It's a bag, it's a pouch, it's a drawstring purse, it's mod as heck, and just a little sad

 When this came into the shop,

1960s mod red vinyl leather pouch purse in brass circle frame

 it was one of those rabbit hole moments. Which is to say a long, long moment. Googling all sorts of variations of

 red vinyl pouch purse drawstring pochette handbag revealed next to nothing. But there was enough to go on. Still, I always like to know as much as possible about an object: its provenance, its era, its popularity. So this was a bit of a mod enigma, a red vinyl mystery.

Then I got this convo from Linda K, a digital artist and etsy shopkeeper who lives on Vancouver Island in British Columbia, Canada.

Oh My Gosh!---I couldn't believe my eyes when I saw this purse today! Back in the late 60's my little sister came home with this exact style purse, only it was grey leather instead of red. And just the other night I as I lay awake in bed I was remembering this purse and thinking to myself, "Boy if you ever were in a situation that you had to protect yourself, this would really hurt to whack someone with because of the metal on the outside!" Can you believe my amazement when I saw it here today?

She added that in 1970, both sisters were in a car accident and the little sister died.  And she apologized for including that fact. But to me it only adds to the story. These objects have moments in people's lives when they shine, become large and significant, and then, often, they disappear. In the odd confluence of selling vintage and the way objects last despite being discarded and changing hands, sometimes they appear again, such as in my shop. Just a random occurrence that brings up a  moment in time, and gives the bag less of a mystery, more of a face.