If you buy this bag solely on the pattern and the design, you will not regret it. It is functional, cute, and durable- but for $195 it’s not cheap ($220 for bundle)! I will list the pros and the cons of this bag to help decide, especially because for whatever reason I cannot find as of 8/3/2022 an actual review of this bag…. Even by popflex. Lol. Pros:
1. The bag is very cute and feminine. It has a luxe feel and it is well made, for the most part.
2. It is relatively spacious! You could fit maybe a day or two day trip worth of clothes in it if you were traveling (calling it a “weekender” is a little generous). It would work well if it’s primarily a gym bag for you. It’s a pretty compact bag but it still is pretty functional.
3. It’s flexible: I can fit my laptop, yoga mat, water bottle, shoes, booty bands, and clothes all together in it so I can take it to work and then my on campus gym if I chose to. The metal hardware and the feel of the bag overall is great quality.
And now the cons…
1. First, while the rope straps are very cute they are a little…. sloppy. I hate to say it! To keep the knots in place glue was used. For an almost $200 bag, I shouldn’t be picking off glue strings :( A lot of thought went into the whole bag, and a little more thought should’ve been given there I think.
2. Filling this bag is like playing a game of Tetris. I’m a size 11 womens shoe, and my Nike react infinity running shoes are a TIGHT fit in the shoe compartment. My flat bottom lifting shoes (Vans) do fine and I tend to use those more, so not a dealbreaker for me but the shoe compartment could’ve been a little bigger to be a little more inclusive. Once the Nikes were in I found it frustrating to get the water bottle to stay in place in the straps! I think the water bottle strap shouldve been a little higher maybe. The Vans do okay with the water bottle there too. The water bottle seems to stay more in place if there is something else in the bag, like clothes. I’m speaking from the perspective of having it set on my counter, maybe if you were carrying it gravity would help keep the bottle in place.
3. Speaking of the water bottle…. I got the matching water bottle with the bag. I will say because of the water bottles cap having a upright handle, while the bag can zip over the bottle it is again a tight fit. I’m not sure why they didn’t just make the bag like, an inch or two taller but it’s kinda a confusing design “flaw”.
4. The zipper… okay, so while I love and have followed Cassey for a decade now, wasn’t the biggest fan of the look of the other two bags although I LOVE the functionality they both bring. Sue me, I’m girly and I fell in love with this one. However the main zipper does not seem to open the bag up as wide as the other two seem to (at least from pictures!) A dealbreaker? Not for me, but someone out there might love a much more “open” gym bag. I think overall I’d give this bag a B+ or A-. I gave a 3/5 mostly because I’m disappointed by the glue on the straps- I’ll be sending an email on this and I’ll see what they say because it could be just a dud. I don’t think any of my cons truly is a dealbreaker for me though.
Edit: changed to a 4/5- Popflex was more than helpful about strap concerns!