Blog

Moving from conspicuous to conscious consumption and doing reviews along the way. Find plenty of unsponsored reviews of Quince, Everlane, Grana, and Cuyana on the site! I'm working towards a minimal waste lifestyle, and oh yea I love bags >.<

Old Celine Large Trio Bag Review

I’m writing this review about 13 years too late considering this Celine Trio bag came out in 2011 😂. But I did get some interest from people who are still toying with the idea of getting a Trio bag, so this one is for them!

Loewe Mini Hammock Hobo Bag Review

Thank you to all those who’ve been patiently waiting for this review of the Loewe Mini Hammock bag. As you can see from these photos, I purchased this bag in late Fall and have been using it off and on for about four months now. I used to have the original Loewe Hammock bag (review of it here), but ended up selling it because I didn’t really use it. I think I stopped using it because of the way it aged and the fact that the bag is so open. So how would I compare that to the new Mini Hammock bag?

2024 Loewe and Bottega Veneta New Bags Try-On, plus Hermes in Hawaii

I was lucky to try on some new bags over at Loewe and Bottega Veneta a couple weeks ago and I put a little poll up on Insta asking if you guys would prefer my opinions on Insta stories or on the blog. And I’m pleasantly surprised that you guys said on the blog (I guess you long format people are my people 😂).

How to Spot a Fake: The Row N/S Park Tote [Updated October 2024]

I accidentally bought a fake The Row Park Tote from my go-to eBay seller (who didn’t do me wrong for five straight bag purchases). I actually bought this one for a friend so I was quite bummed when I got it. I knew as soon as I felt it that this was a fake. The leather was rubbery and the handle was too stiff. But since that’s not much to go on, here’s the various ways I knew this was a fake (and it was a really good fake at that too).

Toteme T-Lock Clutch Review

I received this Toteme T-Lock Clutch bag as a Christmas present from the family (but of course I picked it lol). When deciding between the clutch size and the regular size, I decided to go with the clutch since the regular one looked so much larger. But I did want a top handle to hold it with since that’s my favorite way to hold a bag so I added a chain I found on Etsy and it’s the perfect combo.

The Row N/S Park Tote Review: Small, Medium, and Large {Updated February 2025}

For those who’ve been following me on Insta, you know that I’m completely obsessed by The Row’s N/S Park Tote. I first encountered it secondhand in a shop in Ginza, and even though it was quite worn I couldn’t pass it up (I went back the next day for it). Ever since then I’ve been on a hunt for secondhand Park Totes (I got them all from Japan) and have gotten two mediums (one in the pebbled leather and one in smooth), one small, and one large, along with a brand new pebbled medium one from Saks in cognac.

Loewe Small and Mini Puzzle Bag Review: Which Size To Get? {Updated August 2024}

In late July I ordered two Loewe Puzzle bags from Fashionphile, one in the mini size and one in the small. after watching some Youtube videos from Maggy, a fellow handbag enthusiast, rave about it. Plus the Puzzle has been around for so long it’s starting to become a classic. And the news of the classic Puzzle being phased out, motivated me to give them one more chance. And I’m glad I did!

Longchamp Le Pliage XS and Le Pliage XS Cuir Bag Review {Updated May 2024}

Back in August I had a bit of a bag-buying spree that was kicked off by this navy Longchamp Le Pliage XS crossbody bag. While there I also checked out the leather version of the XS bag, called the Le Pliage XS Cuir, but didn’t really want to spend the extra $300+ for the leather upgrade. However when I saw this cuir version secondhand at the RealReal for just $20 more than what I paid for for the nylon one I couldn’t resist. And now I have two Le Pliage XS bags, but I plan to keep both!

Celine Vertical Cabas Review

I’ve been eyeing this Celine small vertical cabas bag for years (like around 5+), but never pulled the trigger because I wasn’t sure I wanted to spend $1300 on a fairly simple bag.

Loewe Review: The Mini Flamenco Clutch Bag {Updated May 2024}

I’ve always admired Loewe’s Flamenco bag, with its soft structure and two knots on the sides, ever since I saw it on another woman. However, I never thought to purchase it myself until I saw it in the Loewe store at Ala Moana (Hawaii) when I was home for the holidays. As soon as I tried on the mini Flamenco, I knew it was the bag for me because it was everything I had wanted the MG Protea bag to be (and if you remember my Mansur Gavriel Protea review, I was horribly disappointed at how flimsy it was). The Loewe Flamenco has none of the flimsiness, and that’s probably due to the thick and luscious leather.

Hermes Review: Silk'In Classic Long Wallet vs. Azap Classique Wallet (and Quince Continental Wallet Review)

Every once in awhile I’ll do something crazy like buy two Hermes wallets at the same time. Well it all started when I was browsing Instagram (isn’t that how many impulsive consumer tendencies begin? Well at least that’s true for me 🤦🏻‍♀️), and I got the notion to have a wallet that’s large enough to fit my usual card case items + my phone. I think it’s something a lot of people do, but I hadn’t really the need until I started working (and switching bags). I like my minimal card case (an oldie but goodie from Everlane), but I wanted something that could fit my phone. And like I’m wont to do, I went straight to Fashionphile to see what they had in stock.

Quince Leather Bags Review {Updated February 2025}

As I did in the Quince fine jewelry review and Quince linen review, I thought I would round up all the Quince bags I’ve purchased in one review. As a bag lady, I’m quite particular about my bags (see my whole bag review section here). And having tried everything from Hermes and Valextra (brand with bags handcrafted by one artisan) to Longchamp and Moop (canvas bags sold on Etsy), I feel like I know what quality bags look and feel like. And I have to say Quince makes great quality, practical leather bags at a really good price point. Most of their bags are made of Italian leathers and some in Florence, a location that is known to produce high quality leather goods. Without further ado, here are the Quince bags I’ve tried thus far.

Hermes Roulis 23 Bag Review

I was 100% influenced to look at this bag by the Korean drama Hometown Cha Cha Cha (pictured below). In it, the main character, who loves bags and clothes moves from the city to a seaside town to open a dental clinic. I loved this romantic comedy with a charming look at rural life in Korea. Plus who doesn’t love a good city girl falling in love with the country boy trope. So when I found this bag at Fashionphile for a good price (quite a bit less than the $8550 retail), I decided to just try it out to see if I liked it. NGL I was fully intending to just check it out and then return it, but unfortunately (fortunately?) I fell in love with it and didn’t want to send it back.

My Purse Collection Ranked in 2022

So back in 2019 I ranked my purse collection from my least favorite to most favorite. Well sometime late last year someone asked what my purse collection ranking looks like now (so thanks for that post idea). Since I’ve purchased quite a few new bags (and sold quite a few too), my list now looks different enough to warrant an update. So without further ado here are my bags ranked from least to most favorite:

Ree Projects Review: Ann Tote Mini Bag

As I mentioned in my February Recap post, I bought this Ree Projects Ann Tote Mini bag from Saks on sale and as an early birthday present to myself. This is my second bag from Ree Projects, a black woman-founded bag brand out of Amsterdam that makes all their bags in Italy with gorgeous Italian leathers.

Hermes Evelyne III 29 PM Review [Updated March 2025 with an Evelyne I review]

Can you believe I bought this Hermes Evelyne III PM (also known as the Evelyne III 29) bag last May when I was in Hawaii. It’s been almost a year and I’ve worn it maybe five times so far. So I guess you can tell from that how much I love this bag (sadly not very much). Ah well let me get into it here:

Unsponsored Polene Review: Beri Bag [Updated March 2025]

As I mentioned in June, this bag purchase was the one that broke the camel’s back so to speak and led me to do a No Buy July challenge. But I have to say I’m glad I bought the Polene Numero Onze bag and that no buy challenge was worth it. Surprisingly this little number has quickly become a favorite when I need an easy hands-free bag.

Valextra Review: The Medium Soft Bucket Bag {Updated November 2024}

So like I mentioned a couple times before (here and here), I bought this Valextra Bucket Bag for myself as a birthday present. I didn’t think I was the big bucket bag kind of person but seeing the resurgence in popularity of the Celine Sangle bag and the fact that I have a toddler now made me want try out a big bucket bag again. Since I had the Sangle before (Celine Sangle review here) and ended up selling it, I knew the Sangle wasn’t for me. I thought about getting it in the smaller size but I didn’t love it. But when I saw this Valextra Bucket bag I knew it was exactly what I’ve been looking for.

Ree Projects Review: The Mini Helene Tote Bag {Updated February 2022}

Ree Projects is an Amsterdam-based, Black female-owned business that produces beautiful bags made in Italy. I first found them on Instagram and fell in love with the unusual shape of this Helene Mini tote bag. After doing a little more research and reading their sustainability manifesto I knew Ree Projects is the kind of intentional brand I wanted to support. So I contacted Desiree directly when I saw that the color I wanted (this caramel one) was out of stock. Lucky for me they had one left in the warehouse at the time and I purchased it directly from her. This was early July of last year (I know this review is looong overdue). Now I see that her bags are more readily available (and a little less than what I paid for due to the Euro-USD conversion at the time). Purseblog even did a full interview with her here in October. Guess I know a noteworthy bag and brand when I see one!

Tips For Successfully Buying a Used Luxury Bag

I’m a pretty seasoned used luxury purse buyer if I do say so myself. I’ve been doing it for over a decade and since a couple of you guys asked for some advice, here are my top tips on buying luxury used:

Fairly Curated