AstroBanana Get Their Bean Bags!

Okay, Eric Banana knows that this blog entry is way overdue but here it is!

It all started with Eric Banana browsing idly on shopstyle.com one night. He was about to go to bed when he spotted a nice black-colour Ralph Lauren Large Polo Player Canvas Tote Bag and decided that he must have it:

Oddly enough, Ralph Lauren itself doesn't carry the graphite/silver combination but Macy's does so Eric Banana ordered it from Macy's through ComGateway instead. Yay? Well, not exactly. A few days later, Eric Banana found out that Macy's rejected the order for unknown reasons. Hmmm, Eric Banana has used ComGateway to make purchases from Banana Republic and Kate Spade without any hiccups so he is not sure why it did not work with Macy's. Kena snubbed!

Sorely disappointed, Eric Banana tried to look at other sources. His Internet search pointed him to blog shops and sprees but he did not feel assured enough to make a purchase. Well, the scaredy cat is not about to pay good money to buy counterfeit products. Eventually, his web idling led him to L.L.Bean's website. He spotted a few bags which he thought look okay and decided to make a purchase from there instead. Commendably, L.L.Bean accepts international credit cards and ships orders to countries worldwide. Okay, so International Airmail takes two to four weeks but hey, who's in a hurry anyway? There is an International Express option as well but it costs more.

Anyway, AstroBanana's "Bean" bags arrived last Saturday. Hurray!

Here's what Astro Girl bought:

It is a red-trimmed L.L.Bean Boat & Tote Bag made in Maine using heavy-duty 24 oz. cotton canvas and signature double-layer base and handles. Its reinforced flat canvas bottom and overlapped seams double-stitched with nylon will not rot or break. It is so tough and rugged that it can stand on its own. Astro Girl went for the Medium size (12"H x 13"W x 6"D) and opted for Regular handles (6") and a zip-top (not depicted in the above pictures). Oh, don't underestimate this bag - it was featured as a "must-have" in either The Lucky Shopping Manual or The Lucky Guide to Mastering Any Style (Eric Banana cannot remember which book he saw it in - both books are currently with Astro Girl.)

In addition, Eric Banana gave her a charming Leaping Labs Boat & Tote Bag as a lil' present:

It is a variation of the regular Boat & Tote Bag but has a screen-printed graphic that wraps around the tote. It comes in Large size (15"H x 17"W x 7.5"D), and has regular handles (8") and an open-top.

As for Eric Banana, he ordered two large zip-top Hunter's Tote Bags:

The Hunter's Tote Bags are made from a tough 1,200-denier polyester shell with a thermoplastic interior coating that is both highly durable and highly water-resistant. Its overlapped seams double-stitched with nylon won't rot or break. An extra layer of polyester reinforces the bottom. The Large size measures 15"H x 17"W x 7.5"D. The colours Eric Banana picked are Advantage Max 4 HD and Olive Drab. Only the first one has arrived - the second one is still on the way.

The best thing about the four L.L.Bean tote bags? Well, you can buy all of them for the price of the Ralph Lauren tote bag :P