Molly Bloom knows style

Mission: Finding a suitable bag for my new MacBook. Guidelines: Stylish and a bit girlie; can be carried on the shoulder or in the crook of my arm; any long shoulder straps must be detachable; it should not look like ye olde standard black laptop bag. I decided that I wanted a bag for the laptop, not an envelope like I was using with my older and smaller machine.

Obviously I am picky. I don’t wear just any old thing and I don’t carry just any old thing. I was ready for a fight.

The official Apple store proved useless. Yuck. Their bags suck. So I turned to the internet.

Initially I liked the canary yellow leather one from Kolobags. Revisiting it the next day I decided that while the color is delish, the bag is too briefcase-y. It looks too grown-up and the shoulder strap is bogus. The handles look too short to swing over my shoulder. Next.

The Sabrina from Abbi New York has the kind of handles I was looking for — long enough for a shoulder ride or hand-carry. While the black “premium faux-leather” may be a dream for vegans, I was not convinced this was the bag for me. I do like the pink lining.

Acme Made bags come in a variety of styles and fabrics. None of them are on the money. The Slim model fits my MacBook but the handles are too short and the shoulder strap ghastly. Many of the patterns seemed a bit dated — a bit too late 1990s.

The Marina from Timbuk2 is the bag I bought. I wasn’t 100% behind it initially — it is a bit sportier than I originally intended but the handles are sturdy. I like that it doesn’t have too many pockets — that would only frustrate me. It has a key tether and a cellphone pocket, two features I am sure to use. I took it out for a testdrive the other day and am happy with it. If you get the red one I will cut you. Kidding.