A MARTÍNEZ, HOST:
OK, Steve, have you ever heard of bag charms?
STEVE INSKEEP, HOST:
Bag charms – yeah, yeah. My – I’ve got kids. They’re all about them, yeah.
MARTÍNEZ: I have one.
INSKEEP: (Laughter).
MARTÍNEZ: I’m not a kid, but I have one, a little flash charm on my backpack – little, like, key chains, you know, for bags.
INSKEEP: OK.
MARTÍNEZ: Yeah.
INSKEEP: OK, you just tag them on there. It’s decorations for the bag or backpack. OK.
MARTÍNEZ: Yeah, and according to fashion magazine Marie Claire, Google searches for bag charms are the highest they’ve been in decades.
INSKEEP: Wow. Over the summer, a shop owner, Libby Rasmussen, hosted a bag charm party and says more than 160 people showed up to decorate tote bags or purses.
LIBBY RASMUSSEN: I had a bunch of, like, vintage key chains kind of, like, paying homage to the key chains that you would make during summer camp.
MARTÍNEZ: Rasmussen owns Libby & My, a colorful home decor store in Washington, D.C. And she says charms can add flare and show off a bit of your personality.
RASMUSSEN: Life is too serious. Like, why not just have some charms on your bag?
MARTÍNEZ: Plus, they’re trendy. According to Vogue, we are in an era of accessorized accessories.
RASMUSSEN: I’m a millennial. I grew up with key chains all over my backpacks. And people are really sentimental – especially Gen Z, especially millennials – for, you know, the ’90s, Y2K fashion, things like that.
INSKEEP: That’s why you’ve got the bag charm, A. You’re trendy.
MARTÍNEZ: I know. I am.
INSKEEP: You’re young.
MARTÍNEZ: (Laughter).
INSKEEP: You’re going for it. So can any small object be made into a bag charm?
MARTÍNEZ: Rasmussen says yep.
RASMUSSEN: I was in the Italian deli a couple of weeks ago, and I saw that they were selling tiny mini cheese graters that are actually used for, like, garlic. And I’m from Wisconsin, and I love cheese. So I was like, why don’t I put this on a key chain?
INSKEEP: (Laughter) Conversation starter and a simple way to add a little color to life.
MARTÍNEZ: And for any age, Steve, even you.
INSKEEP: I guess so.
MARTÍNEZ: (Laughter).
INSKEEP: I can work on that – see if I can get it on my – the messenger bag that I carry everywhere around the world – get a couple of charms.
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