Help me help my wife

[Suprtek]

Ok everyone, this is going to be a long post but I ask your indulgence because this is an issue near and
dear to me. After many years of marriage, and never giving me a moments grief about my interest in
firearms, my wife has expressed interest in the possibility of carrying herself. Obviously, I am very much in
favor of this idea. (I have tried to encourage her in the past, she just wasn't comfortable with the idea.)
However, if she is going to do it, I want her to be able to do it safely and effectively. She likes the feel and
size of the .38 snubby I often carry. She has fired this gun as well as many of my other firearms. The .38
is her favorite. Because of this, I was thinking of getting her one as well, only in the hammerless variety so
it would be less likely to get caught on anything when removing it from her purse. She has also handled some
of the "lady" .38's and liked the smaller grip better so we will likely look for that as well. We have discussed
automatics but she, like myself, is more comfortable with the simplicity of a revolver when it comes to a
self defense situation. We are both satisfied with this choice of weapon although we welcome any input.
The next issue then becomes the method of carry. My wife happens to wear skirts most of the time so I
thought a thigh holster under the skirt would allow for good concealment as well as a treat for me whenever
she is arming or disarming herself. Don't think that's gonna happen. We've pretty much established that
she will normally be carrying her weapon in her purse. I know carrying in a purse is not ideal, but it's better
than not carrying at all. Here's where it gets complicated. My wife likes her purses. She has many of them
and likes to switch them often. Finding enough purses that are already set up for carrying and that will satisfy
her needs would be very difficult as well as expensive. Ideally, we would like to find a method of carry that
would transfer from one purse to another while safely protecting the weapon, providing relatively easy access,
and still provide reasonable concealment if she opens her purse in front of a cashier or bank teller. I'm still
searching online for something but so far without success.Does anyone know of an existing product that
accomplishes all these goals? Or are we just expecting too much? I'm counting on some good ideas from
everybody. Otherwise she's going to expect me to design and make something myself. Thanks for taking the
time to read this far.

 

[Joe Williams]

Maybe a pocket holster velcroed to one of the inside walls of the purse, or in one of the inner side pockets?

 

[rockhopper46038]

Keep working the thigh holster angle.

 

[Earl Sinclair]

Suprtek,

Congratulations to you and your wife on her decision to carry. Regarding your concerns;

1) You didn’t mention her permit. If she doesn’t have it already, she needs to get the paperwork in process. Without a permit, nothing else matters.
2) For carry, revolvers vs. autoloaders is purely personal preference, and shooter comfort is paramount. If she is most comfortable with a revolver, it’s what she should have.
3) As you noted, on-body carry is far more secure than purse carry (purses get stolen – belts and shoulders do not!), but purse carry is better than nothing. Purse size and design is a major factor too, since most ‘normal’ purses have no provision for either supporting the weight of a firearm or for allowing repeatable, discreet access.
4) Several holster manufacturers offer Velcro panels for attaching holsters to the inside of bags, vests, etc. One of these holsters and a couple of yards of “loop” Velcro cut into strips and stitched into your wife’s purses could help solve the problem of portability while giving some consistency and support to the system. For concealment in the situations you described with cashiers and bank tellers, her best bet is to try on-body carry.


Good luck to you both!

 

[1032JBT]

You might try looking at 5.11's website. They offer a variety of holsters with heavy velcro for back up use in their TDU style pants. Only hitch there would be attatching the other half of the velcro inside the pusre. Just a thought.

 

[stilllearning09]

Congratulations to you and your wife on her decision to carry. I would have her read
Cornered Cat - Should I Carry in my Purse? It is an article by Kathy Jackson on purse carry.
You asked for some websites on purses for carry. I've looked at Concealed Carry Purse Store | Concealment Purses, Handbags, Accessories & More and Concealed carry holsters, clothing, purses, CCW holsters & products
I will say in the beginning I thought about purse carry, but after reading the CornedCat article and listening to the many woman on this forum and others, I changed my mind.

Don't forget the sticky from this forum. A lot of good information here. https://www.indianagunowners.com/fo...20-useful_websites_for_female_gun_owners.html
Good luck to you both, and have her sign up on .

 

[AuntieBellum]

If Coach ever decides to make a purse with a holster, I will be first in line.
Your wife may not be inclined to chance her purse switching habit, bit I bet after getting used to carrying for awhile she'd jusr naturally carry the one or two that work best, anyway. Part of the problem is that she'll need new purses, anyway...there's no way she'll be able to add a revolver and holster to her current purses without major purging...unless she's the one woman ever to not carry too much in her purse!

That said, I would not purse carry without a dedicated pocket. Too much to get caught on on the way out.

Could she discretely add a belt to some of her skirts for waistband carry? I would think that's the easiest option.

 

[bmmonts76]

I'm trying to help my fiance figure out how to carry her 38 snub nose as well. We are trying to steer away from having it in her purse for reasons that already seem obvious to everyone here. I saw these at the gun show yesterday. I haven't shown her this video yet to get her input though. Thought you may be interested.

Stoner Concealed Carry Shoulder Holster [S-Shoulder] - $44.95 : Stoner Holsters, The Right Holster for Your Gun

 

[Ironjaw's-wife]

Belly wraps check them out they r pretty neat and from what I hear comfy too. I plan on getting one myself....

 

[Suprtek]

Maybe a pocket holster velcroed to one of the inside walls of the purse, or in one of the inner side pockets?

This is the first thing I thought of as well. Many of her purses do not have a separate pocket available and we definitely want the holster/weapon separated from the rest of the purse contents. I thought maybe some kind of small zipper pouch with the holster attached inside of it and attach the whole thing to the inside wall of the purse with velcro.

You didn’t mention her permit. If she doesn’t have it already, she needs to get the paperwork in process. Without a permit, nothing else matters.

Having her get her permit is actually what led up to this. I was talking to her about getting her permit just because it would make things simpler when I am carrying and maybe leave a firearm in the vehicle she is in. So she doesn't have it yet but we are working on it.

Congratulations to you and your wife on her decision to carry. I would have her read
Cornered Cat - Should I Carry in my Purse? It is an article by Kathy Jackson on purse carry...
Don't forget the sticky from this forum. A lot of good information here. https://www.indianagunowners.com/fo...20-useful_websites_for_female_gun_owners.html
Good luck to you both, and have her sign up on .

I did see those links in the sticky and we are planning on spending a lot of time reading those as well as many other things. I'll ask her about signing up but I have a hard time even getting her to keep less than 100 emails in her inbox. So not sure about that yet.

Part of the problem is that she'll need new purses, anyway...there's no way she'll be able to add a revolver and holster to her current purses without major purging

Actually, she likes to carry larger purses anyway. Yes, there's a lot in there but the size of her purses would accommodate adding a small revolver.

That said, I would not purse carry without a dedicated pocket. Too much to get caught on on the way out.

I agree with this %100!

Could she discretely add a belt to some of her skirts for waistband carry? I would think that's the easiest option.

This could work for some occasional circumstances but not very often. Her purse is the one thing she always has with her and we are trying to come up with something that will be pretty much the same for almost any circumstance.

Thanks to all that are trying to help us. We really appreciate it.

 

[KarBill]

If Coach ever decides to make a purse with a holster, I will be first in line.

You might have to shove me out of the way for that first place position!

Anywho....honestly, it's darn near impossible to conceal carry all of the time for a woman (on her body) simply because of the multiple types of clothing many women wear and various body shapes. In addition, most of the holsters available out there are designed with a man in mind. That's why women generally want to carry in their purse.

Conceal carry purses are just plain ugly and expensive. I also carry very large purses and I have tried to modify a couple of my purses to velcro a holster inside but it didn't work. The lining of the purses was my issue. You would have to stitch all the way through to the outside to make it secure and not flop around. I'm also not in agreement to cutting up my purses just to make it work. The guns I carry are way too big to ever fit in any of the zippered compartments that are in my purses so I didn't even check into that.

You also didn't mention if you have children or grandchildren but this is the main reason I no longer carry in my purse. My youngest son is two and he knows mommy's purse is full of amazing, fun things to look at and play with. I have a bad habit of leaving my purse just laying around so obviously not a safe choice for me.

Belly wraps check them out they r pretty neat and from what I hear comfy too. I plan on getting one myself....

I use a belly band holster and it works well for me (I'm a tshirt and jeans kinda girl). This wouldn't work if your wife wears one piece dresses, tight fitting shirts or keeps her shirts tucked in but it is another option for her to look into. HTH!

 

[Suprtek]

Anywho....honestly, it's darn near impossible to conceal carry all of the time for a woman (on her body) simply because of the multiple types of clothing many women wear and various body shapes. In addition, most of the holsters available out there are designed with a man in mind. That's why women generally want to carry in their purse.

This is exactly the conclusion my wife and I came to! Glad to see we are not alone in that opinion.

You also didn't mention if you have children or grandchildren but this is the main reason I no longer carry in my purse. My youngest son is two and he knows mommy's purse is full of amazing, fun things to look at and play with. I have a bad habit of leaving my purse just laying around so obviously not a safe choice for me.

Our kids are nearly grown now so this wouldn't be much of an issue for us but this is an excellent point. Something to remember whenever we may be around other children. Thank you for pointing it out.

 

[AuntieBellum]

Having her get her permit is actually what led up to this. I was talking to her about getting her permit just because it would make things simpler when I am carrying and maybe leave a firearm in the vehicle she is in. So she doesn't have it yet but we are working on it.

That is exactly how I got started...it's a very quick and slippery slope from there. Soon she'll be begging you to take her shooting and to buy her new guns for holidays.

You might have to shove me out of the way for that first place position!

That sounds like a challenge - we should set up a shoot to see who wins for first in line if ever Coach makes a holster purse. We'll invite all the INGO ladies for a fun day at the range...maybe we can get Coach to sponsor the shoot.

 

[RacineDKringle]

I wear skirts much of the time (but I can only shoot a rifle so far, so concealed carry is far into my future)

But - At the 1500 was looking at some of the conceal options. I don't like any of them, a thigh holster will either have to be cinched so tight my leg will fall off, or it will fall *down* my leg, and purse ones look clumsy. (though my husband pointed out that if someone is trying to rob you, it's 'natural' to go to your purse for money, and shoot him through your handbag...)

I'm thinking that I'd go open carry if I were to carry with a hold out tiny gun in the handbag and maybe a knife or so on me. I'd get a really nice custom leather belt and holster.

I don't have a problem with being noticed or obvious and I'm not in an area where, I think, I would get a lot of hassle for open carrying. (would I? How many other ladies on here open carry?)

 

[Suprtek]

That is exactly how I got started...it's a very quick and slippery slope from there. Soon she'll be begging you to take her shooting and to buy her new guns for holidays.

I'd love to have my wife as a more frequent shooting buddy! It's not that she never does it, just not often. As for buying her guns and related stuff as gifts, I'd like that as well. After 21 years of marriage, sometimes new gift ideas don't come easy. I'm ready to start sliding down that slope!

 

[buffalo-springfield40]

wow..congrats....seems like ya picked a good one...i've been trying to get my wife to get a gun....but so far my Jedi mind tricks are not working on her....although my cat now does the dishes...MMMmm..oh well...good luck with the holster problem..and has far as the slope...slide on my friend..slide on!