It's officially February! This is my birthday month and I made my first purchase since my shopping ban. I went to Anthropologie over the weekend and purchased my first Varley item. Anyhow, today's post is actually a December purchase that I'm finally getting around to review. Did I end up keeping this purchase? Let's find out!
For reference I'm 4 feet 11 inches tall. Please check out my video to see what fits.
Strathberry has been all over my Instagram feed and I finally gave in to see what it was all about. Since Strathberry is in the similar price range as Coach and Polène and I wanted to see how they stacked up against each other in terms of quality and design.
I went with the Osette bag because of its versatility. It can be worn as a crossbody bag or as a handheld bucket bag. The cashmere and shearling caught my eye. It's rare to see a bag made of cashmere and the shearling version just seemed like a fun bag to possibly add to my collection.
(on sale 25% off)
The teddy bear look is really cute. And yes, it does shed, which is a drawback for sure, especially if you like to wear black clothing.
How cute are these two? 😍
While I was taking these photos, I noticed that the musical bar are different lengths. I thought this was very strange as both bags are the same size, just different material. The musical bar on the shearling is much shorter in length than the one on the cashmere bag. Is this mistake? I think it might be. I do think the longer bar looks better. It's more proportional to the bag size. That said, the leather drawstring closure is a bit too thick. In my opinion I think it would look more flattering if the leather was thinner, for a more elegant look but I understand from a practical point a thicker piece would be more durable as it's used to open and close the bag.
The cashmere is soft. I really do love the cashmere and how luxurious it feels. I love the mushroom color. It is a beautiful taupe and a perfect neutral. The handle feels nice and comfortable to hold.
The hardware does feel a little cheap to me, mainly because it's so lightweight. It barely weighs anything, which is great because this means the bag is also very lightweight. I'm just not sure how durable it would be in the long run.
The inside of the bag is lined in black microfiber. It feels suede-like, but not as soft. The bottom of the bag has feet.
Here are some close ups of the shearling version of the Osette bag.
(on sale 25% off)
The back view.
Side view.
Bottom of the bag has no feet.
In the end, I decided to return both bags. 😬 While I did like the cashmere a lot more than the shearling, I think the price point is too high. The cashmere retails for $525 and I know you don't see a lot of bags made of cashmere, but for $25 more, you can get the Coach Western Tabby bag and it's made of full grain leather with suede lining. I find that to be way more luxurious. Plus, I know Coach's quality is amazing. I'm not convinced Strathberry is of the same caliber. I returned the shearling because of the very possible mistake of the wrong musical bar and because it also sheds. Even though it was on sale, I didn't think it was worth the price. What do you think of Strathberry bags, do you own one? I would love to know your experience with it. That's it for me! Hope you all have a wonderful start to a brand new month and week. 😍
Shop:
(on sale.)
Both are cute picks and interesting choice of materials. I can kind of understand why both were returned for different reasons. I actually don’t have any bags from this brand and curious to see what else they have on offer. I am kind of off bags lately which is probably great for my wallet anyway 😆
ReplyDeleteHi AC! They do have more structured bags that would be great for the office, and ones made of leather. They didn't quite appeal to me though. Bags are definitely my biggest weakness. I'm always looking to discover new bags. I have my eye on a couple of others I would love to review. Songmont, Mulberry, and Coach at the moment. But yes, your wallet is way happier than mine!
DeleteThe shearling looks like a cheap knockoff compared to the other bag, with that shorter bar! lol
ReplyDeleteRight?!! SMH. Inconsistency is never a good look.
Delete