Just our ‘type’ of bag…
Posted on | December 6, 2011 | No Comments
Christmas shopping can have pleasant side effects sometimes, as we found whilst perusing John Lewis recently. This quirky ‘play on pictures’ laptop sleeve by Ted Baker features a cool vintage typewriter image, and would make an ideal prezzie for the geeky guy (or gal) in your life. The laptop sleeve costs £30, and other bags in the range, which include camera and gadget bags, start at £12.
Ben Sherman messenger in Blue Cross
Posted on | June 28, 2011 | No Comments
I was having a quick lookie at the Debenhams sale just now and came across this rather retro shoulder bag from Ben Sherman.
With a cream and burgundy colour scheme and a vertical strap this cool messenger is a twist on the conventional Gola / Dunlop style shoulder bag.
Reduced from £35 to £24, grab it while you can!
Tasty Ted Baker leather bag
Posted on | January 31, 2011 | No Comments
The new range at Ted Baker is out, and amongst the range of quality fashion clothing and accessories we have come to expect we discovered this rather nice ‘distressed’ messenger bag in soft grain leather.
The tan coloured bag has classic vintage styling with the double pockets on the front of the bag, and is ideal for a lunch meeting or weekend use.
The only downside to this little gem, which is priced at £225, is that it’s on the skinny side at only 8cm deep. Pack light gentlemen!
Tumi messenger bags – you get what you pay for
Posted on | October 25, 2010 | No Comments
With a 30 history in desgning and manufacturing business luggage and travel cases, it’s no wonder that Tumi can produce casual bags that not only look good, they last a lifetime too.
Fans of Tumi products testify to their durability, practicality and reliability for the frequent traveller.
As anyone who travels with a laptop or books over their shoulder on a daily basis will tell you, more often than not the bag owner is subjected to a mild physical endurance test through thin straps, materials and catches that rub and the protrusion of the contents of the bag pushing uncomfortably through the fabric.
Not so with Tumi. Their background in producing hard-wearing business luggage has set them in good stead for their new ‘Empire’ range of messenger and laptop bags, available at John Lewis.
A perfect hybrid of function and fashion, the Empire bags are perfect for the urban traveller.
Manufactured from tough woven grey/black nylon weave, there are several unisex messenger bags in the range, catering from a small day-bag size to a full-size laptop bag.
Strong but soft, each bag is also has the added security benefit of being fitted with an electronic tracking device should the bag be lost or stolen. A 5 year warranty sets this bag aside from its competitors and is an indication of the quality you can expect from a Tumi bag.
Looking for a messenger bag to top off your smart caz look? Messenger bags from Timberland, Ted Baker and Diesel fit the bill.
Posted on | October 10, 2010 | No Comments
One of the hottest looks for men right now is the smart casual look: jeans, check shirt with button-down collar and smart shoes or canvas trainers. Top it off with a stylish messenger bag and you’re ready to tackle anything from an informal job interview to a weekend away.
Ted Baker messenger bag
Diesel messenger bag
Also on sale is the smaller but equally cool black vinyl Diesel messenger bag which his great for a day with your notebook or night out with your address book. Reduced from £50 to £25, this bag is a steal for the fashion conscious man and the practical black finish makes it suitable for a variety of occasions.
Red messenger / shoulder bag by Fly53
If you’re looking for something a little more colourful, the Fly53 messenger bag in red twill PVC is another cost-effective option for a casual look. Retro graphics on the front panel make for an urban, funky appeal, while the inside of the bag is big enough to hold your laptop and accessories with ease.
Bench record bag
Lastly, Bench get back to basics with their ebony record bag. Manufactured from polyester mix, the flapover messenger costs £25.00 and features the instantly recognisable Bench branding applied in a subtle way by twisting the logotype under the bag base.
Very.co.uk also stock bags by Quicksilver, Calvin Klein and Fred Perry. Why not take a look right now to check for special offers and the latest hot trends.
Mywalit messenger bag: too cool for school
Posted on | June 24, 2010 | No Comments
The Italian designed and made Mywalit range of leather bags and purses has taken the UK by storm.
The cool design combination of funky colours and classic lines is making them a firm favourite with guys and dolls, and we think they’re good value too for a luxury leather bag.
Shown below is one of the the Mywalit messenger range sized 30cm x 30cm which makes it big enough for a regular laptop. At £122 not bad.
Mywalit crossbody messenger bag
A cool canvas messenger bag for the London life
Posted on | March 1, 2010 | No Comments
Canvas messenger bag 'Hoxton' by TinTac bags
Hoxton, one of London’s trendiest cultural and artistic districts, is also home to a messenger bag shop that is such a part of the capital’s culture that even the name of the company is inspired by cockney rhyming slang.
Tintac (which is slang for ‘sack’) makes a range of funky messenger bags including the Bloomsbury and the Hoxton, which we tried out recently.
The original Bloomsbury messenger bag started out when dance music store City Sounds owner John Wright decided to branch out and develop a bag that his DJ customers would find useful not only for carrying vinyl but also for general use around town. The Bloomsbury bag was born, and since then the range has expanded with the Hoxton, a classic messenger with good looks and solid build quality.
Available in brown, khaki, cream and grey, the Hoxton has a quality feel which is immediately apparent from not only the heavyweight canvas used for the main bag construction but also the attention to detail within the various compartments and the lining fabric of each bag which comes in a variety of complementary colours.
The exterior of the bag is beautifully simple and understated, with the flap having a cleverly concealed magnetic catch on the small front pocket to hold it closed when you’re on the move.
There are two zipped pockets on each side of the bag with a handy aperture that can be used to thread your mp3 player headphone cable through.
Open the bag up and you will find several small pockets and a zipped rear compartment flanking the main storage compartment, which is big enough to carry a standard 15.4 inch laptop.
Although there is no padding to the bottom of the bag, the canvas used to make the Hoxton really is heavyweight, and as such you would have to do something quite silly with your bag in order to damage the contents.
On the rear of the bag is a simple stuff pocket that can be used for a magazine or flyers.
The strap is a simple wide black nylon band which is very comfortable and adjustable in length.
The real beauty of the Hoxton though is the price – for just £34 you can have a uniquely British bag , designed in London, for the price of a mass-produced bag from a global giant.
‘Stanley’ messenger bag by Eastpak is fit for a king. Or failing that, your laptop.
Posted on | February 24, 2010 | No Comments
Eastpak Stanley messenger bag
Trendy US luggage giant Eastpak have really got things buttoned down (or should that be zipped up?) when it comes to laptop luggage.
Their range, compare to smaller manufacturers, is simply huge with over 30 different designs in the shoulder bag category alone, each one of those designs being available in a number of funky colours and materials ranging from mind-boggling brights, to sensible blues, blacks and browns. Since 1976 they’ve been creating bags and luggage which always break the mould, and appeal to a wide range of society from young students to middle aged professionals.
We got hold of one of the Eastpak’s latest ‘Stanley’ messenger bags in denim blue (shown here in black) so we could take it for a test drive.
One of the immediately likeable things about Eastpak bags is the quality of materials and build: so often with polyester and nylon type fabrics the result can feel cheap and plastic. Happily this is not the case, the materials have a pleasant, hardwearing feel but are not heavy or plasticky to touch. The shoulder strap is wide, long and fully adjustable, and features a thick, movable shoulder pad for those who carry their bag any distance.
The Stanley is similar in many respects to the hugely popular Delegate, with the difference that this bag has extra storage pockets on each end, extra padding on the internal compartment making it more suitable for laptop usage, and a water-resistant compartment on the front flap of the bag.
Unlike many cheaper messenger laptop bags, the flap on the Stanley is fastened by means of wide strapping with chunky clips. The straps are adjustable so it’s easy to make sure your bag is tightly closed – one downside cited by some messenger bag owners is how easy it is for light-fingered passers by to take items from a ‘traditional’ messenger bag. Not so with the Stanley.
Underneath the flap there are a further two zipper pockets for accessories – pens, flash drives, business cards etc – in addition to the two zipped end pouches. The flap itself has a water-resistant pocket running the full length of the front of the flap and a rear storage flap with a velcro fastening.
The main interior compartment itself is split into two, with a reasonably well padded section which will take a 15.4″ laptop snugly, or several medium sized textbooks. The other side of the compartment is big enough to take a power supply and A4 jotter. One particularly nice design touch are the tailored flaps which are there to prevent moisture entering the bag under the flap.
Fully loaded up, the bag was easy to carry and the shoulder pad really helps to spread the load.
The Stanley messenger bags are available in a wide range of colours and patterns, from plaid and stripes to plain black, blue and brown, making them an ideal choice for either casual or business user.
Eastpak messenger bags are available from BagsDirect, Amazon
3 totally hip and totally eco-friendly/ethical messenger bags for men
Posted on | February 4, 2010 | No Comments
We thought we’d do a post about what’s out there for those of us who like our products on the greener side of life. The following messenger bags fall into the category of either recycled, made from eco-friendly materials, organic, or otherwise full of natural goodness. Buy with confidence and a clear conscience!
First on the list is the new hemp messenger/shoulder bag by Sativa Bags. I’ve personally owned two hemp laptop bags by sativa bags for the last two years, and I have to say I have been very impressed. The only downside – and this is not in any way a poor reflection on the manufacturing which is first class – but the bags do get a bit grubby with use. Now if, like me, you don’t really care about that then that’s fine. To be honest they almost look better with age as they that nice lived in look. If you’re looking for a smart or formal messenger bag though for meetings or business trips, it might not be the wise choice. The bag shown here is priced at just £45.50, and is a great eco-friendly product from a top UK green organisation.
Duo leather messenger bag for men
Freitag messenger bag
Fossil messenger bag mens range brings vintage canvas and leather to the mix
Posted on | January 17, 2010 | No Comments
Fossil, who are best known for their range of cool vintage style watches & jewellry, have a really great range of messenger bags for men over at their UK website. If there’s one thing that Fossil do well it’s getting the vintage look right, and their messenger bags are no exception with lots of antiqued buckles and zips, grained leather and worn canvas.
As well as reasonably priced briefcase style leather messengers, the range also includes more casual designs in canvas and fabric at lower prices.
We’ve picked out some of the highlights:
Jackson E/W leather messenger bag
The Jackson E/W messenger bag is a formal style messenger bag which could be used as a replacement for the traditional briefcase. Manufactured in fine leather in a choice of brown or black, this is a nicely finished bag with vintage brass effect hardware.
Jackson E/W messenger bag by Fossil UK
At 39cm x 29cm x 12cm, It’s large enough to hold most laptops and other accessories with several internal pockets and an external side pocket. Priced at £115 the bag is one of the more expensive in the range but represents good value.
Fuel canvas messenger bag
Fuel canvas messenger bag by fossil
If you’re looking for something a little cheaper, then this cool little Fuel messenger bag at £68.00 might fire you up.
Made from durable beige canvas, this bag has vintage pewter effect hardware which complements the fabric nicely; brown leather detailing on the flap and corners make the overall style masculine and vaguely military.
The bag has a fully adjustable strap which will allow for even the tallest men.
The interior has several zipped compartments for all the extras, and is just big enough to take a 15″ laptop.
Cory messenger bag for men
'Cory' messenger bag by Fossil
The Cory messenger bag features wide leather strapping and edging stitched across vintage khaki canvas: this gives it a chunky, handmade look. This bag features a zip closure for extra security and nice leather detailing inside the bag.
All in all we think Fossil have got it right with their range of bags for men, there are several smaller shoulder bags which are not big enough to hold a laptop but would be great for days out when you just want to take your iPod and other belongings.
keep looking »Messenger bag deals
Oiled leather 'Rio' Messenger
Visconti brown leather laptop messenger bag
Marvel Comics Messenger Bag