i mentioned earlier this week that i purchased myself a new grown-up purse for mother’s day last year. prior to this purse, i was using a diaper bag. and had been for more than 7 years! it was a long over-due treat for mommy. when i purchased it, i promised myself i wouldn’t allow any snacks or sippy cups to make their way inside.

famous last words.

in my defense, i’m busy and sometimes when i am out running errands with our daughter, i need my hands free….so one day into the purse i tossed in her sippy cup. some of the milk dribbled inside the bag…

and as a liquid does, is wasn’t just inside the bag. it was also on the outside a bit…

on my wallet…

and on a few other small items inside.

no need to worry. this could easily be cleaned. and i figured my purse in general needed some TLC, so i cleaned and re-organized the entire bag. i love having a fresh start! 🙂

first, i emptied the entire contents of my purse. i am always apt to find something interesting the boys have left inside. this week? a tiny bee (thankfully not real!) and a random piece of plastic they found and decided would make a great sword/hook. boys!….

then i went outside, turned over the purse and shook it vigorously to remove any crumbs or bits of whatever were lurking in the bottom. on occasion, i have even used our handheld vacuum to really get the inside clean.

once emptied and with crumbs/bits were removed, i used mild dish soap to clean the lining of the purse. i have always used dawn for this job. the soap is very mild – mild enough for cleaning those sweet animals after an oil spill. surely that makes it mild enough for the inside of a purse! :-)…

here was the after…no more dried milk! the soap even removed a small black ink mark that had been in there for about a month…

once the inside was clean, i figured i would clean the leather as well. i needed to remove the milk stain, but instead of only spot cleaning i felt the purse in general needed a good overall cleaning. since i made the investment in a nice purse (coach), i think it’s worth buying the cleaner or conditioner they offer you when you make that big purchase. it will definitely make your hard earned purchase last longer. for the leather cleaning i used the cleaner recommended by coach…

just followed the directions by applying a small drop to a soft cloth and working in circular motions to clean. looks so pretty now!…

don’t forget to clean your purse straps! sometimes they are easy to forget – but remember those are likely to be the dirtiest area of your purse. they not only sit on your shoulder and against your body, picking up body oils and dirt. but you also grab those straps with your hands…more dirt, oil, germs, etc….

once the inside and outside was clean, it was time to re-load. here is what the inside of my purse looks like…

i keep a small pad of post-it notes. why post-its and not a small notebook? a couple reasons. when i get home, i just peel off the post-it and add it to my bigger notepad. because i suffer from “mommy add”, sometimes i need to write something down and have it in front of my face. instead of writing a note on my hand/palm, i will write the note on the post-it and stick it to the front dash in the car. so helpful!…

i keep an emergency stash of feminine products. you never know when you or a friend will need something…

mints or gum and an emergency hair clip…

a small make-up bag…

inside i keep hand lotions, lip gloss, and a few other personal items…

my wallet…

and my old banged up sunglass case…

good thing the sunglasses live inside the case, otherwise they would look just as banged up as the case itself. ha!

and finally, here is the bag clean and organized…