoard and dream of. There are not many of them. I am no collector nor a person fond of material possession or consumerist culture. But there are just a few things which I love to much to only have one of. 

Korres is one of them. 

Korres is a Greek beauty product company that I have known for since I was 13 years old. My aunt would use their products and I used the bathroom in their house I would spend extra long in there smelling her lotion bottles and perfume. 

I bought a few Korres products on my own on my last trip to Athens in 2016, but this never amounted to an obsession. 

For some reason, after I had my baby, I became very conscious of what I put on my skin. Tired of trying new brands of lotion and shampoo, being dissatisfied, and then trying another, I dreamt of having one brand I could go to for everything: skin care, hair care, body care, and that all of their products would be so great that I would buy anything they made. 

That turned out to be Korres. 

After a small order from their website online, I became addicted to their line of skin care and when HSN had a sale, I went a little overboard. 

Here is my Korres bounty as of 2020, but there is no end in sight. I've got my eyes peels for new products and merchandise all the time...

Facial oil and lip glosses

Day cream, night cream, eye cream, and elixir

Face wash and makeup remover

collection of mini lotions

matching lotion and body wash sets 

Free makeup bag I received after purchased so much stuff :)