It seems anything from out-of-date sweets to tape measures to nuts and bolts can lay hidden away among the fluff at the bottom.

This week Guardian reporter Michelle Gillies asked three women to empty the contents of their handbags for closer inspection

HANDBAGS come in many different shapes and sizes.

But women rarely leave home without one. For a handbag carries the essential contents of a woman's life - and some intriguing 'just-in-case' extras.

"I've carried a piece of carpet around in my bag for years," said Barbara Reeve. "It's there just in case I see some cushions that I like so I can check they'll go with the carpet before I buy them."

The three-inch square of carpet recently earned Barbara third prize in a Holmes Chapel WI competition to find the strangest item in a handbag.

"Other women found it very amusing but it seems totally rational to me," she said.

"And my plan has worked because I got all my curtain trimmings by matching them to the carpet."

First prize went to Brenda Winward for her collection of nuts and bolts.

Ann Stafford finished runner-up with half a piece of chewing gum.

Jill Mann, 38, of Teal Avenue, Knutsford, uses a black shoulder bag which she has had for nearly four years.

"There's nothing strange in my bag," she said. "Just all my necessities so it won't be very interesting."

But in the first compartment underneath the umbrella, purse, address book and diary - which never gets used -lay a small sewing kit and tape measure.

"They are from my Girl Guide days," she said. "You never know when you might have to stitch something in an emergency so it's best to be prepared."

Among other items, including two purses, one specifically for treats, was her mobile phone.

"I've only used it twice since my husband bought it for me in August," she said. "And it has only rung once. But now I keep it switched off because I wondered what the heck was going on when my bag started ringing."

The mother-of-four has no interest in fashion trends where bags are concerned and only buys a new one when her current bag falls apart.

But changes to her lifestyle have forced her to buy some new bags sooner than she would have liked.

"When my children were babies I had to get a huge bag to fit all their things in as well as my own," she said.

"Nothing could be left at home so bottles, rattles, dummies, nappies and even spare clothes had to be crammed inside a bag."

These days she can get away with a smaller bag because her youngest child, Dexter, is now five while her eldest, Sarah, is 17 with a bag of her own.

But she still carries around a tube of anti-bacterial cream 'for sticky fingers'.

"I keep a secret stash of chocolate for myself," she said. "But I won't allow the kids to eat it so they have to make do with sugar-free treats."

Jill bought her first handbag when she was 16 and would never leave the house without one.

"All the things I carry around in my bag are essentials," she said. "I feel lost if I go out without a bag."

Her sister-in-law, Sarah Brown, 25, is a new mum.

She had never bothered with a handbag, using a small purse instead.

"All I need to carry around is money and cards because I don't wear make-up," she said. But in the past few months times have changed. "I now have a rucksack full of rattles, bottles, nappies, and clothes," she said. "But I always put it under the pram so I don't have to carry it around. And I've still got my little purse as well."

For Gillian Barnes, 46, owner of Knutsford's Bags and Baggage, handbags are the latest fashion trend.

"Most women want to be seen with the latest high fashion bag," she said.

"And they tend to be more daring with the bags they choose compared to clothes because it is easier to away with it."

But on trips to trade fairs in Paris, she has noticed a striking difference between British women and the Europeans.

"The Brits always like to get a bag to match a new pair of shoes," she said.

"So if you love shoes then you'll love bags too, but it's not like that in Europe. They are not bothered about matching accessories."

Gillian has been selling bags for 21 years and says she has developed quite a fetish for them.

"I've got about 10 bags on the go at the moment which isn't a lot really," she said. "I recently had a clear-out and found some appalling ones that I used to use years ago, but they had to go."

She helps customers find a bag to suit their individual needs but faces many difficulites.

"Women come in and say they want a small evening bag, but then they produce a long list of things which have to fit inside it," she said. "Some women seem to take everything with them, including the kitchen sink."