I’m late posting this, but here is an article that was in the Globe recently about some local arrests made when the police discovered a huge storage space in Revere full of 46,000 knock off bags. I guess this surprised me because unlike Canal Street in NY there really isn’t any place (that I know of) to purchase fake bags on the street in the Boston area. I guess in New England they are more likely to be sold at “purse parties” then out on the street in the open.

I have to admit I am starting to feel a little guilty about my love for fake bags. There is no denying that it is supporting crime, and putting money into the pockets of people who are basically criminals. I guess it is sort of along the lines of downloading copyrighted music for free: not the worst crime in the world, and so easy and tempting, but at the end of the day I’m much happier with myself if I buy the music legally.

Another thing that is making look at fake vs real bags a little differently is that I am thinking of buying myself a REAL Louis Vuitton Speedy Bag as a 30th (ouch!) birthday present for myself this spring. I had the idea of this bag in my head, and when Pamela sent me her Guest Bag Blog entry about this same bag it only helped to encourage me. I think for a big birthday like your 30th you are allowed, in fact expected, to give yourself some sort of luxurious treat. Plus I am going to start saving for it now so I can pay for the whole thing when I get it instead of putting it on an evil credit card which would make me feel guilty.

Wow, could it be possible, thanks to this bag, to actually be looking forward to the big THREE-OH??

Above photo from boston.com

Via Gothamist, we came across this NYTimes article: A Booming Black Market, all about the Canal Street fake bag market.

Canal Street has a special place in my heart and I love the shop there. I don’t know if it is the thrill of the deal or the crowds or what, but I have been known to hop on the bus from Boston and travel four hours to NYC for the sole reason of walking the length of Canal Street bag-peeping all day long. Too bad Boston’s Chinatown doesn’t have anything that even compares. I guess I just get bored shopping in department stores or online and Canal Street provides a totally different experience. I even can deal with the frustrations such as fighting my way through the crowds or when the police show up and the vendors have to close down for a good 15min while all us shoppers and tourists stand around waiting for them to reopen.

It can be a bit overwhelming and a number of times I never ended up buying anything because I had such senory overload I just needed to get away from the crowds. About a year and a half ago I purchased a LV tote that I do love, but it is a little too skinny to be my everyday bag. I spent a little time on Canal Street most recently this past Memorial Day weekend but the shopping was cut short by a rather impatient boyfriend who was not enjoying the crowded market as much as I was.

Is it unethical to purchase faux handbags? For me, the answer is no, due to the fact that I would never ever pay $1000 for a real bag. So the designers never loose any money on me, because I am not choosing between a real or fake bag; rather I choose between a fake bag or no bag. And on top of that I am quite certain NYC police have more important thigs to worry about.

Update 1/14/07: Comments for this post are now closed.