Do you own a tote bag? I have to admit that up until this year, the only tote bags I’d owned were of the canvas variety—prime pieces for carrying groceries or holding dirty workout clothes after yoga.
Whenever I’d gone to buy a handbag, I always skipped over the tote bags, thinking that if I was buying something new, I should invest in a cool, nice handbag, with structure and details. Part of me had a problem shelling out my cash for a simply-constructed leather bag. That being said, I’d been eyeing this one from Madewell for years, but that same little thought kept popping into my head. Why I was so concerned with dropping $170 on a bag I’d carry several times a week was beyond me. I’d easily spent $200 and up on a good pair of shoes.
Why couldn’t I get past it?!
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I don’t really know, but earlier this year, I got my very first tote bag as a gift. I was blown away by it’s versatility, it’s minimalistic ways, it’s flexibility to be anything I needed it to be. I used to love all the compartments, zipper pouches and specially appointed nooks in the handbags I’d bought, but I was really loving how this bag was simply trying to be nothing but a bag.
Finally, after several years, the Madewell Transport tote became mine, and now I’m wondering why I ever hesitated. I’ve only owned for a little over a week, but I’ve carried it more times in that short time span than I’ve worn those $200 shoes this entire year. I also love the monogram on it!
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That might come as a surprise, because I don’t own anything monogrammed. To be honest, I’m not a big fan of monograms, at least not in the traditional sense. The curly, calligraphy monograms that were super popular in high school and college (maybe still now?)—they’re just not my thing, but this cool, modern and understated monogram? I can get on board with that.
The Madewell Chicago store just added a monogramming station in-house, so you can snag your bag and get monogrammed in just a few minutes! If the transport tote isn’t your thing, you can pick from any of their other leather bags to have monogrammed!
It’s only been a couple of weeks since this beauty fell into my lap, but I can tell that we’re going to have a long, prosperous relationship together. And if I’m going to be carrying something this much, doesn’t it make sense to spend a little extra here? I should have passed on the shoes and purchased this bag months ago.
I can guarantee that it’s worth every penny.
Do you own a tote bag? Do you find them to be as versatile and awesome as I do?
BTW, what to wear with white jeans, and what really happens behind the scenes.
