It's a Purse Party!

So said Jennifer Coolidge during a guest spot on "Sex and the City" when she played a freshly dumped woman who's turned to selling handmade purses ("I tore up my bedspread to make that one!"). That having been said, I think she and the rest of the "Sex and the City" gang would appreciate this selection of purses from my page-a-day Handbags gallery-style calendar (Workman Publishing). Based on the book Handbags: The Power of the Purse, by Anna Johnson, this desktop delight is bursting with photographs of ornate, colorful, and sometimes historical satchels, clutches, hobos, cases, shoulder bags, and reticules. (I had to look up that last one; according to dictionary.com it's of French origin and means "small purse or bag, originally of network but later of silk, rayon, etc.")

P.S. The May 4 number is described as a "handmade vintage-inspired fabric bag with abstract paint design" and hails from a lovely-sounding place called The Pink Room. Pretty apropos in light of Ms. Coolidge, huh?