What's in my bag? — Elise Bramich
About the bag
The Kanken Laptop 15 ($115)
This Kanken is sneakily a bit larger than your standard one and includes that all important laptop pocket for keeping documents unrumpled and providing some expandability (you can def get a pair of pyjamas/a stack of comedy flyers/ a Zoom recorder and mic in there too). This one has served as my One Bag for 10 days in Spain, 2 weeks in Thailand and my everyday work bag for 3 years now. I’ve come to love its cutesy beaten up look — a bit like my own jaded and still earnest demeanour toward my industry.
What's inside the bag
Rubick's Void: I have half memorised how to solve the cube and so it still provides something of a puzzle with a half remembered algorithmic method drifting in my brain. I love something to fiddle with and if my phone dies or I want to let my thoughts drift this is a great way to do it. I think everyone should have a non electronic fidget gadget be that knitting, drawing or a toy like this. Zoning out is great way to solve problems like plot lines in scripts, gags or trying to think in a less linear fashion. Like the whole holding a stone in your hand until you fall asleep thing. This Void version of the cube is lighter than most as it has no middle and can even be carabiner-ed onto the front of a bag.
Tape measure: I am a sucker for a charity shop/thrift store (usually in Edinburgh for the Fringe festival) but given I’m often in a rush running to another show or wearing some sort of complicated dungarees/boiler suit, I love having a tape measure so I can check out whether something might fit or not and then take a punt on it. If it doesn’t fit it’ll get recirculated to another charity shop as soon as possible and hopefully the lifecycle will continue! This one is a strong fibre glass make from China picked up from my local sewing shop.
Heart Shaped Carabiner: Are these not the most universally of useful things? This one slots through my zip handles to provide a mild added level of security when on the tube or on buses, which is good if you always have memory cards and drives full of rushes in there that are IRREPLACABLE. Lightweight, functional and acting as little mementoes of trips, I have a green heart shaped one from Flying Tiger, a mini pink one from a Loqi packable shopping bag and a fun gold key one from Ale Hop.
Muji PP Cream Pot Triple: My makeup routine is a slap it on and go affair and I often have that horrible moment in the toilets before a meeting as I glimpse my face and realise I probably don’t look professional enough. My go-to products in here are Maybelline baby face primer that mattifies in seconds and dries quick which is good because my internal mantra is almost always “Elise, we don’t have time for this”; The Ordinary foundation which does wonders on rosacea and blushes of shame when you can’t remember a comedian's name even when you know you love their tight 5; and Lush shimmer powder which can be used under eye as an illuminator, on the lids as a pretty colour and even on the décolletage to activate Party Mode. I top this pot up every couple of weeks and I’ve never had a spillage yet.
What's in YOUR bag?
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