Bag Fetish: The Tom Bihn Swift - A Review

If you've read this blog, you know that I have a bag fetish. I've acquired more than a few bags and I've also made everything from project/ditty bags to carpet bags to full-blown TARDIS messenger bags. Part of this bag fetish is trying to find the "one perfect bag" that will carry everything that I need everyday, comfortably, and without hassle.

However, I know that the "one perfect bag" is a myth --- an elusive unicorn that exists only in myth & story. But recently, I've found something that is pretty damn close to that unicorn, and those bags are made by Tom Bihn. I've known about their company for a number of years, but haven't tried out their bags until this year. Why? Because I didn't quite like their aesthetic; it was fine, but there were always other shiny / pretty bags available. But, as they say, don't judge a book by its cover.

I've seen many knitters rave about the Tom Bihn Swift for a few years. Generally, I prefer messenger bags (both vertical and horizontal versions) instead of totes with shoulder straps, but I thought to give it a try. Back in May, I bought the Swift for my birthday.

 

(From Tom Bihn's site)

And WOWZA. They really took the time and effort in working with Knitty.com to create this bag! I've never had a bag so thoughtfully laid out, organized, and with a multitude of space and pockets! It's more than a knitting bag and slightly less than a true bag of holding!


Here's my Every Day Carry for Work:  Big (sweater or shawl) and small knitting project (socks), a shawl (because my office gets cold), work laptop, tea mug, sunglasses, wallet, keys, notebook, pen, and assorted knitting notions in the blue case. (Cat not included)

It all fit into the Swift without issue and with room to spare. The side pockets with clear windows is genius! You can see what's inside without rooting about. Also, they have a key strap at the top of the back that I can clip my car keys onto --- so no more fishing for keys at the bottom of the bag!

I was so enamored with the configuration that I ordered a few more organizational things from Tom Bihn, because I loved how well just the bag helped me organize everything.

I picked up their "Freudian slip", a few of knitting pouches, and two of their knitting ditty bags.

• The small Freudian slip let me able to consolidate my wallet, notebook, pens & pencils, earbuds, extra cell phone battery, a phone cable/charger, and a few other things. It's extremely convenient:
• If I turned the FS sideways, it opened up the bag when I was working at my LYS. 
• The FS also lets me transfer all the important things to any other bag with minimal fuss. 
• Note: I did not purchase the FS made for the Swift. I bought the smaller version because I thought Swift FS was much too big.
• The organizational pouches let me get rid of the bulky notions case AND add a few more things, like a pair of scissors. 
• The clear windows let me see what's inside.
• They come with a ring that keeps them together.
• And insofar as the knitting bags........ Hold on! Sure, you might be asking right now - You have made tons of ditty bags! Why buy!? - Well,  the ditty bags have a built in clip that lets me clip it to the O-ring inside of the bag so that they never fall out! They also have a yarn guide on the inside. (In my copious spare time, I am going to add these features to any new ditty bags I might make, but for now, it was just as easy to purchase them.)

Here's all that stuff in the bag.

For FUN, I bought their Field Journal Notebook (FJN), because I love notebooks and writing. This is slightly bigger than an iPad Mini; it actually fits my iPad mini inside.

Here's the FJN inside the Swift instead of the laptop.

So far, I've used this bag extensively for work, for play, and generally everything. I've take it on car trips and on airplanes. It's a great bag to have at your feet as a passenger or under the seat for a plane and be able to access everything quickly and without hassle.

I am still amazed at how much stuff I can fit into this fairly compact bag. You would think that it would get heavy, but the weight distribution of the bag is actually well done. Yes, there is weight, but because the weight is distributed evenly, you don't really notice it. The only time I really noticed a problem was when I went urban hiking for 15 miles, but then again, I knew I was probably taking the wrong bag for a romp through the San Francisco hills!

Is it perfect? Not quite, but it's pretty damn close despite the fact that it's not my beloved messenger-style bag. I'm seriously considering purchasing a few more in different colors for different purposes!

Tom Swift makes bags in the U.S with a lot of workmanship and care. Their products have a life time guarantee and they have a small cult following.

I was so impressed with the quality of workmanship of the Swift, its organization, and its carrying capacity that I also purchased the Maker's Bag almost two months later to try out the messenger bag version (kinda sorta). I'll review that later.

I told you that I had a bag fetish....I might also be a Tom Bihn convert.

Review: Dragonscale Handbag of Holding from ThinkGeek

I have a small bag fetish. I love bags of all sorts, and I started lusting after ThinkGeek's Dragonscale Handbag of Holding the moment I saw it. After all, it was red; it had "dragonscales", and it was a bag of holding. What more could a geek girl want?!?!

So, when it went on sale just before Christmas (at 40% off), I ordered it as a gift for myself. When it arrived in the mail, I was squee'ing with joy!  But I wanted to really test drive this bag thoroughly before I could give my opinion of it in any sort of review. I need a bag to not only look stylish but be functional as well. I was hoping that this would be the perfect bag that would carry everything I needed on a daily basis.

Here it is right out of the box.

I loved the red, the dragonscale patterning, and the D20 embossing. This bag is really beautiful. I'm usually not a fan of polyurethane fabric (i.e. vegan leather), but I liked how this looked. Also, I didn't notice any off-gassing from the fabric, which can happen with polyurethane.

When you pick up the bag for the first time, you'll notice is that this bag is heavy! When completely empty, it weighs 2.2lbs. This fact wasn't a complete deal breaker for me as I have leather bags which can also be heavy, but it might be an issue for some people. This empty weight is about on par (if not more so) with a real leather bag.

The other thing you notice is that this bag has a TON of pockets. There are so many pockets that you might lose your stuff because you can't remember which pocket something was placed, which might have happened to me a couple of times....

The front has two pockets with magnetic closures. These are good for those things you might need immediately (phone, small notebook, pens, keys, small dice bag, energy bar, etc).

There are front and back "slide" pockets with inner handy zippers. So, if you just need to put things like papers, receipts, or random crap, you can do that here.

The inside of the bag has even MORE pockets. It's divided into three sections by a middle zippered pocket.

One side has separated pockets -- for wallet, small field notebooks, pens, sunglasses, etc.

The other divider has another zippered pocket and key chain holder so you don't lose your keys. (I particularly like this feature, especially since I always find myself digging around the bottom of my bag for keys.)

The bag has these "side" pockets, which are supposed to be for water bottles or something. However, these pockets are too small for a water bottle or travel mug. I tried putting in a sunglass case, but had to really shove it in there to make it work well. These side pockets are only useful for putting in your phone or something small and flat.

The first few times I carried this bag around, I got a ton of compliments on it from friends and co-workers (especially the geeky ones), but a bag is more than just a sum of its compliments or its components. It needs to be functional and carry around everything that I need.

Here's what I tend to carry around on a daily basis:

1. Crafty projects (1-2 knitting projects, ranging from socks to a sweater or shawl). 
2. Small container of crafting accessories (darning needles, stitch markers, pair of small scissors, etc.)
3. Tea mug or a water bottle.
4. Work laptop (during the week) or iPad mini (during the weekends), 
5. Small stuff -- wallet, sunglasses, keys, eye drops, lip balm
6. Snacks -- Usually an energy bar or small bag of nuts.
7. Shawl / fingerless gloves
8. Assorted paperwork (for work) or books (during non-working days).

Top to bottom / Left to right: Medium knitting project, small knitting project, Color Affection Shawl, Contigo Tea Mug, sunglass case, wallet, eye drops, lip balm, pen/pencils, notebook, laptop paper, keys, small crafting accessories. (Cat not included)

So, how did this bag hold up after 5 months of usage? It did "okay". It wasn't bad, it wasn't great, but it wasn't the "perfect" bag that I had hoped.

Pros:

• Beautiful color. Lovely patterning. It's eye catching and you will get compliments on this bag.
• Lots of pocketesses, especially if you have a lot of little things you want to carry.
• The grey of the inside pockets lets you see everything quite clearly.
• Covertly geeky.

So-So (not good, not bad):

• Bag doesn't stand up on its own. It tends to fall over unless it's completely full.
• Heavy when empty at 2.2lbs

Cons:

• VERY heavy when full of stuff.
• Can't fit a medium to large knitting project into the bag. (Explained below)
• Mostly useless side pockets.
• Straps (both shoulder and handles) aren't grippy and will slip off your shoulders.

This handbag of holding CAN hold quite a bit of stuff. However, it also becomes extremely heavy very quickly. I tried using it as my daily bag, but couldn't fit everything that I needed without the bag becoming much too heavy and big for  me to carry around comfortably.

The fully closed bag looks like a a small pregnant dragon. I really can't fit anymore into this bag without being able to close it or being too heavy. The 13" laptop fits into this bag beautifully. However, I'm not sure if I could fit a bigger laptop into it.

When fully loaded, the bag is big and bulky. I have to use the handles because the shoulder strap slips off my shoulder if I don't carry it messenger style. As it is, even the handles slip off my shoulders regardless of the weight.

Also, the shoulder strap is not very comfortable wearing across your body (ala messenger bag) if the bag was full. The straps dug into my shoulder and back. Other reviewers complained that the strap broke easily, but I hadn't had that problem. I thought about replacing the shoulder strap with something more ergonomically correct, but it wouldn't match the bag (and yes, that is a consideration!)

If I only carried a smaller knitting project (i.e. socks), the bag no longer looked like a small pregnant dragon and the lines of the bag are restored.  Less bulk means that it's easier to carry.

Photos of bag minus the medium knitting project

COMPARISON PHOTOS:

What you carry in this bag really does make a difference in how heavy and bulky it can get, which is true of any bag, but especially THIS bag.

Left photo: Fully loaded with all the items.

Right photo: Removed one medium sized knitting project.

The bulkier the bag, the harder it is to carry.

Left photo: Fully loaded with all the items.

Right photo: Removed one medium sized knitting project.

If I wanted to carry a bigger knitting project, I would have to forgo any laptop, books, etc.. With my current carry, the lines of the bag are already distorted. Stuffing a half-finished sweater into this bag made it look like a large pregnant dragon. As a crafter, the ability to carry only one small knitting project is a big disadvantage in any bag.

Conclusion:

Overall, this handbag of holding is only a "quasi" handbag of holding. It does hold a lot, but be prepared to carry around a heavy boulder on your shoulder because of it.  For me, it's uses are limited.

• As a crafter's bag? This bag is a poor choice if you want something geeky, stylish, and will carry your crafty projects with you.
• For a convention-bag? This bag is also a poor choice. Due to the weight issue, it was obvious that this bag would be much too heavy to carry around a convention filled with all the con-necessities (extra water, snacks, etc) AND any purchases.
• As a work / laptop bag or even a gamer bag?  This bag is an okay choice. I began using it more as a work bag where I could carry my work laptop, papers, etc., that I needed for work. For that purpose, the bag worked just fine.  If you have a bigger laptop than mine, you might find it hard to squeeze it into this bag.  Any gaming books, character sheets, dice, etc., can fit into this bag without issue. However, I ended up also carrying another bag for more personal items, including my knitting projects. 

If you're planning on simply carrying your gear from point A to point B (like from your house to your gaming location or to work), then this bag should work well enough for you --- pack your stuff, carry to your location, unpack it. The end.

However, if you plan on carrying a lot of stuff around for hours on end (like a convention) or just as your day-to-day bag, then I would find a much better bag to suit your needs than this one because of the weight & bulk issues and how the straps slide off your shoulders.

For myself, as much as I love the look of this bag, it is not utilitarian enough for me to use it on an every day basis as my "go-to" bag.

I found another bag for that, and will probably either sell or gift this to a friend who might find it more useful than me. (More on that other bag later...)

Extermi-KNIT Project Bags

I was at Joann's Fabrics, and found some more awesome Doctor Who Fabric. (Previously, Joanns had some great geeky fabrics. They still have some of them.)

Because, at the time, GallifreyOne 2016 was just around the corner AND I've been itching to get more stuff done AND I am on a panel for Doctor Who Crafting, I thought it'd be awesome to get some quick project bags made to show off at the convention.

I had to make up for the fact that I only had ONE completed costume for GallifreyOne, instead of my grand plans to wear my Missy outfit, with Michelle Gomez being present -- DAMMIT! (I am severely disappointed in my inability to make this outfit, especially with the actress who portrays Missy at GallifreyOne this year....)

Luckily, I've already outlined how to make little ditty bags on my blog, so I just followed my own instruction, with minor modifications, because I can't leave well enough alone.

I made one big enough for a sock project. I used the Dalek fabric for the outside and the TARDIS fabric for the inside. It's small, cute, and just the right size for purse knitting.

The other one is big enough for a medium sized project. This time I used the TARDIS fabric for the outside.

And the exploding TARDIS fabric for the inside.  It's big enough to hold a shawl or cowl project.

 

These were the perfect sized bags for taking my knitting projects to GallifreyOne, and was a hit. I also used the small one as a reticule for evening, as it also held my wallet and hotel key for Gallifrey.

Re-Working Your Existing Projects -- TARDIS

Recently, I got a chance to test-drive my TARDIS messenger bag out in the real-world. I had to spend a good chunk of time away from home during one weekend, so I packed it with stuff, including a water bottle, three knitting projects (including a sweater WIP), my iPad mini, and small things (wallet, phone, knitting accessories, etc.).

While it was extremely serviceable, I noticed a few flaws that REALLY bothered me that needed to be fixed before I used it at a Convention. I could completely re-make the bag from scratch, or I could take apart the existing bag and re-work it with modifications.

As creating a new bag from scratch would entail more work (and more fabric), I opted to re-work it instead, as the issues could be fixed.

There were two issues:

1. The biggest thing that bothered me was that the bag was too soft and floppy. It would fall over and not hold its shape; the front and back would fall into each other. It oozed, much like Pile-o-Cat, where I wanted the Tall-Cat bag.
   
   
2. The way I had placed the buckles were not holding the bag closed well. The front flap would slip to one side of the buckles, thus creating a gap. 

Both were relatively easy solutions to fix the problem.

Problem #2 was extremely easy to solve. Because the front flap was shifting away from the buckles,  I sewed them to the front flap at several locations. I also added a magnetic closure to the very middle of the bag flap so that there would be minimal shifting.

Problem #2 was also a relatively easy solution, but it entailed that I take the bag apart, and add thicker padding between the lining and fabric so that the bag was sturdier.  I took some thicker Pellon #70 Ultra-Firm Stabilizer that I sandwiched between some pre-quilted padding that I already had lying about.

The end result was about ~ 5mm (or 0.25 inch) thick.

I inserted this extra padding at the bottom of the bag (to help it stand up), as well as the front and back of the bag.

Here's the bag BEFORE I added the padding. See how it wraps itself around the mannequin slightly and appears to be floppy?

Before

After. 

The re-worked bag can stand on it's own now with a few things inside.

However, because of the extra padding, I wasn't able follow the pattern instructions of turning the lining right-side-out. In addition, the added padding required expanded the width of the bag slightly so that I had to add a front facing all around the edges of the bag in order to seam up properly. This new facing also required that the bag straps be attached differently to the bag -- to the edge of the facing on the inside of the bag. Luckily, this didn't affect the overall aesthetic.

Here's the previous bag without the extra facing.

Unfortunately, the facing had to be hand-sewn into the bag, but it was still faster than creating a new one from scratch.

Here's the modified version with the extra facing

I think these modifications will make the bag more usable. I'm really glad that I took out for a trial run before taking it to a convention.

Previous posts on the TARDIS Messenger Bag:

• Planning out a TARDIS Messenger Bag
• Embroidering a Police Box Sign
• Bigger on the Inside
• Making the Windows
• Making the Straps

Making My Own Tardis Bag (Part 5): Straps & the Final Bag

One of the changes I made to the pattern was to change up the actual closures. I really liked how my Patagonia bag had parachute buckles on the outside, and I sought to emulate that look.

I picked up one inch parachute buckles and strap adjusters. (I really wanted the 3/4 inch version, but I couldn't find a nylon webbing strap of that same size, so I went up to 1" instead.) I picked up a dark blue version of both the buckles, adjusters, and the nylon belt.

I decided to have the straps come from the "POLICE SIGN".

I added the other end of the strap to come from both ends of the bottom of the bag.

• A short nylon strap and the separator came out from the front of the bag
• A longer nylon strap and the other parachute clip came out from the back of the bag.

The finished strap looked pretty good.

I also decided to add a handle at the top of the bag. I find this particular feature very useful in a bag. It becomes easy to pick a bag up from the floor or table. I used scraps of the black denim and added some of the blue nylon webbing for a bit of added strength.

Attaching the lining to the outside of the bag was a bit tricky, but do-able. The inside of the bag is pretty roomy (as shown by my Warcraft Wind Rider stuffed wyvern)

In terms of size, I'm comparing it to my daily Patagonia bag:

• Patagonia 15" x 12" x 5"
• TARDIS: 16.5" x 12" x 3.5" . 

The Patagonia serves as my daily use bag, and can fit an iPad mini, two sock projects (or a sweater project), my wallet, phone, water bottle, book, and assorted small items.  The TARDIS allows me to fit slightly bit more, and should be perfect for running around a convention.

All-in-all, I'm pretty pleased with how it came out. There's a few things that didn't come out perfectly but then again, what ever does? I also would have done things slightly differently for a few things. However, I like how it looks and while I make modifications to any other ones I might make, this one is perfectly serviceable! I can't wait to try it.

Now, I'm ready for a Convention to happen so I can test this out! Onwards to GallifreyOne!

You can also find more posts about making this bag by searching on TARDIS MESSENGER BAG or click on the following links:

• Planning out a TARDIS Messenger Bag
• Embroidering a Police Box Sign
• Bigger on the Inside
• Making the Windows
• Making the Straps