This eggplant purple Lumured clutch/crossbody was made via Ludwig Kaphan’s patented molded tile process.

By Pam Sander
Storyteller and LaMonaGirl Shops owner

I discovered this vintage Lumured tile clutch / crossbody on a Whatnot auction. The show’s host said it looked like it’d never been used, so I swiped the bid bar quickly.

Whatnot is a relatively new selling platform that’s like eBay in a live streaming YouTube format. Sellers’ shows run from about an hour to three or four — and in one case, a show was on when I went to bed and still going strong the next morning.

I’m regularly on the lookout for Lumured bags because the purses are beautiful — and the company was equally so. Two of the founders, Ed and Ludwig Kaphan, came to America in 1939 to escape Nazi Germany. They arrived with little money but a lot of determination and had their handbag business up and running in New Jersey within several years. By the 1950s, Ludwig had patents that protected their creativity.

When our mailman, Tom, handed me the delivery from Whatnot’s RefindFash show, I was ecstatic to see the return address — Lincroft, NJ, only about 20 or so miles from the old Lumured factories in Perth Amboy and Woodbridge Township.

Their workforce was mostly women whom they treated exceptionally well. For three months every year, the factory would shut down and lay off the workers, according to a Vintage Purse Museum Q&A with Kaphan grandsons in 2022. The layoff approach ensured the women could collect unemployment pay and be home with their kids during summer break. The story from Vintage Purse Museum curator Wendy Dager is a deep-dive look at the history of the company and its families. If you’re interested in learning more, that’s the place to start.

Lumured purses are remarkably inexpensive, given the level of detail Ludwig specifically put into their design, through hundreds of beads, tiles or coils. Ones in decent shape range from about $15-$30. Like-new ones go for as much as $100. The one I currently have for sale was made with mesh and Ludwig’s patented tile frames. It’s $40. No tiles are missing and the Lumured signature on the inner pocket is still intact. Often, that’s the first part to break down.