Moderne Elegance - Loulu Carli Hobo Purse, Pink

I ordered this as a birthday Gift for my wife. She is always looking for a new purse (almost as much as I am looking for new tools/gadgets/electronics). She loved the purse as soon as she opened it and enjoyed it so much that she changed out that evening to start using it for dinner that night.****************UDATE***********************It has been a few months since she received the purse and with the exception of special occasions (you ladies know what I mean) she has not changed out the guard. Now the purse is starting to show signs of ware, but she still says it is the prefect size shape for her daily needs. I hope you enjoy my description and find this as helpful as I did in getting my wife the prefect gift.

The first thought that came to mind when I opened the box was “aubergine.” In the Amazon photos the purse appears to be a magenta/fuchsia. In reality, it’s purple. Not a real deal breaker since I like purple as much as magenta/fuchsia.This is a nice, basic, medium-size vegan leather handbag. What makes it stand out is the vibrant color. The opening is held together by 2 magnets. However, depending on how you carry the bag (e.g., over the shoulder), the magnets can easily separate. The interior is lined with a dark pink cloth, so your items are easily visible. There are 2 open slip pockets on 1 side wall of the bag; on the other wall is a generous zipped pocket. There is also an exterior zip pocket, which was really, really sticky and getting caught on itself. I think this may be in part because the flaps of vegan leather on each side of the zipper fold over the zipper itself. I just applied WD-40 and zipped the zipper back and forth about 30 times, and voilà! The zipper now runs smoothly. Some WD-40 got onto the vegan leather & the fabric, but it dried out just fine and it doesn’t smell like WD-40.There are gold studs on the bottom of the purse, which I always appreciate. The depth of the purse is ~6”, so it can accommodate bulky items. However, the opening of the bag is relatively small, as the short handle is attached to the rings embedded in the purse. There is also a very long crossbody strap. I don’t wear crossbody, so I modified mine (with an awl, black Sharpie, a ruler, and scissors) to make this into a shoulder bag.I should also mention: this is the second bag I’ve received from the company. The first bag I returned because it came with a broken metal loop—one of the loops that attaches the short strap to the bag. I was able to exchange that bag for one that wasn’t broken.I’m giving this bag 4 stars because, while nice, the magnets keep separating from each other. The vegan leather doesn’t feel as good as other vegan leather purses I own. This bag has a kind of plasticy feeling. The bag itself isn’t as capacious as it might be because of the narrowness at the top of the bag. But still a decent bag overall. Hope this helps!

First, I love the color. The Fushia magenta, or I like to call it a fugenta, is very pretty. It is one of those colors that looks great in the spring when all the flowers start peeking their faces out. But also, the fall when the sunsets are sometimes at their best with the color displays. It is the color that really sells it for me and keeps me from being overly disappointed. The leatherette feels nice to the touch. The bag is light. Extremely light. Probably to its detriment. There was no bottom insert or stiffener. Any weight you add to the purse will cause it to sag in the floor. There were feet on it which is nice but without the stiffener the feet do little good since the floor of the purse will sag around the feet. The back slip pocket while being a good size to hold small items is hard to unzip and get into. The cover flaps are poorly executed. When the zipper is completely open or closed there is an opening in the letherette for the zipper pull to rest, but when you pull the zipper, it knocks into the flaps that lay over the zipper. I see the design intent was for the zipper pull to push up the flap and stands out of the way while you pull the zipper through. Much like a drawbridge that opens, and ships pass through. But that is not what happens. Also, the zipper does not pull smoothly. The teeth catch in the zipper pull and you are tugging quite a bit. Then there is the matter of the hinged loops that the shoulder strap has. They do open? One of them I couldn't budge. The other was crooked and didn't rest together the way they were supposed to. The magnetic closure is always a nice feature if it will hold together. These types of closures give you the freedom to put your stuff in and forget about securing your bag. They do it for you. That is if the magnets are strong enough. These aren't. If I saw this in a store I would stop to look, the color would catch my eye, and upon examination and seeing the price tag, I'd put it back. I like the color. I like the way it looks. It reminds me of some of the styles from the 50s. But sized for our on the go lives. Still, I don't think I could justify the price for what I was getting.

Purse arrived smashed and misshapen. It is not sturdy so it just compresses in on itself. The magnet self lock already stopped working. It just looks unattractive and I will not be able to use this purse. I do like the color though and wish it was not so squashed looking.

This lil purse is “just the right size”, I call it an “in between” it’s not too large or small. Soft material, the magnetic closure works really well, and the fact it come’s with two straps is a great option, I have both on mine and have used both, depending on what/where i goin or doing, love the fact I have a choice.