Life is full of lessons for us to learn and grow, whether we like it or not. Even when shopping, buying bags, I made mistakes or bad judgment calls. That's exactly how I feel about this tote from Salvatore Ferragamo. I loved the bag when I first saw it! The blue was gorgeous, and I loved how they blend textile and leather in their design.

At first, I thought I got it at a reasonable price. When a bag made in Italy is on sale, you simply have to get it right? At least that's what I told myself. When I first glanced at it, I believed the bag was well made. The zippers were metal and not plastic. The tote has both internal and external zipped pockets. Additionally, the bag came with a crossbody strap, a feature that I love and always looked for when buying.

However, after using the tote a few times, I noticed design flaws with the bag. First of all, there's a leather trim at the opening of the tote. The D-ring for the crossbody strap was sewed into that leather trim. It wouldn't be a problem if the leather trim was fully attached to the tote's body. Unfortunately, the leather trim is only connected to the rim of the bag opening. When I used the crossbody strap, the leather trim would pull away from the fabric. The D-ring attachment is not going to last if I use the crossbody feature frequently. Then I thought I would use it as a regular tote as the leather handles were nicely done and very comfortable to hold.

When I thought I was OK with my compromise, I discovered the corner wear at the bottom of the bag after using it a few times. Canvas material often wears out quicker at the folds and corners. The fabric would turn unsightly white if it brushed against stuff regularly. Corner wear is inevitable, but it shouldn’t happen so fast, it isn't very reassuring about their quality!

Even with all the flaws I found, I do like the tote quite a bit. The body of the bag is slightly slouchy and comfortable to hold. As long as I am not packing it full of heavy stuff, I am sure the bag will still be functional for a long time. When I first started to buy bags, my eyes lit up when I saw companies that provide a lifetime warranty. Though, some companies didn't last long enough to cover that warranty. Now it sounds more like a marketing gimmick to me. I am careful with my belongings. Even a cheaper bag took years to break down. Unless I plan to use the same bag every day, I don't think I need to worry about broken bags.

In the end, I did learn more about picking bags from this experience. Salvatore Ferragamo is not the only company that made that design mistake. In the future, I will pay more attention to where they attach the D-ring and evaluate if corner wear would happen fast with a particular design.