People Stop Me on the Street to Ask About This $45 Handbag (It Looks Way More Expensive, BTW)

Let me set the scene for you: It’s 11 p.m. and I’m scrolling through Instagram even though I really should be powering down for the night, when *bam* I see an ad for the faux-croc-embossed purse from JW Pei that I’ve been thinking about since August. It’s pretty cheap, I tell myself and then glance at the price again, but maybe too cheap? Reader, I didn’t buy the bag. 

A few weeks later, I spotted one of those cooler-than-thou girls on the subway with her mustard-colored mini-flap bag ($54) flung across her chest. I couldn’t stop staring at the petite rectangular purse. I was able to ID that it was, indeed, from JW Pei thanks to the brand name being delicately stamped in gold, plus the discreet hardware peeking out from under the top flap. And I was shocked that the vegan leather looked so fancy (yes, even under fluorescent lights).

It was at that point that I knew it was time to spring for one of my own.

The JW Pei purse I ended up with is the Fae Top Handle in light brown croc. It’s ladylike, it’s prim, it has an interior zipper and it’s made of vegan leather. Oh, and it was also on sale for just $45. That’s how much it costs to get a gel mani (with tip) in NYC, so it’s not a major investment.

But it has caused a few people on the city streets (and the nurses in my doctor’s office) to stop me in my tracks and ask, “Oh my God, is that a JW Pei bag?” Every time I’ve been stopped by a purse admirer, they’ve admitted that they, too, had spotted the bag on IG and wondered if it was worth it. So here’s my encouragement: Yes, it is! Buy the JW Pei bag.