A handbag that accompanied Queen Elizabeth for more than half a century… What is her story?

The late Queen Elizabeth II was known for her monochrome looks, which she always coordinated with hats, gloves, pearl necklaces, and diamond brooches. The only accessory that has accompanied her for more than 50 years without any modification is her handbag, which she always chooses from the same brand.

What is remarkable about the appearances of the late Queen Elizabeth II of Britain is that she relied a lot on bright colors, and that she remained faithful for more than half a century to the same bag that the British house Launer designed for her.
In 2019 during a visit to the Science Museum in London

In the past five decades, this house has designed for her more than 200 bags that vary between six different styles. But the Traviata style has always been her favourite, and is handcrafted from soft calf leather with a goatskin lining. The price of a bag belonging to this style is about 2,400 dollars.

– long story:
The story of the loyalty between Queen Elizabeth and Launer bags began at the end of the 1960s. She has always preferred black bags, which she rarely replaces with a white or cream bag. In 1968, the house was asked to present the Queen with a design for a bag that only she would wear. Since then, the Queen receives about 5 new bags from the brand every year, specially designed to suit her sizes.

She always preferred classic designs with a handle that was a little longer than usual, rather than a bag devoid of any zippers or shoulder straps. The Queen always requested that the bag have a larger than usual pocket in the back, as well as an inner coin pocket and a small mirror.

The history of the relationship between the House of Launer and the British royal family dates back to the fifties of the last century, when the mother of Queen Elizabeth bought a bag bearing the signature of this house, which was founded in 1940 by Sam Launer, who came with his family from Czechoslovakia to Britain to escape the war. Today, the house produces about 150 bags annually, each of which is made by a promising craftsman, and the work on each bag takes about 8 hours. It is noteworthy that the work team in the workshop is composed entirely of women.

Queen Elizabeth’s biographers reveal that her bag always contained lipstick, a taboo embroidered with her name, a pair of glasses, mint candies and a small piece of chocolate, as well as a pen and a crossword puzzle.

It is also said that the queen was using her handbag to send secret signals to her companions, as she was moving her bag from her left arm to the right while she was talking to someone to indicate her desire to end the conversation quickly, but when she was putting her bag on the ground, it means that she needs to save her from facing uncomfortable as soon as possible.

And when she puts her bag on the dinner table, it means she wants to leave in the next five minutes.