Ebay online auctions changed everything for me, in terms of collecting and restoring purses.  I discovered a world of people and purses more vast than anything I found in over fifteen years of scouring through antique malls around the country.  Now I can run through the listings of beaded purses on Ebay, and in thirty minutes, see more wonderful bags than I would have found in several years of traveling and searching.  However, most of the purses are in need of repair.  It is rare to find a mint condition, pristine purse listed on Ebay, and if so, it sells for a premium.

This past year, my father created a web site for me, which showcases before- and after photos of purse repairs.  I have had the good fortune to become acquainted with a long-standing expert in purse repair, Jackie Smith, who refers customers to my web site through her own, and is kind enough to indulge my questions when I encounter an unusually challenging purse dilemma.

The response to my repair services has been amazing.  I was unaware that there are only a few people in the country who offer professional antique purse restoration, and they were working at full capacity already.  The collectors are a loyal, dedicated bunch, who seem to know one another through a loose networking structure of Ebay transactions, email questions to each other, collectors' clubs, and dealer connections.  Word of the repair service has spread, and in a short time I have amassed a waiting list of up to two months.       

Antique purses are a beautiful example of a lost art form that belonged to a simpler time, when ladies sat beneath shade trees, bead-knitted, and traded stories.  The purses depict a fascinating range of subjects- Egyptology, floral displays, harps, lovers, deer, hunters, funeral urns, ships, castles, and rug designs.  Abstract purses capture the Deco and flapper-era styles, and primitive reticules have a special look that is instantly recognizable.   Some collectors specialize in categories of design, and collect particular styles or animals, such as beaded purses with bird designs, or with horses.  Others may collect special purse frame constructions, such as Bakelite framed purses.  The most coveted purses feature spectacular jeweled frames, set with semi-precious stones, and constructed from tiny seed beads (which some choose to call "micro-beaded", an unofficial and often misused term) and spectacularly intricate landscape or figural scenes.

When starting a collection, begin with what you can afford.  The best purses go for upward of $2,000, so you might look for a nice bead-embroidered landscape scene, or knitted floral, for $300-500.  Some collectors prefer metal-beaded purses, such as the French steel beaded bags, which average in the $200-400 range.  Others will only consider bead-knitted purses with jeweled frames.  There are so many different possibilities in purse collecting that we are only limited by our budget, preferences for beauty, and capacity to repair damages.  I've included some simple repair tips that will get you started, should you decide to begin repairing beaded bags.  Best wishes in your journey to find wonderful purses of your own!