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Vera Bradley


lrn2cruise

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I got off of the Freedom of the Seas on Aug 7th. I noticed that many of the ladies on the cruise had Vera Bradley is some shape or form. I saw it at the pool, handbags, luggage-you name it!

 

Just thought I would share if there are any Vera fans out there.

 

I am not much of a Vera fan. I do have some though.

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I'm not a big Vera Bradley fan at all - mostly because I don't care for paisley. However, my sister "gifted" me a Vera Bradley ID card keychain. It was a handy size and in my favorite color, yellow, so I carried it around. MIL recognized Vera and has since gotten me several Vera purses and even a Vera Bradley Christmas stocking! :D

 

 

Now, I am a big Lilly Pulitzer fan! :)

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It's not all paisley! I only recently became a fan. I love their new pattern Happy Snails! It is floral with cute little snails. I too got the lanyard for our upcoming cruise. I wouldnt buy the luggage becasue 1) too $$$, and 2) After seeing the way the handlers throw the luggage around....no way! I know the young crowd 10-25 LOVE Vera!

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I got off of the Freedom of the Seas on Aug 7th. I noticed that many of the ladies on the cruise had Vera Bradley is some shape or form. I saw it at the pool, handbags, luggage-you name it!

 

Just thought I would share if there are any Vera fans out there.

 

I am not much of a Vera fan. I do have some though.

Are you SURE they were VB? Cracker Barrel sold some that were look alike!

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I'm one of those people who never thought I would like Vera Bradley and all that paisley. Then I discovered one of their black microfiber bags and how it had so many pockets in all the right places. Now I'm hooked! The signature cotton bags are a lot tougher than they look and they are washable if you remove the reinforced bottom. When I started graduate school, I got a Vera tote in their purple punch color (which has sadly been retired). It stood up to all the books I tossed in there, and I lost track of how many people kept coming up to me to say that they loved my bag.

 

It does seem that once you start buying Vera bags, you start noticing everyone else who has them, too!

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I'm one of those people who never thought I would like Vera Bradley and all that paisley. Then I discovered one of their black microfiber bags and how it had so many pockets in all the right places. Now I'm hooked! The signature cotton bags are a lot tougher than they look and they are washable if you remove the reinforced bottom. When I started graduate school, I got a Vera tote in their purple punch color (which has sadly been retired). It stood up to all the books I tossed in there, and I lost track of how many people kept coming up to me to say that they loved my bag.

 

It does seem that once you start buying Vera bags, you start noticing everyone else who has them, too!

 

I dismissed the fabric bag thing for a long time. Vera got popular on my college campus several years back and they caught my eye because I love prints and color but I usually don't buy clothing with prints. I have never really considered a bag like that because I was concerned with how well it would wear - instead I always bought good quality leather bags. I bought my first vera bag on ebay, in Mediterranean white (a very loose blue swirl flower print on white background. First, the lightness of it got me (and I think that is really a big part of why I love my vera bradley bags) but I also find they wear so amazingly well. I have had that white tote bag for 5 years, and I that first year I even used it pretty much non-stop. You can hardly tell its been worn, it washes sooo well when I need it to anyway. I did recently feel like it was finally dirty a couple months ago, the handles had finally gotten grungy looking after about a combined two years worth of use. All it look was some tide (dye free) on the handles and it looks brand new again. Now I keep my eye on the patterns I like and buy on clearance when they get discontinued (about a year or two after debut for most.) Since I wait to get the pattern I love I pay half price - usually around 20-40 depending on the bag. They have worn just as well (if not better) then my leather bags and are usually at least half the price of what I used to pay for real good quality leather. Worth it to me! Even the full price hobo I bought for $50 would have easily cost me double that had a purchased from a well made designer.

 

I will say a lot of the patterns are not my taste, but there really is such a variety in patterns and they have been coming out with more and more styles that are very contemporary. All my bags are in what I would consider almost a scroll-esqe print or a flowery print, no paisleys in sight. My new favorite these days is baroque which is not something that most people would recognize by print alone is a vera unless they really know the brand.

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When we started carrying Vera Bradley at the luggage store, none of us liked it...at all. I thought it looked like grandmas tote bag for her knitting needles.

 

But then you buy one piece, then another and another. I probably have about 12-15 Vera pieces now, many of them small wallets, keychains, eye glass carriers, all of them in different prints. I have some larger tote bags for travel.

 

I definitely don't like all the prints and half the time I like the inside more than the outside, some of them are just too garish for me. Some of the pieces just aren't my style, like I wouldn't carry a handbag in a print but the small accessories make it easy to find what you're looking for inside a black handbag, which is why I get them in different prints. Some women come in and purchase a handbag, wallet, keychain, etc... all in the same print, though, I think it's odd but to each his own.

 

The luggage is very well made and I will sell it without hesitation. I shy away from selling product I don't believe in, product I don't think is a good quality.

 

According to last years numbers, VB has increased in sales by 2000% since we started carrying it. No other product has produced those kind of numbers before.

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When we started carrying Vera Bradley at the luggage store, none of us liked it...at all. I thought it looked like grandmas tote bag for her knitting needles.

 

But then you buy one piece, then another and another. I probably have about 12-15 Vera pieces now, many of them small wallets, keychains, eye glass carriers, all of them in different prints. I have some larger tote bags for travel.

 

I definitely don't like all the prints and half the time I like the inside more than the outside, some of them are just too garish for me. Some of the pieces just aren't my style, like I wouldn't carry a handbag in a print but the small accessories make it easy to find what you're looking for inside a black handbag, which is why I get them in different prints. Some women come in and purchase a handbag, wallet, keychain, etc... all in the same print, though, I think it's odd but to each his own.

 

The luggage is very well made and I will sell it without hesitation. I shy away from selling product I don't believe in, product I don't think is a good quality.

 

According to last years numbers, VB has increased in sales by 2000% since we started carrying it. No other product has produced those kind of numbers before.

 

I find that sales increase really interesting KS! I ran into and fell in love with VB when I was going to school in PA. When I moved out here to KY and started using mine out here I ended up having a lot of people telling me how they thought it was so odd for me as an north-easterner to love VB. Apparently the brand used to be more regional and sales outside the IN/KY area was very little. (Ironically, I personally think I see less VB around here then I did back east...so I just find this really odd. For a long time VB was almost a status symbol like coach - you just had to own one. In my circles anyway which is why I reisted it for a long time.)

 

I can really see what you mean by them being to garish - sometimes I think what I love about them is that I can carry a bag with a bright colors that I would never ever be able to carry off in a piece of clothing. Then again I am in my mid twenties so maybe I look at it a little different. I am also one of those people were everything has to match too ;) so I tend to pick prints that go with everything.

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I never carry her purses or large pieces but I like some of her small, soft eyeglass cases and cosmetic pouches. I've had trouble finding my favorite glass case and have tried three places that sell her things. I fear it's discontinued.

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I see so many people with them and with the knock-offs. However, they remind me too much of the bags, purses, etc that we used to make from quilted placemats many years ago when I was in HS.

 

ohhhhhhhhh i remember those...i still have one......lol....

thats so true...

even walmart is selling a line of the quilt types too

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I have two of her travel pieces (jewelry holder and makeup bag) and love them! They are patterened and wear VERY well.

I like the solid colors she is coming out with. I do not own a purse or tote because I don't like patterned bags, but I would definately consider purchasing one in a solid color.

 

I love Lilly Pulitzer too!

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I like VB. To each their own. I have many pieces of it that have served me well thru the years. Incidentally, none of the fabrics are paisley. They have many different fabrics to choose from.

 

Are you sure? This sure looks like paisley to me:

 

http://www.verabradley.com/category/Color/Boysenberry/799/pc/639.uts

 

As do these:

 

http://www.verabradley.com/category/Color/Lemon-Parfait/801/pc/639.uts

 

http://www.verabradley.com/category/Color/Simply-Violet/747/pc/639.uts

 

 

 

 

And this one is even named Paisley:

 

http://www.verabradley.com/category/Color/Very-Berry-Paisley/753/pc/639.uts

 

 

Many others, although not strictly paisley, do have a paisley look about them as well.

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I have a duffle that I take on small trips in our car. Didnt take it on the cruise because I needed wheels to roll!!!

 

The only reason why I know that a lot of these ladies had genuine VB instead of fake is because I sell on Ebay and I pick up VB when I see it at the TS. Most of it is worn in the corners and is dirty. I think the ebay market is saturated in VB and it is easier to come by, so the prices are not that high.

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I just have a couple pieces. I used to not be able to find any of the prints appealing, but now, I don't know if I'm getting older or the prints are getting cuter, but there are quite a few prints, I like. I would never use it for everyday, just because it's not my "Style". I do use it for traveling. I don't own the luggage due to the pricing and the way the airlines destroy luggage. But, I have a bright pink set of luggage and have a VB tote and wallet, that matches my luggage. It makes me feel "put together" when I travel. It's not a large tote - kind of a large purse or a small tote. I, also, have a little keychain, id holder type thing, that I got as a party gift at a Work Christmas party, about 5 years ago. I love it! I have used it everyday, since I got it. It is just big enough to hold a couple of cards. It has a clear slot to put your drivers license and then behind that is a slot for other cards. I, always, carry it in my purse and a lot of the time, I just grab that out of my purse to run to the store. It has worn very well, I think it still looks new.

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I got an ID holder as a hostess gift for a baby shower in June. Since then I've bought a wallet (that I love) in Safari Sunset and a fun purse in Buttercup. I enjoy the pieces I have, but you can go a little overboard with all the quilting IMO. :-) We have a great store near my home that is able to discount current items/patterns and they have an enormous selection.

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