Our Christmas Presents to our Members....

Hello everybody and I hope you are having a fantastic Christmas!

We haven't been resting on our laurels, or even holly bushes (ouch), this Christmas - no, we have been building our Collection, so have a look at our New Arrivals as soon as they hit the website.

Our fabulous fourteen range from the dinkiest black leather Fendi Baguette to an adorable studded Chloe Saskia. My favourite? Oh, I am so torn. As the world and his wife knows, I am a Fendi-obsessive, certified and I'm sure my heart is made from Zucchino fabric, but right now I'm looking from bag to bag, designer to designer, my heart flipping from one to another. I mean, there's the Guccis too.....

Right, I'm off to wallow in my quandary. (Ah, BLISS!) No, I mean, I'm off to put them on the site.....

Love,
Jo. XX.

Read all about it! Our shiny new Testimonial feature

Ever wondered how well received the Handbag Hire HQ experience is? Read our brand new Testimonials page. Every comment made to us is greatly appreciated. It means a lot when someone takes time out to let us know they have loved our service, our fabulous bags, our Gift Certificates or anything else we do, be it a little bit of help along the way or an earth-moving mammouth task.

To access our Testimonials page, click on About Us and you will see the link.

Please keep the WOWs coming in - so we can continue to share them - and a huge thank you to everyone who has written to us,
Love,
XX Jo.

HOT NEW SPECIAL OFFER COMING NEXT WEEK!!

HERE WE GO....

Christmas is coming and the Trafford's getting fat (well, we all need a little extra to keep us warm this winter if it's going to be as cold as predicted....) so Handbag Hire HQ have come up with an ingenious Christmas present for all your fashionista friends and rellies.

From Tuesday 2nd December, we are offering twice the membership period you pay for when you buy a Gift Certificate from us! So, if you buy someone special a six-month membership Gift Certificate, we will automatically give 12 months - how fabulous is THAT?!

Have a look at our Gift Certificates on the site, but also, please remember we can tailor-make the perfect gift package to suit your requirements, be it a novel Secret Santa present at work or a way to show your thanks and appreciation. We can add a personal note and can deliver the Gift Certificate either directly to the recipient or to yourself for approval/for putting by the tree.

*sigh*

Bye for now and er.... Merry Christmas, though at this stage I feel more like I should be saying "Merry Christmas Shopping!"
Love,
Jo. XX.

Newly converted....

OK, OK, I'm convinced.... after a few days touting the lovely Hoxton I'm admitting I'm crazy about it! I'm thinking about renaming it "The Joe Swash of Handbags" - just like the IAC-GMOOH star himself, I originally thought: seems nice, not really my cup of tea, bit young for me maybe ("maybe??" - who am I kidding?!) but then as time has gone on, both Joe and the Hoxton have really grown on me. Now, I've previously tried a bag out that could be a Nicola McClean, interesting at first, able to cope surprisingly impressively with some tasks, but ultimately a bit, um.... irritating.... so the Burberry Hoxton has proved an absolute delight.

It is sooo roomy, which yes, I appreciate IS obvious given its dimensions, but there is a tendency with these flat bags to actually not be able to fit an awful lot in unless it's paper-thin. The Quilted One is made so beautifully that it can be filled width-ways without it destroying the lovely shape of the bag.

My main concern was that the solid-form strap would be painful on the shoulder if there was any weight in there: totally unfounded, although I have to say I found the bag naturally suited being held in the hand far better than sitting under my arm.

Verdict: very nice, VERY smart and very practical. Take a look at this and the rest of the new arrivals to the Handbag Hire HQ site, you'll love them.

Very very much love,
Jo. XX.

Where does the time go.....?

Now, when I was a child, Christmas used to take AGES to come. Somehow, over the years, my concept of time seems to have changed completely and Christmas is upon me faster than VB on a new shade of Hermes.

So, we are already thinking of Christmas offers and delights for all our Handbag Hire HQ lovely members. Watch this space!!

As for me and my Bag Trials, the Burberry Hoxton has just come back in and I think I might have to test it out for a couple of days.... all in the name of Research and Customer Satisfaction of course. I will be loading the gorgeous quilted one as soon as I sign off from here, so I'll be back soon with my verdict....

Bye for now,

Jo. XX.

Brown Prada for Autumn

Hiya,

This week I have been trotting about, swinging our mid-brown Prada Semitracolla. Now, I have shied away from this one, as I always considered it rather "grown up". It is roomy and it is Prada, but my favourite bits of the bag are the fabulous Prada lining, and the shiny metalware - in particular the knobbly feet on the bottom.

I admit it. This bag needs someone far more chic than me to carry it off. The school run and the mad dash to the nearest convenience store are not the lifestyle the Semitracolla deserves, and at the moment I just can't provide the stylish surroundings it was made to grace. So back to the Collection for something more me.

While I browse, pop a post it note on your fridge to watch or record the Alan Titchmarsh Show at 3.00pm Thursday 23rd on ITV1 and look out for Handbag Hire HQ! We also feature in Country Life this week and so grab a copy and take a peek....

XX Jo.

Yummy new Prada Shopping Slate

This week's trial.....

This week my arm candy of choice has been the lovely Louis Vuitton Speedy 30. Although actually only slightly bigger than the 25, it is a far more useful size and coped with my Bag-a-Tidy and all my usual paraphenalia. A traditional head-turner, the Speedy is one of those styles that will always endure. My only regret is that it's booked on the Waiting List for one of our members very soon, although today we took delivery of our latest acquisition, check out the Prada Shopping in Slate which has become the latest member for handbag hire. Current and gorgeous, I'm tempted to try it out, but I know there's a good chance I'll be swapping all my stuff over into another bag within a few hours - I think it will be really popular with our members. Ah well, will have to do more shopping then....

XX Jo.

I'm BACK!

Hmm, did you even notice I'd gone!? I have been a bit slack on the blog front the last few weeks, because it has been mayhem here. We have done a thorough stock check, so you can be 100% sure the bags showing as available on the site are here just waiting for you to sample them.
We've also been down to London, checking out all the fabulous designer stores, choosing the best bags to purchase for the site. Such a chore.....

New members are joining at a rate of knotts - welcome all of you! The exciting part is - the more members we have the more shopping we can do for new bags! And don't forget, tell your friends about us as each one you recommend and who signs up will earn you a 10% discount off a bag hire.

Finally, I have become something of a Facebook Floozy - it's weirdly addictive and I have to be very disciplined. It's one of those things that just sucks the time away once I'm on it!

Talking of which, I'm just going for a sneaky log on....

XX Jo.

My 15 minutes of fame!

I DID IT! I SURVIVED the airing of my appearance on The Weakest Link! It's still available on BBC iplayer to those in the UK if you want to have a laugh at my expense. It looks like it will be available until September the 16th so feast your eyes..... By the way, the researchers told me it's mostly only ever men who apply and they have a real shortage of young (-ish in my case!) ladies applying. So email the BBC pronto if you want to have a go! It was a laugh and I'm glad I did it. Wish I'd won though, shame I'm just not cleva enuff.

I got a REALLY exciting email today - yours truely has won something! Way back in June I entered a competition and now I am a proud "Winner of the MUMSCLICK Mothers in Business Competition". Yippee, I really am chuffed to bits!

Bye for now, happy hiring,
Love,
Jo. XX.

Win a Lifetime Membership of HHHQ!

Hello World,

Bad news: our fabulous competition in Take a Break magazine has finished today. We had an amazing response, so thank you everyone who entered.

And the good news: That's Life! also has a competition running to win lifetime membership of Handbag Hire HQ, so you've got until 15th September to grab a copy and get your entry to us!

Don't forget to catch The Weakest Link, being aired on Tuesday 9th September at 5.15pm on BBC1. Not sure if I should be telling everyone I'm on it as I was a right dunce, but it was a great experience and a bit of fun.

Ah well.....

XX.

Lookie Here Lookie Here!*

I am so over excited!! Check out five of our most beautiful bags starring in Style In The City - www.channelm.co.uk/lifestyle - watch Jemma do justice to our gorgeous arm candy.
Thought today couldn't get any better and then.... at last I heard from a researcher at the BBC, my (ridiculously-smiley) episode of the Weakest Link will be shown on Tuesday the 9th September at 5.15pm. Look out for me - I'm the one that clearly left my brain at home but was still determined to have a WHALE of a time....

*from Quentin Tarrantino's True Romance, in case it was driving you mad.

Catch us on TV!

Hi World,

See Jemma from Sex In The City on Channel M sampling our delicious wares: catch it on Sky 203 or Virgin Media 878. I've got my Sky+ set, ready to record!

Hope all you hirers are enjoying your El Prado wine. Only a few days left ladies.....

Jo XX.

Plastic Fantastic!

....Members! Hope you LOVE our gorgeous new membership cards. I can't wait for you to receive them in the post over the next few days.

Also, we just sent out our regular Newsletter. If you are not on the list, click on http://www.handbaghirehq.co.uk/ and sign up now! There's a box on the left hand side of our Home Page, halfway down. Just enter your email address and Robert is your papa's brother, as they say.

And I have a new obsession (yes, ANOTHER ONE!). It's on Wedding TV, on Sky channel 277, and is hosted by the gorgeous Lizzie Cundy. Set your Sky+ for Wags' World - experience the life of a WAG vicariously - and so without the sweaty, hairy bloke nicking your moisturiser or running about on a "training session" for 40 minutes and then complaining about having to do a hard day's work....

Take care,
Jo. XXXXX.

Well Travelled Bag Alert!!

Hi World,

One of our lovely members has sent me a couple of pictures, showing the temporary-love-of-her-life, the gorgeous cream Chloe Paddington, on her travels in the US. Not sure how Davina found an invisible horse, but let's face it, you can find ANYTHING in America, can't you? The other photo is of the glamourous Davina getting ready for a wedding in Wyoming.

In fact, Chloe had an incredible month, accompanying Davina on her whirlwind trip, taking in New York, Salt Lake City and Atlanta. And Chloe's adventures didn't stop there, Davina took her NBF to Henley Royal Regatta, sailing on a yacht on the glorious Dorset coast, bowling in East London and even cooing at a star-studded baby shower. Ah, if only our bags could talk.....

Now, this got me wondering, our beautiful bags go on fantastic trips, so please do send in your pictures and tell me all about them. I'm sure it will make fascinating reading and I'd love to see our lovely members modelling our bags in all these exotic locations!
Please send your photos to me at jo@handbaghirehq.co.uk and get ready to be the star of the show!

Bye for now, got to get bags to the PO!
Love,
Jo. XX.

Summer is here - at last.....

Hello Sunshine, you are so welcome!

So, what's new? Well, the large ball of fire in the sky brought out my cheery side and I spent a few days parading about with the larger of our Kipling bags. I tried the little one at first, but when I need a day bag I really need a day bag, so it was just never going to work out between us and I swapped for the bigger citrus after about two hours....

Using the larger one meant that I could continue my trial of the Bagatidy. Things are going pretty well there, although Spider-Man and the two fairies keep putting the light on - hope the novelty will wear off soon. Everyone who rings me actually gets to speak to me now, instead of the answerphone kicking in while I scrabble about in the bottom of my bag. Result!

I'm getting very excited about the El Prado offer starting soon. Remember, if you hire a bag for a month you'll not only get a gorgeous bit of arm candy, but a box of fabulous, fruity wine! Click on the ad on our Home Page for full details.

Handbags, eh? Enough to drive you to drink.....

XX.

Have a look at this....

The Bite feature is on their site! Have a look at www.channel4.com/bite or click on http://www.channel4.com/entertainment/tv/microsites/B/bite/index.jsp - it's the second feature. Enjoy!

Order! Order!

Yes, it's time for me to get my house in order. Well, handbag really, though most of the time I could live in my handbag, let's face it it's got everything in there apart from the kitchen sink anyway....
So, this week I'm trialling a new handbag organiser, before it goes live on our website. It's a really clever idea, it's a strip of tough material with lots of different-sized nooks and crannies and it loops around the perimeter of your bag, leaving the middle area free for large items that you need to grab quickly. Now, I have a Coach wallet, which is pretty big and a bit of a challenge for most bags. It's so heavy it disappears to the bottom and then gets caught on everything as I drag it up from the murky depths. So, imagine if you will, all my little fiddly bits secured around the inner edge of "my" Prada Shopping (this week's passion) and the Coach wallet wallowing in all that space in the middle. Fantastic; easy access. Dangerous for the bank balance, that.
And THEN there's a light, too, so even in the hours of darkness I can find everything I need. Will this newly-revived Virgoan characteristic stay with me? Who knows, but right now I'm very proud of my neat-and-tidy tardis.

Other news from the engine room, here at HHHQ HQ: Our lovely Gucci sunglasses have almost sold out now. We are delighted at the response to the new sunnies section of the site and hope to have more labels coming in very soon.
Also, look out for our competitions in That's Life! and Take a Break. Lifetime memberships up for grabs, so you could never pay your HHHQ subs again and STILL have access to all our glorious bags.

I've done a live radio broadcast this week, talking to Orla at Newstalk, an Irish station. One of our favourite members joined in, too, so between us the poor Orla must have been all bagged out! We were also in the Daily Mail on Monday, so do keep looking out for mentions of us and let me know if you spot one we haven't seen.

Must go and get packing (literally!)
Love,
Jo.

Mulberry Elgin, you are my new favourite....

Fickle? Me? Oh come on....it's hard not to have your head turned when something as lovely as our Mulberry Elgin arrives. I know I was always Fendi Woman, but then that Burberry broadened my horizons and now hark at me, all it took was a whiff of that gorgeous Darwin leather....and then someone threw this little Marc Jacobs Stam into the mix....

Other news here at HHHQ:
Well, it looks like our sunglasses have proved very popular. We will be getting some more soon, so keep an eye out. Both eyes actually.

We've got lots of bits and bobs in the press coming up and an exciting feature on the Channel 4 website, Bite. It's all incredibly exciting. Still no news on when my appearance on the Weakest Link will be aired. Though in a way I think I ought to keep it quiet; I did a lot of grinning inanely and not much answering questions.

Bye for now,
Jo.

SATC and me

Went to see SATC last week, feeling a bit of a fraud because, while I enjoyed the episodes I did watch and they left me thinking of quips etc for a couple of weeks afterwards, I was never an uberfan of Carrie and the girls. BUT I thoroughly enjoyed the movie and of course got a buzz from the references to handbag rental. The LV bag that Carrie bought her St Louise is available on the LV website and I am SO tempted to get it for the website. But we're going big-time shopping very soon so I should save the company pennies.....
We started doing sunglasses this week, it's agony because we've got all these beautiful creatures ready to unpack and I can't touch them - how could we sell them if I've got my foundation all over them? I would select one pair and buy them, but I'm unashamedly fickle. *sigh*

The Burberry and the Lady

Well, that's it, I officially have a new obsession. After years of turning my already retroussez nose up at Burberry check, today we took delivery of the most delightful tote in yes - Burberry check. I take it all back, it's LOVELY! A bit like our LV Hampstead, in that it sits upright, all perky and self-contained. The only thing is I feel myself getting a bit attached to it already and it's going to be a wrench letting our members at it!

It's really ladylike, which is a good job because this week we're featured in The Lady magazine. There's a photo of me surrounded by the Collection. Sometimes this job is such hard work....

Shopping, shopping.....

Yippee, off to buy more lovely bits for the website soon. No details yet, wait and see!!

Hello Handbaggers

Hello World and welcome to my first ever blog. I'm from the fantastic website http://www.handbaghirehq.co.uk/ and the plan is to jot down things that have been going on around here in the glamourous but hectic world of designer handbag hire.

Already this week - and I can't really believe it's only Tuesday! - we've hired 5 bags to the BBC and I've been at Pinewood Studios to record the Weakest Link. I didn't win, but had a go and met some lovely people (too nice to vote off though, made it a bit awkward really!). I took the black patent Fendi B with me for luck and it was much admired.....

Can't wait for the Sex and The City film to come out - one of the main characters hires a designer bag.

My only other news is that our service now extends to all EU countries, have a look at the website for full T&C's.

That's it for now then, will be back when I have new news. I feel a shopping trip coming on so watch out for more new arrivals.....

Bye for now,

Love,

Jo.