I <3 my new Fossil purse
The purse I got back in July has been holding up just fine, but I’m finding I don’t deal well with satchels with open compartments. I tend to toss my purse around, and stuff is constantly falling out of the non-zippered compartments. The magnetic clips can’t keep in all the crap I carry around. Plus, it’s been raining cats and dogs in the Silicon Valley, and I’m finding my stuff is getting wet. I decided it was time to upgrade my bag.
This time around, I decided to try out a “name-brand” bag. No Coach or Louis Vuitton; my cheap-ass wallet can’t handle those prices. I’d decided to go for something more moderate: between $100 and $200. I shopped online to avoid paying sales tax… and I’m too lazy to physically go into a store. Looking at different bags, I found myself drawn to Fossil styles. They look attractive, but not flashy, and they’re very practically designed. I love pockets and compartments, and some of their bags have plenty of them.
Looking around, eBags seems to be the cheapest option, with no tax and (currently) free shipping on $75+ orders. Zappos was another place with free shipping and no tax, but they compensate by being a few bucks more expensive. Both offer free returns, but eBags has a price guarantee in addition to being cheaper. I had my eye on two bags: the Castille Traveler by Fossil and the Stash Bag by Lucky. I decided against the latter one because it looked kinda big for me, but the Fossil one looked kind of small. I ordered two other satchel-type Fossil bags in case the one I liked turned out too small to carry all my stuff.
Picture yoinked from Zappos
I got my bags last week, and I immediately was drawn to my original pick. It was bigger than I had thought, and it managed to fit all my stuff in. One of the other bags my mom liked, so I’m giving it to her, and the other I gotta send back to return. It’s only been a week, but I LOVE my bag. LOVE it. I have been gushing about it to anybody who will listen to me. It’s got so much utility and looks great. A summary:
Pros:
- Front flap pocket for fast and easy access to items
- Cell phone and zip pocket in the main, zipper compartment
- Back wallet compartment thingy with lots of sections and card slots, and this compartment rests against the body so harder for thieves to access or notice
- Fits all my essentials (wallet, keys, phone) and then some (DS or PSP, digital camera, notebook/pen, compact, mini-brush, tissues, chapstick, feminine products, coupons, gift cards, badges… and the list goes on)
- No open compartments so nothing falls out when I toss it around
- Crossbody length strap. Purse straps always slip off my shoulders, and having a crossbody makes it way more secure since it can go around my neck
- Adjustable strap, so can be crossbody, shoulder, or hand carried
- Good size for me, not huge
- Clean, simple, non-flashy look. Another thing about it being crossbody: I love the look of a purse against the hip.
- Made of leather, so supposedly more durable, flexible, natural. Smells like dead cow, mmmmMmmm!
Cons:
- Can barely put anything else in my purse now, because it just fits all my crap. I wish it were a touch bigger, but I’m thinking I’m just going to look for a smaller wallet, now that I can put all my gift cards outside of my wallet.
- Made of leather – it’s already getting scuffs and marks on it, and I’m pretty sure it’ll eventually stain.
- Can’t use my purse hook anymore because the strap is so long. There’s no way I’m going to readjust my strap every time I sit down in a restaurant, especially since the strap is thick leather and is a bitch to adjust. Right now I tie a loose knot in the strap to hang it, but I might add a short strap to the purse just for using with the purse hook.
- No good compartment for holding DS or PSP. It’s in the front flap compartment right now. Because of how stuffed my purse is, I’m getting this rectangular imprint on my flap pocket from my DS. I want to put it in the main compartment, but it’ll get scratched up from all the other junk I put in there. I’m thinking I’ll have to sew a sleeve for it so I can put it in the main pocket and use the flap pocket for easy access to cell phone and keys.
- Zipper usually needs two hands to zip it up, especially if you zip it all the way open
New purse in action!
Before, I would have scoffed at the idea of paying $118 for a purse. Even with my loosening my frugality for my new purse, the price still made me a little antsy. Now, I have zero regrets, because I’m 100% convinced I got my money’s worth. Now I’ve just got to see how long this purse can handle the massive amount of junk I carry around.
New thing I learned today: Sometimes leather is tanned using animal brains, and the process is called brain tanning.
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