I’m one for occasionally putting the odd coffee or some petrol on my credit card, but I always ensure I only put things on my credit card – that I would normally put on my debit card.

I’m by no means a money expert (despite working in Finance in Canary Wharf ,I only came out with a C at Maths GCSE!!) , but I know that you should only put things on your credit card that you can afford to pay off – because getting yourself into debt is not cool and can be very stressful.

But I was oh so tempted to go to a new extreme.

I was so close to putting this little beauty straight on mine:

Yep. That’s right. That is a Chanel bag in all it’s glory.

I strolled into Harrods with a friend who wanted to have a look at the make-up section and somehow I found myself in front of the bag of my dreams. This bag is referred to as ‘Boy Chanel Flap Bag with Handle‘ and costs £4,250!

I know. It’s so so expensive and would cost me over 3 pay cheques to buy this – but somehow in the excitement of everything I ended up waltzing the Chanel department with this on my arm.

After a good hour of me caressing the bag and texting my boyfriend to ask if he can get this for a birthday/Christmas/Valentines/anniversary present for the next 3 years – I finally had to tell the sales assistant I can’t have it because I simply can’t justify spending that much money.

I did need a new ‘going-out’ bag and I knew if I can’t have this Chanel one, then I want one of a similar style.

Having spent hours traipsing the shops and online shopping , I found a bag similar – if not slightly more gorgeous.

Please behold ‘Crossbody Bag with Embossed Chain’ – or how I like to refer to it as ‘my new baby’:

This is from Zara and costs £79.99.

I love this bag. From the croc-effect leather, to the chain detail – this bag is utterly beautiful and for over 50 times cheaper than the Chanel – it was a no brainer AND I can actually put this on my debit card!

I purchased this bag – and even though this is a lot of money for me personally to spend on a bag – it was well worth it.

The bag itself is fairly big and fits everything I need – from makeup, hairbrush, purse, keys, mirror, phone and chewing gum. It sits nicely at just on my hip-bone (I’m 5″6).

I’ve had numerous compliments over this bag and a colleague has even purchased one for herself because she loves it so much.

I’d definitely recommend this bag to anyone who fancies treating themselves. It definitely looks high-end rather than high-street.

Let me know your thoughts and if you’ve nearly had a splurge on a credit card!

LouLou-London xox