What bugs you in a bag? - YouLookFab Forum

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What bugs you in a bag?

ManidipaM

Veteran

Seems many of us can't get behind the buckles on their Cambridge satchels. Too impractical.

My own bugbear is bags with twin main pockets and no obvious front and back... so I never know which pocket is which! I like the simple streamlined symmetry but having had two of these, never again.

Any other bag-bears?

General

31 replies

Latest reply was from kkards

catgirl

Veteran

I have a bag that I adore except that the long strap has an extra leather thing on it that I think is supposed to be extra padding for your shoulder, except that it slips around and ends up down by the bag all the time. I'm thinking of cutting it off.

Sveta

(website)

Veteran

I just passed my hobo bag to my mom because it drove me crazy to find something in it...

Suz

(website)

Veteran

Bag-bears....love it.

Ditto what Sveta said. My bags have to have some structure and that even stands true for the lining and whatever they make the partitions of. I have a Tiganello shopper that I otherwise love, but the lining is a slippery fabric. It makes it sort of collapse inside a bit at times, and this drives me crazy. My Danier bags are made of sterner stuff and I like that.

I also hate a bag without a key fob. I lose my keys no matter what! Argh!! Mr. Suz sensibly tells me I should simply put them on some kind of lanyard. But I always forget to do it.

I dislike bags that have straps you can't carry on your shoulder. I don't want a handbag only and don't like carrying them on my forearm.

I dislike bags covered in a lot of bling, logos, and hardware. Note -- I have nothing against others carrying such bags. I just don't like it for my style.

I dislike bags that only have magnetic closure at the top. Not secure enough.

Hmmm. Are you getting the idea that it might be difficult for me to find bags I DO like? Honestly, it's amazing I own even one.

Sveta

(website)

Veteran

Suz, I always keep my keys in the bag pocket with a zipper - either inside or outside one. I used the key fob once and it broke and I almost lost my keys. Zipper is safer!:-)

Suz

(website)

Veteran

I know...it is the obvious thing to do, isn't it. But sometimes they do not have this zippered compartment. Or I am carrying multiple sets of keys and get mixed up. Mostly it is the latter -- I always have my mother's and brother's keys with me as well.

Liz A.

Veteran

I can't believe your gripe is exactly the same as mine manidipa! I inevitably chose the wrong compartment... I don't care if it's a 50/50 shot.

I also don't do dark linings anymore... Can never find anything in there.

Echo

Veteran

I very much dislike bags whose only straps are either satchel length or cross-body length. If I truly love the bag, I sometimes punch additional holes in the strap to make it more comfortable as a shoulder bag.

And while I am not crazy about truly structured bags, true hobo styles are just too loosey goosey to be convenient for me. They become endless pits in my hands, where nothing can be found.

I also dislike key lanyards attached to the inside of the bag (although my mum loves them). I don't use them, so they are just an additional thing to get tangled for me.

Mo

(website)

Veteran

I need compartments. A place for everything. My everyday bag right now has 2 front compartments, a zipper pocket in back, and an inside zipper pocket in the main center part. That's 5 distinct places for things. Perfect. I can grab whatever I need without even looking. I know which 'pocket' it's in.

Angela K

Veteran

I don't like soft squishy unstructured bags. The kind that simply collapse into a pile when you set them down. arrrgggghh. Total pet peeve. I prefer leather bags with a nice structure (not hard though.) I have a small Aigner leather doctors satchel that I found in a vintage store that I absolutely love! Now if it were only a tad bit larger.....yep, I am super hard to please in a bag. Have to agree with Suz's comment. It's a wonder I own a handbag at all.

Anonymous

Moni, I had a double zipper "organizer" wallet that sent me to fits for the same reason. It was almost exactly the same on each side. Invariably I'd unzip the wrong side first, every time. Finally I just gave it away--that's how frustrated I got.

I don't like bags with one cavernous compartment inside and dark lining. It's like a black hole, which reduces me to rummaging. I hate the picture I must be, pawing frantically through my bag trying to find my keys or cell.

Susie

Veteran

I used to be all about the pockets in a bag but now I use only one, for my phone. I find it's much easier to switch bags, which I like to do frequently, if I only have to grab things from one area rather than from individual pockets.

I agree that slouchy bags can be frustrating. And I also don't like bags that are too heavy. These days I am really liking a clutch.

Suz

(website)

Veteran

Oh, Claire, that made me laugh so hard. I have been that woman so many times!! And that's just what it feels like...frantic pawing. Urgh.

Diana

Veteran

I won't use a bag any more that doesn't have handles that can go over my shoulder. If I have to carry it in my hand or elbow, my elbows start to ache, and crossbody makes my back ache unless it's a very small bag, plus crossbodys always bonk against my hips/butt and drive me nuts.

I also won't use a bag that doesn't have a full zip top closure. Too easy to lose stuff, get my stuff rained on, get pickpocketed, etc.

Oh, and bags that look big but actually can't hold anything. This is particularly true of structured bags with different compartments. What this means for me is that I can't fit my lunch bag in ANY of the compartments. I see I am the opposite of most of you in this regard. I want one big, preferably not-too-structured compartment so my large lumpy items (lunch bag, umbrella, etc) can fit easily. Yes, this means my bag is a bit of a black hole but I can live with that. I've realized I don't actually carry a lot of items, just a few awkwardly shaped ones, LOL, so there's not too much to go through when I need to get something. Much better than playing Tetris to make things fit every time I have to put something in or take it out.

Greyscale

Veteran

Shoulder straps that are just a bit too long for me to reach inside to the bottom!

And I always dig for my keys even though my bag is quite small. I want to find a way to clip them to something.

Laura (rhubarbgirl)

(website)

Veteran

Oh, so many things. I am super picky about bags. They've gotta have a strap that I can put on my shoulder with one hand - some have straps so short that I can't do that, maybe because I'm tall? And some structure to them, although I don't like hard bags that look like luggage. I prefer a north south profile rather than east west, I.e. the longest axis should be up and down the body. For larger totes there has to be a spot for my phone and my wallet, although I am ok with smaller wristlets size bags just having one or two compartments. No built in wallet or card slots, an obvious front and back, and unless its a tote, an adjustable strap so that it can be converted to cross body. No key fobs or dangling bits that can't be removed. And, not too heavy - some bags weigh a ton before you put anything in them!

Beth Ann

Veteran

I need a bag that I can sling over my shoulder with only one hand, rather than lifting it onto the shoulder with the opposite hand. I prefer a cross body option, too, particularly for shopping. Today, I carried a tote while shopping, since I couldn't leave my computer in the car at 6 degrees Fahrenheit! I couldn't get the jeans out of the stacks at Old Navy with a heavy bag draped over my forearm. So awkward!

I also like a good sized bag -- both for stuff and for scale on my body.

And I adore that Cambridge Satchel in Red --- and in Doctor Who's Clara, but I took it off my list when I realized I'd have to buckle it. Not happening!

Oh, and I don't like real bugs, as in insects, in my bags, nor do I care for bears rummaging through them like Claire rummages through hers.

Neel

Veteran

My nine west bag drove me super crazy. It was a snap closure (but there was a flap on one side that went over the two sides and then snapped). It invariably opened up without me even noticing, with one of the sides hanging wide open. Imagine flashing tampons and baby diapers to everyone during a party! Argh how I hated it. I am never buying anything similar again!

ManidipaM

Veteran

Heh, I thought I was getting old and persnickety about bags behaving in highly specialised ways! :-p Apparently I was just heading for PPP. Some of you named pet peeves I hadn't articulated though I have them.

I hate black holes too. But I have Diana's problem as well. Big awkward shapes. But hey, also little ones, like multiple keys and lip things and eye sticks and screwdriver and measuring tape and vouchers and lotsa pens and a pencil and so sharpener and 3 pocket-sized notebooks and once hair accessories and three kinds of feminine products... um.

So. Solution: TWO large zippered compartments at least (see how I fell into that bear trap?). So when i open. Flexible but sturdy, not slinky, partitions. And smaller pouches that cluster the little stuff.

I hate those open phone pouches. I like chunky phones and softer bags. So they squirm out of the pouch and end up in the bottom of the bag.

Shoulder straps a must. Agreed. Never again a hand-held only.

Like Laura, height over breadth is best for me. Or I club people and get stuck in crowds. But am petite (so Greyscale's peeve and Diana's on the hipbanging... um.ugh.) and also need some balancing heft!

Has no one set up a bag-customizing service or customized search engine? They would make a killing.

lyn*

(website)

Veteran

I want bags that DO NOT have a full zip top closure - no one wants to pickpocket my stuff, and I haven't dropped anything out of it; but "rapid draw" at work has saved my butt so many times. I have given away most of my "full zip top" bags.

ManidipaM

Veteran

Una, that sounded oddly familiar yet my bags don't have one. Huh? Ah yes, the durn diaper bag has it. Ugh. Also the stupid magnetic flap that won't stay closed no matter how skeekly it is packed, a la Neel. SO chose it and I seriously regret letting him. Argument was it must suit him too. Well, more often he has the baby and I have the bag plus my own. Plus SO's keyses and wallets and card cases and phones Yes. TWO *each* for him. He won't carry a bag except to work.

Which reminds me. I need at least two zippered inner pockets for keys, phones, business cards, compass, bag hook, migraine meds...

MRL

Veteran

I have a very cute and unique hobo bag that I carried for a few years, but it was so unstructured that it was very hard to find anything. I was always digging for my wallet, glasses case, lipstick , etc. Also it did not have an outside pocket my phone.

Anonymous

Small opening with a big compartment. I have a bag that I adore, perfect balance between soft and structure. EXCEPT, I cannot get things in and out of it I specifically bought the bag to carry! Ugh. I still use it but it is not the work horse I thought it would be. O, and bags that I cannot sling on my shoulder with one arm. I don't want to have to thread my arm through the strap to get the bag on my shoulder.

elpgal

Veteran

Bags that are too heavy and not wide enough. I take my lunch in a box that I want to store flat because it has goopy stuff in it. My water bottle is tall. I need a bag that can accommodate both items well.

Hil

(website)

Veteran

I must have shoulder straps that stay on my shoulder. I hate bags that slip down onto my arm. Cross body is even better. I don't really like gazillions of pockets, as functional as they may be for others. I prefer to keep my little items in little containers... And I must have sufficient space. I have a Guess bag with a zipper so harsh that it scratches me each time I place my bag inside.

You know what would be awesome in a bag? A light, like a fridge light - that switches on each time I open the bag.

ManidipaM

Veteran

Or you know like a LED nightlight... hmm. Hear you, Hil!

And oh yes, elpgal, that's another pet peeve. Silly widths. I have child size in hands. Several sling and evening bags won't let me put the whole hand in. Apparently one must only finger one's possessions in there. Oy!

Anonymous

9 times out of 10, the straps are too long. It takes a lot of shopping around to find one with a strap that's the perfect length.

Janet

(website)

Veteran

I had a bag some years ago that had a little light in it! Franco Sarto made it -- I wonder why we never see those anymore.

I am a big fan of bags that are wider than they are tall -- for me, tall bags are too easy to lose stuff in. Everything just sinks to the bottom, and I have to fish for what I need in the depths of the bag.

I don't like big unwieldy flaps -- I prefer a simple magnetic close, a toggle, or a zipper. Small flaps, like on my red Marc Jacobs bag, are fine. No closures that take more than a second to undo -- no buckles.

These days I want simpler styles. A little hardware or texture, but nothing overdone.

No to bags that have small openings. Deal-breaker right there. No logo-splashed designs.

I don't want a bag that's too soft or too hard. Nothing too stiff or so slouchy that it puddles into a heap if I sit it down.

No to many small pockets and compartments. I'd rather have one or two that I can fit several things in. I don't carry that much these days anyway.

I think all bags should have light linings to make it easy to see what's inside.

Ally

I have a problem with straps too. They're either too long or too short so I tend to go for the adjustable ones. I like long strapped cross body bags the best and clutch types for when I'm out (although the clutching kind of annoys me!)

Lisa

Veteran

I don't care for bags with a flip top strap over the zipper. I just want to open the bag, not fiddle with an extra piece to get to the zipper. I also stay away from bags with no inside pockets. I don't need a lot, but at least one for the cell phone please. And I don't care for bags that deflate when they are empty. I like a little more structure to a bag.

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