Louis Vuitton Zippy Organizer Wallet Cash Envelope System

I began my journey to financial peace in June 2016 right before going on vacation to Barbados with my husband and a group of friends. As I was at the store picking up last minute items for the trip at a store that was going out of business, I ran across the book section and decided I needed a book for the flight and the beach. As fate would have it, I found a Dave Ramsey “The Legacy Journey” book and decided to buy it since it was only $5.00. Let me tell you, it was the best $5 I have ever spent.

From there, I downloaded Dave Ramsey’s “The Total Money Makeover” book from Amazon and learned about Dave’s 7 Baby Steps. Needless to say, it made for a very awkward vacation. While I should have been thinking about having fun and relaxing while away from our children, I was thinking about getting our finances in order and what we could be doing better to prepare for our future and get out of the debt hole that we had dug ourselves into.

When I got back home, I started to practice the methods mentioned in the books. The first thing I did was switch to using cash. Uncle Dave, as I like to call him, tells us that “cash is king”. So, I started making a budget and taking out cash. I watched several YouTube videos about the cash envelope system but many of those were literal envelopes and I knew that system would not work for me, but I needed to make the cash envelope system work if I was going to be successful at managing my money better.  Then, I finally ran across a video of someone who had the cash system in their wallet. I loved the idea and decided to implement the idea into the Michael Kors wallet that I had.

The problem with that was the cash was too thick for the wallet and the change compartment couldn’t handle the weight that was being put on it and all of the zipping, unzipping, and manipulation that comes with dealing in only cash. After going through two Michael Kors wallets in one year, I finally switched to a Louis Vuitton Wallet. I searched and searched for what I thought would be the best wallet for this system, and it was the Louis Vuitton Zippy Organizer wallet.

This wallet has so many compartments and is so big that it holds all of my cash without issue and doesn’t seem bothered in the least by the amount of work I’ve been putting it through with handling the weight of coins in the change compartment, or going in and out of it several times a day to get my cash. There are enough sections within the wallet to keep everything divided appropriately and to make sure that everything I need is right there inside of my wallet.

Now, let’s not beat around this bush. This wallet was expensive. I am on the Dave Ramsey plan. How did I afford it? Was it Dave approved? First, I purchased the wallet preloved from a Facebook group. I stalked the website until I found a wallet that was in great shape and at a great price for the brand. I got a steal. By purchasing the wallet preloved, I saved $402.20, after taxes. I was very happy with the purchase. I justified the purchase based on the fact that if something happens to the wallet, I am always able to take it to the Louis Vuitton store to get it fixed as opposed to Michael Kors – when it breaks, it’s done and you have to buy a new one. Was it Dave approved? Absolutely not. The wallet is considered a luxury item and as such, I shouldn’t be purchasing luxuries until I am in Baby Step 7. however, it is going to take me years before I get there, and I needed a cash system that would work for me now. Additionally, I didn’t purchase this wallet until I had already been on the plan for nearly 1.5 years, had a handle on the Baby Steps, the mechanics of the budget, and most importantly, had saved CASH to purchase the wallet. I bought the wallet in cash, and did not incur any debt with the transaction, so that is Dave approved.

Now, for how I use the wallet to hold all of my money and divide the wallet into “envelopes” for the cash system within the wallet, I have inserted this video. In the video, I walk you through all of the compartments within my wallet, how much I typically put into each “envelope”, and what happens to the money if it is unused in a certain category. You also get to see just how many sections are in the wallet, get an idea of how much change it can hold, and a feel (visual) of the size of the wallet. My hands are pretty small for a woman, but I can still palm the wallet, and after a few days, it felt just as normal as any other wallet I’ve used.

I really love my Louis Vuitton Zippy Organizer wallet cash envelope system, and I hope this inspires you to start one of your own.

Until next time, journey on!