What's in your purse?

     For our first round of "what's in your purse?" I'd like to share the contents of mine and justify its specificity and importance: 

• iPhone 4 -- Enough said right? I cannot leave the house without my phone because I feel naked and disconnected from the world without it. Not necessarily for the Twitter or Facebook applications but for the texting, phone, and internet capabilities. 
• wallet -- Just as obvious. My wallet contains my debit cards, ID, cash, insurance cards, etc. 
• keys -- To open doors. [duh]
• chapstick -- Regardless of the season, I always have a stick of chapstick in my purse. Nothing is worse than having chapped lips all day.  
• hand lotion -- Ever been to a public bathroom, washed your hands and realized that your hands are dried out from the soap they always have in there? Solution: bring a tiny bottle of hand lotion with you. I usually have hand sanitizer in there, but that won't moisturize your hands as well as hand lotion. I like the Dolce & Gabbana hand lotion because it smells just like my everyday perfume! 
• Tide To-Go -- This instant stain remover pen is the newest addition to my must-haves in my purse. I over-prepare for things I have to do and I over-pack for trips that I go to so naturally, I over-prepare for events that may or may not happen. I don't like to take chances. So when I'm at dinner at a sushi restaurant and a drop of soy sauce gets on my dress no big deal, stain pen to the rescue. 
• mascara & eye liner -- I don't wear a lot of make up, rarely if ever, and especially during the day, but on days when my eyes are looking pretty tired and puffy and concealer under my eyelids just isn't enough, I like to put on a little bit of eye make up on to take away the attention from those black circles under my eyes. I love Covergirl's lash blast because of the bristles and black liner is the best. But for day time, you can even opt for a brown mascara and eye liner because it's not as heavy and dramatic as the black. 
• compact mirror -- My worst nightmare is not knowing that I have something on my face or worse, my nose, [*gasp] and I'm completely unaware of it. It's great for checking your make up, your hair, etc. especially if you can't get to a bathroom mirror right away. 
• iPod ear-phones -- When I was in college I would always take the campus bus everywhere. There have been many instances when someone sitting near me is blabbing away about their weekend and I just don't want to listen to every single detail of that phone conversation. So I simply put on my earphones and tune them out. Although, I don't like to have them on when I would walk from one class to the next because I feel as if it would make me look somewhat antisocial. And I'd like to know if some impending object [bike or god knows what] will be speeding past me to kill me. Safety first people! 
• sunglasses -- It's pretty obvious what you would need sunglasses for, but one purpose that I've read about in Rachel Zoe's book, Style A to Zoe, [she's known for calling them sunnies] which is pretty brilliant, is that sunglasses can serve as a DO NOT DISTURB sign to other people. I have a pet peeve of people wearing sunglasses inside, but when you're out in a public place and you're just not in the mood with dealing with people or making awkward eye contact, having sunglasses on is the best remedy for that. The ones featured here are my Diane Von Furstenberg sunnies that I've recieved as a graduation gift. 

I would like to make this a segment where blog readers can share the contents of their purse and tell me about it significance and maybe we'll all learn a new trick or two about a new item/gadget to keep in there. Send in your "what's in your purse story" to kristinabanda@gmail.com. 

Love, KB