Ok, I know, you are like, if you don’t like backpack, why did you buy it in the first place and now you are writing review. Why Suchi? Well, the reason is simple, people who are backpack lovers , will automatically love or hate a backpack without even trying it, but for someone like me who in her entire life has never used a backpack (Well, not entirely true and I will get to that in a bit) can actually evaluate the true difference a backpack made or did not make in their lives.
So, now that you kind of get why I am doing this, lets move on to why did I say that I have never used a backpack in my entire life and still contradicted it. Well, its because, I have never consciously in my life (Guess my age and put it in the comments below just for kicks? – only my non friends Lol!) gone to pick a backpack, but yes I admit I have used backpacks, as a kid carrying backpack heavier than my weight to school filled with books and notebooks that i barely opened (Hey, I was a smart kid in school, almost top of my class, so I guess I can brag about it a little now that its long gone). And, while going for hikes, which was solely to carry water bottles, because I held my phone most of the times since I did not want to miss any chance of a good photo (Like a true fashion blogger😜). Hence, I cannot deny that I haven’t used backpacks ever, but I am just not a backpack kind of Gal, even when my daughter was a baby or a toddler, I ever used a backpack and I still carried her as well. So, now you understand why I could say that with an utter confidence that I am not a backpack kind of a person.
So, you must be thinking why did she buy a backpack then? Why now? Well, as you all know we went on a Road trip last week and I thought this would be a perfect time to get a backpack because, it will complete my whole casual travel looks (Well, yes if you know me, you know this how passionate I am about fashion always).
So, it started, my hunt for a backpack started. I was already checking out all the items on sale at Nordstrom (checkout the blog post on it here) and shopping for the trip, so I decided to do some backpack shopping. So, now that I have set the stage, lets get to the review:
First View Impression: Coming from a Non backpack person, I clearly did not want to spend a $1000 or even $500 on a backpack that I barely would use, but on the other hand, I wanted a stylish backpack and not just a lump (SORRY, no offense at all, but most backpack give me the unstructured vibe and hence my dislike), so when I saw CALPAK backpack (the smaller version) I immediately gravitated towards it. It was just the most beautiful backpack I have ever seen, even compared to some of the MCM, Louis Vuittons that I have seen and examined personally. The contrast stitching was just the most perfect finishing touches.
Decision Maker (Price): Since this was a backpack that I was going to just try out, I personally did not want to spend a ton of money on it if I would barely use it, so what I was really hoping was a Nordstrom sale price, but unfortunately it wasn’t on sale. For the price $75, I had to do a little debate with my emotions which had already fallen in love with the backpack o whether the purchase was worth the price, on top of that, they did not have the finish (Stone) that I totally wanted in stock at the store where I was going to go pick it up from which annoyed me. But after much debate with myself, my emotions won (which is the case, most time)and I went with the Blush Pink finish, which should have been my first choice if I already didn’t own the Burberry belt bag in the same color. What can I say I like variety.
First Look Impression: When I first picked it up, to be honest, I was surprised by the size (clearly, I should have seen the specs, but the pictures made it seem pretty small). It was a decent size bag which has a sleeve for carrying iPads since it did not fit my MacBook. The color was also slightly duller pink compared to my burberry bag which I was most happy with.
Overall Fit: The second reason why I also wanted a backpack was that I was taking my New Lumix Camera for VLOGGING, which I didn’t have a case for and honestly did not wanted a separate bag for and this bag could carry my camera, wallet, multiple sunglasses, my mic and my Bang and Olufsen headphones which are an absolute must (if you want, I can talk about it another post). So, it was a huge win for me along with the looks. Super happy there.
On The Road: The backpack was awesome, it went with all my outfits, not lets say most of my outfits since obviously, I did not use it with my dresses and on my anniversary dinner. But otherwise, it was great in carrying all my stuff on the go.
On The Hike: Now, we come to the fun part, I had already planned to use the backpack on my hike, and give it a test. The awesome part was that even though the Faux Leather material is stiff, I could still fit bottles in the side sleeve. So, Yay for that, since we needed all the bottles we could carry for hydration because it was almost 110 degrees in Sedona which was our hiking location. But, after the very first hike, what I noticed made me nervous, the backpack is not weatherproof. This does not mean, its not waterproof which I honestly did not try, but its definitely not sweat proof. All of the contrast black stain on the handles bled onto the armpit area of my Mango Cotton Tee which was also a nude color, it made me absolutely nervous. The stain did wash off form the cotton tee, but it didn’t from my White New Balance active tee, which is now probably destroyed from the stain. Fortunately, maybe I can try bleaching it to see if that would get the black stain out. This entirely proves that this backpack is not weather proof.
Overall: I would rate the product 6 out of 10 just on sheer looks and fit. I am actually even tempted to lower my rating just thinking about it damaging some other piece of clothing that I absolutely love.
What do you guys think?
