HELP! I thought this purse was 30s/40s am I wrong?

[aiseirigh]

Hi everyone. I found a purse. It has a very art deco feel in terms of the hardware and the visual design/construction so I was thinking 1930s/40s. But now I think I may be way off!

The leather is very soft and supple and the interior has a double "S" monogram pattern.
Also the interior has a zippered pocket with a zipper branded C.C.

I am still trying so hard to learn textiles and construction, stitches, fabrics etc...but coming from a visual background (editorial wardrobe styling and fine art photography) and not a design or textile background I mess up a lot and there is still soo much for me to learn. It feels kinda overwhelming somedays!

I appreciate your help and am in awwwwe with of your expertise!

Cat

 

[Circa Vintage Clothing]

Cute bag Cat - I think it's from the '60s, perhaps early '70s.

You're right: there's a lot to know, I've been doing this for over thirty years and still learning all the time. Many styles come back into fashion, so style alone is inadequate for dating. Eg, your handbag does have deco lines, perhaps it's deco revival late '60s-early '70s?

 

[aiseirigh]

See that is my main problem (I am working on it daily but sometimes reading on textiles and stitching and fabrics for someone with no background in it can feel like reading ancient hebrew and go in one ear and out the other) I am way too visual in my background, I have an intense grasp of visual iconography (classic film, fashion and art photography) but when you get to the tricker pieces that in no way helps!

I am getting better with zippers, and closures but again that is not always enough to era date!

See if this was 30s/40s I would say it had fair condition, but if it is 60s/70s the condition of that interior is TERRIBLE! So it is kinda a wash.

I do love the line and style but I wonder how much the interior will turn people off...cause that is in imho pretty flawed for the 70s!

edited cause i made no sense! lol

 

[aiseirigh]

Also while I am here is this purse 70s or 40s? I always always have a hard time with tooled leather bags!

 

[Circa Vintage Clothing]

I'll go with '70s.

 

[aiseirigh]

Yah I think so too. I paid a 70s price for it! lol I just love the colours. I think this one is still a good find, the other one if it is that current was a bit of a waste of my money!

 

[cmpollack]

Hi Cat--both bags are very pretty.

I agree with Nicole that the first one is likely a cusper 60s/70s--the giveaways are the brass twist-lock closure (very big in the 60s!), the chain handle, and most of all the logo cloth lining--and just wanted to say that you can clean this one up by cleaning/polishing/buffing the leather, gently polishing the chain and clasp with a jewelry wipe or cloth, and spot cleaning the lining. It may not be a total wash after a little TLC!

Tooled bags were very big 50s-70s (and around before and after!) so they can be a challenge to date. Is there any label or tag in yours? My hunch is that, rather than being a 50s/60s Mexican-made souvenir bag, it reflects the home leathercraft craze that started in the late 60s/early 70s. It could even be much newer--if you google "tandy tooled leather purse" you'll see that their kits are still widely available!)