Reviews

When I was asked if I’d like to do a scarf review for Affordable Scarves, I jumped at the chance. You see, I love scarves. I’ve been wearing silk, wool, velvet, linen, cotton, and fur scarves for many years. Scarves are my friends. Forever.

Affordable Scarves is exactly what it touts itself to be: an online scarf retailer with an extensive collection of scarves at affordable prices. The majority of the site’s inventory falls between $10 and $20 (and there’s a 15% OFF spring special running at the moment, so they are super cheap). With prices that inexpensive, you should know that these are not Hermés-quality scarves, but they are functional and fun, and for under 20 bucks, I’d say that’s exactly the point. The site is very user-friendly and you can search for scarves by color, material, season, shape, size and trend. They also offer free shipping on orders over $30. So I made my choice, and in no time, this Leopard Print Wrap arrived at my door…

Affordable Scarves Leopard Print Wrap in black & white

Affordable Scarves Leopard Print Wrap
($16.11, Affordable Scarves)

Vahni & Her Leopard Print Wrap

Vahni & her Affordable Scarves Leopard Print Wrap in black & white

I have to admit, I couldn’t wait for this scarf to arrive, for two reasons: I have no other leopard print scarves and this print has been showing up on scarves everywhere over the last year. I opened the package and unfurled the wrap, and honey, it kept going and going and going! I guess I didn’t pay much attention to the dimensions (76″ L x 52″ W) when I ordered it… it is indeed the size of a wrap, and a big one. But more about that in a minute.

So I knew the scarf is polyester, and while polyester is a wonder fabric, part of me wished it was linen or cotton, just so it felt a little softer. But I have to admit that the fabric lends itself well with this wrap—the print is crisp and vibrant; despite the size, it’s not bulky; and it launders like a champ. In the photos above, the photo on the left was taken after the scarf was washed in a lingerie bag on a normal cycle and air-dried. The photos on the right were taken before it was washed. No difference…and notice how it ties up into a knot that fits in your hand. That means it would be a fantastic piece for traveling.

In terms of wearability, the Affordable Scarves Leopard Print Wrap is unbelievably versatile. You can do a traditional scarf look, wear it as a wrap, or as a sarong or bathing suit cover-up. It stays put, which is nice, and the one thing about silkier scarves I don’t like—they tend to slide. I wore it as a scarf, and I draped it around the back of my neck and belted it over a tank top and it looked great.

Bottom Line

Overall, I really love this wrap and would recommend it to anyone who is comfortable wearing a large wrap/scarf. It is chic, inexpensive, and statement-making—meets all my requirements!

PROS:

  • Gorgeous print—black and grey is a fresh take on leopard
  • Versatile—wear it as a scarf, wrap, or sarong
  • Great price—a low-cost way to work the animal print trend into your wardrobe

CONS:

  • Wished it was a natural fabric or blend with linen or cotton
  • Might be too large for a petite woman
  • Synthetic fabric might make it uncomfortable if worn as a summer scarf
LookOur Rating: ★★★★☆
QualityOur Rating: ★★★☆☆
WearabilityOur Rating: ★★★★☆
PriceOur Rating: ★★★★★
OverallOur Overall Rating: ★★★★☆

{ 4 comments }

Review: Handbag Heaven Sami Quilted Bag

by Celine on February 26, 2010

When Handbag Heaven approached us to do a review of one of their bags, I was psyched. I’ve browsed these “discount” sites before and contemplated purchasing a bag but just never went through it, feeling unsure of the quality. However, because Handbag Heaven generously offered to provide us with a bag of our choice for this review, I was free to let my heart guide me on my lofty quest. Since their website is very user friendly and gives you many options to find a bag that fits your style it only took me a minute to decide on “The One“:

Handbag Heaven Sami Quilted Handbag in brown

Handbag Heaven Sami Quilted Bag
($54.95, Handbag Heaven)

Celine & Her Quilted Sami Bag

Celine & her Handbag Heaven Sami Quilted Bag

I, like many others, have lusted after the Marc Jacobs Stam bag, which is the designer counterpart to the Sami, since 2005 and I had high hopes that the Sami would be everything I could ever want in a “steal” version. Upon taking the bag out of the box and touching it, I immediately noticed that it felt very soft. However, there is a slight “squeakiness”, which comes from the material being leatherette, rather than leather. It has a long, gold chain that you can wear over your shoulder or let hang as decoration. The hardware is a little cheap feeling (the chain, for instance feels very light) but all in all it looks really good and the overall feel of the bag is surprisingly substantial for $55! The inside is very roomy, with one zipper pocket and two smaller pockets. There’s also the zipper on the outside, just like the original. I chose the brown color but it also comes in black, purple, pewter and red.

The real question of course, is how does the bag hold up when actually being used? I decided to take my Sami out for an all-day trial run, so I threw all my crap (sorry, stuff) in it and went about my daily activities. It’s really rather light, which means it won’t give you a back-ache when filled with all your things; all the zippers are completely functional and the closure at the top seems to be of good quality. As mentioned above, the hardware seemed to be a little shoddy, but after 2 days of running around with it, opening closures, zippers, etc, everything is still exactly where it should be. I also received two compliments on my bag – one of them from a guy, and you know guys never notice bags! After putting my poor Sami through the ringer, I examined it again and apart from a few dangling threads, the bag looks just as good as when I first took it out of the box.

Handbag Heaven has tons of trendy and classic bags, and many styles come in multiple colors. They offer a 100% money back guarantee and it’s also worth noting that no bag on their site will run you more than $75. They also like to run promotions from time to time so if you kids are into Facebook (as my grandmother would say) or Twitter, or if you’d like to read their blog, you can find them in the following places: HH on Facebook, HH on Twitter & HH Blog.

Bottom Line

All in all I’m really quite pleased with the Sami Bag and it now has a permanent place in my handbag rotation. While it doesn’t feel quite like leather and the hardware lacks the weight of the original, I can tell that it won’t fall apart any time soon. It feels light on the shoulder and its classic-meets-modern look, means it will literally look great with anything in your wardrobe. I think this would be a great gift for your mom or friend, although I’d probably skip the friend who already owns three authentic Chanel quilted clutches because she will most likely not be impressed. But, really, readers, I think we all know the moral of the this story: when you’re saving so much money on your bag… you have that much more to spend on shoes! ;)

PROS:

  • great color, look
  • good price
  • roomy, comfortable, light

CONS:

  • hardware slightly cheap-looking
  • leatherette feels a little “plasticy”
LookOur Rating: ★★★★☆
QualityOur Rating: ★★★☆☆
WearabilityOur Rating: ★★★½☆
PriceOur Rating: ★★★★½
OverallOur Overall Rating: ★★★★☆

{ 8 comments }

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