Need some recommendations: compact, concealed carry weapon for a petite woman.

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22. If she uses a purse to conceal the weapon she has a larger choice of weapons ...

She just has to find a larger purse than many women use. The purse should have a separate pocket for the firearm. Some purses are actually designed for concealed carry but they are often expensive.

For an inexperienced shooter I would recommend a revolver. Revolvers are simple and reliable. In an emergency you just grab the weapon, point it at the attacker and pull the trigger. No safeties to worry about, no slide to pull back to load it.

Often a used S&W revolver in .38 caliber can be obtained for a very reasonable price. Often people own such weapons for self defense and rarely shoot them. Providing the firearm has had some reasonable maintenance it can be in like new condition. The recoil of a .38 S&W in any size with the exception of the extremely light models can be easily managed by even small women with little experience in shooting. I've watched small women who had some experience with shooting handle .357 magnums and even .44 magnums and enjoy the experience.

As far as holsters and gun purses for women check out this link:

http://www.usgalco.com/Women.asp

An interesting link that I found for concealed carry clothing for women is at:

http://pinterest.com/packingpretty/gun-friendly-fashion/

For some excellent info on many topics that largely deal with concealed carry for women visit this site that I often recommend. This is possibly the best site on the web for women who have any interest in owning or carrying a firearm for self defense and also contains some very valuable info that male shooters can learn from.

http://www.corneredcat.com/Contents/

The Cornered Cat site has an excellent article concerning the best type of firearm suited for a woman:

http://www.corneredcat.com/SemiAuto_or_Revolver/