The Purse Diaries

Tiffany Scott, 26, New York

Job: Attorney
Salary: $160,000
Purchase you'll never admit the true price of: My beauty products. I'm a complete sucker for the benefits the packaging promises.
Do you make more than your man? Yes, currently. He loves being taken out, so my salary doesn't bother him at all.
Debt? Law-school loans. About $100,000.
Most you've spent on jeans: Over $200, but it nearly killed me.

Shang Chen, 23, Boston

Aminah Bhatti, 25, Chicago

Job: Nonprofit project manager
Salary: $35,000
Purchase you'll never admit the true price of: An all-season suit.
How you really spent your stimulus check: Car repairs, $593.
Debt? $600 in credit cards, $64,000 in grad-school loans.
Most you've spent on jeans: So far, $65. If money were no object, I still couldn't justify more than $150. I can't believe I just said that. $150?!

Lydia A. Jenkins, 38, San Francisco

Job: Software consultant
Salary: $95 - $125/hour
Purchase you'll never admit the true price of: My Bottega Veneta bag.
Must-have splurge? Biweekly mani-pedis. I will hustle up cash to pay for those.
Do you make more than your man? I've always made more than my boyfriends, but I've never discussed actual income or allowed them to see my paychecks.
Most you've spent on jeans: $175 on a pair of 7's I haven't worn yet.

Amanda B., 28, Humble, TX

Job: High-school English teacher
Salary: $42,500
Purchase you'll never admit the true price of: My monthly grocery bill. I spend way too much "trying out" new foods that I never eat.
How you really spent your stimulus check: On a laptop - it's hard at work gathering dust on my dining-room table.
Most expensive recent purchase: LASIK! It cost $3400. One of the best decisions I have ever made, besides college.
Most you've spent on jeans: No more than $100.