Bags4Bubbles

My review is on the Maggie Bags Medium Tote style in Black! (I believe the color was originally identified as possibly navy, but when I got it against my black pants it matched perfectly... so we're going to call it black in my blog. )

Check out more Maggie Bags styles here:
Maggie Bags™ - Handbags made from Recycled Seatbelt Material

The Medium Tote measures 8.5 inches high by 12.5 inches width by 5 inches depth. It's a great every day size and the considerable 12.5 inch shoulder drop assures that it will easily fit on all shoulders comfortably.

The bag is fairly heavy duty and seems like it would be durable against substantial use... and if I recall correctly - should not be too bad for jobs like rainy days too! (I recall more then one time accidently spilling a drop of diet coke on my gray colored seatbelts in my car... and the spill always wiped away quickly without leaving behind any mess. I would imagine these bags would work the same way in the cleaning and getting wet department.)

Honestly, I don't even really feel like you "can tell" it's made out of seatbelt material right away... it has a symmetrical, nice pattern with the lines criss-crossing over each other - that made me really drawn into the overall appearance of the bag first... and then secondarily realized "oh yeah! those are strap pieces that I can side my hand behind". (Which by the way are constructed well, there was no gaps or back lining showing.) It does look like a cohesive, thoughtful design in real life too. Even better then the online pictures depict, in my opinion.





Initial Impressions:
The first thing I noticed when I opened my Maggie Bag package was that the bag was very substantial! The lining is ADORABLE... I'm a sucker for pink & purple, and the lining was well constucted - pretty & durable lining always gets extra points in my book! The purple toned lining goes well with my purple accessories too!



Upon further investigation, I really appreciated the superior attention to detail on how the bag was put together. The little details really get to me when they're off just a bit - but this bag had patterns that lined up on the sides, had flawless constuction around the top edges that would get alot of use, and the zipper is really substantial too.

The four feet on the bottom are a nice touch, and this bag easily stands upright on it's own. (Which is a plus!)



Overall Impressions:
This is a great bag! Normally I'm attracted to leather bags, but this is totally a bag that I would consider not only using as a summer activity bag or rainy day bag - but definitely as something to use when I'm wanting a "funky" or "different" vibe.

As a side note, DH saw it tonight and gave it his seal of approval too - and he's a tough cookie to please with bags! He thought it was super cute and that the idea of being made out of recycled seatbelts was smart! (And slightly ironic because of where we live!)

All in all, after using this bag - I would definitely consider purchasing other styles of this bag, either a larger tote style that would be great for magazines & travel carry-ons, or a small demi style bag - for Spring & Summer outtings... I would love either of those sizes to be in a fun, girlie color too! (Pink, Purple, or Aqua!) The Medium size is a great "every day" size and comfortably held my wallet, keys, cell, makeup case, card case, and sunglasses case. I think for the future I would try either the smaller size or the larger size tote... because the medium has "just enough" room for the essentials that I normally carry... minus a few items that get thrown in from time to time. (Agenda, checkbooks, etc.) So for any additional items, I would need a larger size... I had the Medium size about full with the items as shown.

(LV Sarah Wallet - a fairly large sized wallet that measures 7.5" x 4", Coach sunglasses case, Juicy card case, cell phone, keys, and Belen Echandia Angel purse used as makeup bag)







The Medium sized tote has two long handles that easily fit on the shoulder. They have a 12.5 inch strap drop. At first glance and after first trying it on... my thought was "these shoulder straps are way too long". I felt like I wanted to have the bag higher up against my body. As I wore the bag around more and more, I got used to the length and it was quite easy to get in & out of... so I think for people that are wanting an easily accessible shoulder bag, this medium size would be a great option.

Get the larger size if...
- You carry more then I've pictured above.
- You want to carry any type of reading material like magazines or paperback books.
- You have a large sized agenda or larger wallet then the one I'm using currently. (Which probably isn't likely. LOL...)



What I would like to see on the Medium Tote style additionally:

- An efficient place specifically for keys. I put my keys in the zippered pocket, but when possible, it is nice to have a dedicated area that can always be used for keys. (And not need to get taken over by lady products part of the time...) My idea was on the open side of the zipper, it would be nice to have about a 3 inch thin piece of material with a lobster claw on it that you could place your keys on... that way they could hang outside of the bag if you wanted super quick access, or always be hanging on the left side of the bag ready for you to unclip them and go. The downside of my suggestion? Sometimes putting your keys on a clip can be cumbersome and add time when you're clipping them on & off... but it would be a nice added feature to the bag.

- More girlie colors! After seeing and using this bag... I would love to see pinks and purples! I think these bags would look great with bright colors, as well as deeper colors like maroon/wine and eggplant!

So to summarize...

My first experience with Maggie Bags has been a really positive one! I took a step away from my normal bag routine (leather bags) and this option has proved to be versatile enough to meet my (demanding) bag needs. I'm hoping to see girlie colors in the future and agree with Cindy's previous review... such a great environmently friendly fashion statement! And a fashionable DO!

Wearing the Medium Sized Maggie Bag Tote!