Chloe Ely Medium Bag

I’ve really enjoyed all of the Chloe bags this season so far, so seeing the Chloe Ely Medium Bag today for the first time made me kind of sad. It’s the first of this season’s accessories line that I don’t like in any way, and I’ve got a couple reasons as to why. First, it’s just kinda…square. It looks more like a carry-on for an airplane, or maybe a toiletries case, than a handbag to be used for everyday purposes. Second, the finish of the leather.

I HATE when designers do this – it’s somewhere between regular leather and a full-on patent gloss, and it tends to make leather stiffer, less touchable, and less like anything that actually came from an animal at some point. In short, it makes the bag look cheap, and they did some weird striping with it that made me questions whether it was real leather or just a treated canvas. For two grand, I don’t want to have to question. This also isn’t my favorite color, but compared to the other issues, that’s not that big of a deal. On the upside, it does look nice and roomy, the lining is light-colored for easy of use, and I like the woven handles. But that’s really the only upside I’ve got for you on this one. Buy through Net-a-Porter for $2055.