Number ten on my Sartorial Bucket List is a structured camel tote – I put my search on hold briefly earlier this year when I purchased the J. Crew Tillary Tote and it was sufficient for a while until the delicate leather started looking too weathered from rough handling.
I resumed the search seriously back in July and considered three other bags before ordering the 3.1 Phillip Lim Pashli Tote, a bag I’ve admired from afar but finally ordered when the color “nude” became available.
The “nude” is a light camel color – perhaps a shade lighter than what I
would ideally prefer. Made from textured (or “wrinkled”) calf leather,
this bag is considerably sturdier compared to smooth calfskin.
The bag’s main closure is a push-lock buckle that doesn’t seem to want
to close completely at times. The zip gussets, which allow the sides
to expand, are an edgy addition but may look cheap against certain
colors.
The Pashli satchel has only one large compartment and one inner pouch which might be considered a shortcoming by people who are used to bags with more pockets and divisions.
At about three pounds (more specifically…something like 2⅔lb) empty, this bag is heavy but
manageable for people who already tote around large bags daily. My
favorite feature is its capacity (11″H x 15″L x 4″D) to accommodate most
things you can think to put in it. The downside is that knickknacks do
start to collect weight easily and make the bag too heavy for even the
most industrially-built of us.
I’ll let you all draw your own conclusions about this bag but I did not decide to keep it. The dealbreaker is that I am looking for a bag with enough structure to not wrinkle when the bag is near empty – which this bag failed to do.
I think this bag falls short of greatness in “nude” but has potential in gemstone colors – like in jade (which was previously sold out; I might give this a try in the future), ruby, citrine, or sapphire (also in mini). The richer-colored leather is a better contrast to the utilitarian style and adds something extra to the bag.
The Pashli Tote is also available in fuchsia, two-tone tweed, black (also here), gold, bubblegum pink, lipstick red, tri-color, and ivory.
The bag also comes in a “mini” (also here, here, here, and here) size which may be a more appropriate choice for those of you who dislike large carryalls.
What do you think about the 3.1 Phillip Lim Pashli Satchel?
