(I know this is a weird time and for some of you, reading about fashion is frivolous. And I totally understand that. For me personally, writing and reading about fashion is keeping me sane, distracted, occupied and most importantly, away from real news. If these posts are not for you, I totally understand and hope you are taking care of your health in every way. If these posts are for you and manage to distract you from the dire news, my job here is done. Thank you for reading or not reading either way. Just take care of yourselves.)
This Sophie Hulme Albion bag was one of the few I bought after splurging on my Chanel Boy Bag. Thats a high standard to live upto so lets discuss in detail – what is good, what is bad, what is great and whats the final verdict?
Why Sophie Hulme?
Sophie Hulme was not a designer I knew a lot about or had a great amount of interest in to be honest. I had seen the Albion bags and liked the formal look and the shape which was different from the normal office totes everyone else was carrying. I then heard sadly, due to health issues the designer was closing up her business. I thought that getting myself one of these bags was a good way to get a piece of British fashion history!
The Buying Experience
Now my buying experience was probably not the normal Sophie Hulme shopping experience. I bought this bag at a sample sale after standing in line for 20 minutes. The sample sale took place in a basement / garage / warehouse. I knew exactly what I wanted to get and just got in, zoomed in on the exact bag I wanted and picked it up. (This is always the strategy to follow in sample sales).
Design and Style
There are a number of sizes and shapes in this particular design. I ended up with this size and shape because this is probably the biggest one available which is somewhat practical. Anything smaller than this would not really be useful as a office bag. Although there are ones which are bigger, for someone my size who is barely 5 feet tall, anything bigger than this is probably not a good idea either. It would just overwhelm me.
Now the bag looks a lot bigger than what it holds to be honest. My bag can hold my coffee cup (my most important criteria when choosing a new office bag), my wallet and a small toilet kit, my earphones and phone and a little more. However, it cant actually hold my breakfast and lunch boxes. These I carry in another separate bag on my other shoulder. For many of you this might not be ideal but I specifically wanted a bag I cannot stuff more items into. A tote bag is really tempting and you can just continue to stuff whatever you want into it. With this bag I need to make a conscious effort to ensure I fit in the items I actually need. I actually had shoulder pain lugging around a heavy bag filled with absolute rubbish so I want to make sure to more evenly distribute the weight.
Price
I bought the bag for £100 although the actual retail price might go upto £400. In all honestly, I would not but this bag for more that price – I would consider that overpriced. I personally feel I got a really good deal for this bag.
Durability
It is a solid bag for sure. I really like the top handles. You can carry it over your shoulder or in the crook of your arms. There have been no real issue with scratches or marks and the leather is quite solid. Now there are two things I have to mention which are negatives. One, there is a faint smell to the leather so it doesnt smell super luxurious like a designer handbag leather smell. Second, I wish the bag had legs.
The leg thing has really bothered me to be honest. This is a bag that is almost briefcase shaped and is going to be used as such. Also since its a more of a longer shape than a flatter rectangle or square shape, some legs would have made it much more stable when standing up.
Will I Buy Again?
Personally I would not buy this exact Sophie Hulme Albion bag again but only because I want something new! But from the point of view of price, durability and quality I have no complaints. This is a great bag with a minimalist design and interesting shape and I could definitely recommend this to friends.
Hope you guys enjoyed the post and it managed to take your mind off other distressing things. Do you like the look of this Sophie Hulme Albion bag? You can check my previous review posts – they are always very popular. Here’s a not so good one to balance it out! I hope you are already following us on Instagram? I have been trying to entertain myself by cooking so there is a lot of food on our stories. Take a look it might motivate you a little bit as well. And let me know what you guys have been upto at home? We are on Facebook, Twitter and all the rest and would love to hear from you.
– Anisha
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