For those who follow me on Instagram, you know I’ve been a fan of this medium Song bag from Songmont since the day I got it. I teased it, then did a Reel on it, and then posted about the Songmont price increase, but have yet to do a full review of it here. So I apologize for the delay but better late than never I guess?
First off, I was a bit iffy about this bag because so many influencers were gifted things from Songmont. I know it’s a bit weird (and ironic since I’m a fellow influencer), but when I see a lot of influencers loving and promoting a free bag, it makes me want to get the bag less. Do they love it because they got it for free? And am I indirectly paying for their free bag (ie the brand’s marketing budget) when I buy a bag at full retail? But in the end I think it was an influencer who got a free Songmong bag that eventually convinced me to try out the Song bag. So I guess the marketing worked despite my mistrust 😂.
Crossbody at the shortest setting
Now I already have the Hermes Picotin 18 and 22, so you would think I don’t need the Song bag, which can be seen as a dupe for the Hermes Picotin bags. However I really love and use my Picotin 22 (it’s one of my most used Hermes bag), so I knew I would probably use the medium Song bag a lot as well. I love a good bucket bag.
But I have to say that in terms of design, the Song bag is better than the Picotin. I love that the Song bag already comes with a long crossbody strap (I purchased the equivalent for both my Picotins via Etsy). Thus it’s easy to wear the Song bag across the body, over the shoulder, or by hand.
The Song bag also comes with a removable pouch. This is a newer design change to their Song bag. Before, they used to have a stiff flat pouch that would snap to the side of their bag, but I think it didn’t function very well (or at least it didn’t look like it in the couple of Youtube videos I saw). I appreciate that Songmont is taking the feedback from their customers to make better products. It was also quite clever to have the current pouch attach to the bag with the same sliding hardware that can be used to close the bag. So the pouch can stay in place and act as a divider. I prefer to keep my pouch unattached to the bag so that the hardware can be used to make the bag extra secure. There’s also a magnetic closure that closes it the other way, thus making the opening super small and secure. The Picotin, in comparison, is much less secure. As for the included pouch, I love it so much that I now use it in my other bags as well.
I think the medium Song bag is the perfect size. In comparison to my Picotins, it sits right in between the Picotin 18 and the Picotin 22. I think the base of the Song bag measures around 19cm. But because the Song bag is made of stiffer leather than the Hermes Picotin, the Song bag feels bigger than my Picotin 22. The medium Song comfortably hold a mini iPad and a regular bottle of water (it will stand up and peek over the top of the bag though). You can see a video of what fits in the Songmont Song bag here.
Songmont vs The Row
And lastly about the leather. So of course Songmont won’t use Hermes-quality leather. But their leather is still quite good. The look and feel is very similar to the pebbled leather of my Park Tote from The Row. It’s not the same, but quite close. However, I do have to note that the leather of the Song bag has a faint smell of leather cleaner to it. It reminds me of the leather cleaner I used to use on my Balenciaga motorcycle bag in the early 2000s so for me, I get whiffs of nostalgia. And in no way does it smell plasticky like cheap cheap leather. But if you’re super sensitive to smells then this might not work for you.
I think Songmont chose the right leather for this type of bucket bag purse though. When I compare it to the Clemence that Hermes uses for the Picotin, the Clemence leather is too soft and is often lumpy and bulges out near the base from where the weight of the leather causes it to sag (mine is less so because I keep an organizer in there at all times, but here’s an example). The stiffer leather of the Song bag will wear better over time for sure, and its design reinforces the structure of the bag.
Bucket bag group shot
So is the Song bag worth it? I 100% think so, even at it’s post-tariff price point of $429 [P.S. I decided to change the order of my posts around so that I can try to publish this pre-price increase, but if you’re reading this after May 1st it will now be at its new price]. I got it for $349 ($388 original price with 10% off with the code WELCOME10) and so it was definitely worth it to me. This is a well-designed bag that uses good leather, and it comes in a wide variety of colors. I think it’s better designed than the Hermes Picotin and definitely more worth it. I might not have purchased the Picotin (especially the 22 in Clemence leather) if I had gotten the Song bag first.