When I travel I know there’s a limited amount of space for bringing home keepsakes. Whatever fits into a suitcase beyond what I brought with me is what I have to work with. Oh, and my oversized purse and a tote bag. And other bags from things I bought at the airport. So there are lots of opportunities to bring home souvenirs and other important items such as chocolate. But I already know that chocolate won’t make it through the plane trip, much less all the way home.
This is about some of the collections I’ve started from souvenirs from different trips. One is an assortment of coin purses from places I’ve visited. They have unique designs or patterns that are meaningful, such as these from France and Portugal. And I keep leftover coins of different currencies in them in anticipation of a future trip.
I collect calendars for the next year when I travel. This year I’ve been enjoying my calendar featuring various châteaux from the Loire Valley from my trip to France, and next year I’ll have several calendars that I bought when I was in Italy this past spring. Sometimes the pictures on the calendars are postcards, which is great because I really like postcards.
Some of my favorite keepsakes are shoes, scarves, and jewelry. I think Venice is one of the best places to get all of these, and I frequently wear my Venetian glass bracelets. So I’ll keep making space in my suitcase to start new travel collections.
Meg Travels 
I like to buy calendars too but I hadn’t thought of coin purses, I think that’s a great idea!
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Thanks – it comes in handy to have an extra coin purse while you travel, and then later it makes a nice keepsake!
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And the good thing about glass bangles is they don’t take up any room at all :)
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You’re right! They’re really easy to pack and I usually end up wearing some of them on the trip home too :)
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I’d probably have them all on! I love the music of bangles :)
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I do too! And I say the more the better :)
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Yeah :)
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I like to buy nice tea towels for myself and to bring back for others. Kitchen towels are something I use everyday (unfortunately!) so its nice to have a little memory to hold in my hands while I’m drying the dishes. In France I look for towels by Le Jacquard Francais, they are so pretty and pack easily in the suitcase, much like your wonderful selections.
Have a wonderful day!
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They sound like wonderful keepsakes that are useful too! And they fold up nicely and won’t break. Great idea :)
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Great ideas. When I was still actively traveling, most of my vacations were to Mexico and the caribbean I’m a tropical kind of girl. I bought silver when in Cancun and to this day I still wear my favorite wide band plain silver ring every day which has garnered many a compliment. And I would buy T shirts for gifts and a few for myself as well. Whatever you buy abroad, it brings back wonderful memories and they are great conversation starters.
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I agree – jewelry and other souvenirs bring back wonderful memories of trips you’ve taken!
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Love your collections – thanks for sharing:) Lately I have been on a magnet and ornament kick. Happy Tuesday!
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It’s so much fun to have collections from your travels! Ornaments are a great idea – I may have to try looking for them too… :)
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Love the coin purses – what a great idea for keeping currency of that country in. I’m a scarf girl too :)
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Thanks – I started buying coin purses to keep the currencies separate, and then I decided to look for them as keepsakes. And I don’t go anywhere that I don’t bring back at least one scarf!
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Me too! I love those little change purses. And the calendars are a great idea, but they would start to take up space wouldn’t they? Worth it though.
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I look for calendars that are the size of postcards or a little bigger. They don’t take up much room in a suitcase and it’s nice to see all the beautiful pictures when you get home!
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Must have been a wonderful trip.
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It was – and it’s nice to remember all the adventures from a trip!
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How wonderful to have so many memories attached to the useful things you bring home! As for chocolate…well, it’s an essential! And even though it doesn’t survive long, the yummy memories sure do! :D
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It’s amazing how things brought home from trips bring back such wonderful memories! I only wish I could make chocolate last longer… :)
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The little coin purses are adorable. A great gift, too, that doesn’t take up much space. And I never would have thought of calendars, but you could relive your trip daily. Great idea!
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Thanks Patti! I’m always trying to think of things to bring home that are easy to pack and are useful too. And they do make nice gifts… :)
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I wouldn’t have thought to collect coin purses — but that is a great idea! The ones you’ve collected are beautiful keepsakes.
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I’m glad you liked the idea! And it’s fun to remember where and when I got each one of them too :)
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What great mementos you bring back from your trips, Meg! I love the idea of the coin purses. I find myself noticing them in gift shops even here at home. I just like them! And calendars are a good idea, too! These are items that pack well, too!
I’ll give you a little sneak peek at a future post topic. I was thinking of you in a shop recently taking photos of chocolates–true story. I got into trouble with the store manager who didn’t like me taking photos! He was nice about it, but…it’s all your fault Meg! LOL!
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That should be a very interesting post! And I’m sorry Debra… :) I have to say that hasn’t happened to me (yet) but it could sometime. I’ll just have to spend more time buying and less time taking pictures!
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I have nominated you for the Blog of the Year 2012 Award. You can see it here: http://wp.me/p23TG1-1PM
BE ENCOURAGED! BE BLESSED!
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Thanks for nominating me for this award Francine – I really appreciate it!
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I can’t make chocolate last either!
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It’s such a difficult thing to do… :)
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I like to bring food back too, especially something I can’t get here. Last time it was champagne from a producer who doesn’t sell in America. Then I shared it with those who didn’t get to accompany me on the trip. So they can’t wait until I set off on another adventure because they like the rewards coming back to them.
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Food is really nice to give as a gift – It’s fun to bring back things back from trips that you can’t get at home!
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Chocolate – that’s a great thing to bring back!
Nancy
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Chocolate is wonderful! I just need to work on not eating it before I get home… :)
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Yeah, there’s that too!
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The coin purses are a great idea, especially if you’ll be returning to that country, you can do so with some change on hand!
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Thanks – it’s really helpful to have an assortment of coins in addition to larger bills when you start a trip!
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I love those cute purses!
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Thanks – I try not to actually use them too much so they’ll stay like new!
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In Prague I decided to start a beer stein collection. Now I have to revisit all of the places I’ve been to get those :)
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Collections are great fun, and it gives you a reason to go back to places you want to see again!
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I concur, Meg! Buying things from around the world just extends our travel pleasure from those destinations and we carry on those memories with us when we use/eat them! The other day Mark and I were walking through town when we suddenly realized: Hat from Switzerland, top from Spain, coat from England, scarf from Italy, bag from Singapore, boots from USA. We were decked out with various items from around the world and didn’t even realize it! :D
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That is a fantastic story! Having all those nice things to wear are the very best souvenirs – and you have great memories too :)
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