Love your collection, I'm a fan of big and slouchy bags too, especially in black and dark blue/green/red colors.
Do you have any bags that you really liked but when you purchased them or tried them on at the store, you realized they just did not work out for you?
Thank you! This is honestly more color than I imagined I would ever have, especially since my mom instilled in me that all-black everything is always the safest choice haha
Hmm, that's genuinely a tough question to answer since my limited budget means that I agonize over every decision I make, but there's definitely been a few duds here and there.
Out of my current collection, I would say I don't reach for the YSL Muse and Muse Two as often as I'd like; the Muse (notwithstanding the horrible dye job I did ) because of the awkward handle length - the oversized's proportions feel much more "correct" for lack of a better word, and the Muse Two because of how finicky the straps and closure situation is - I commute by public transportation and opening and closing the bag gets tiring fast when you're on the move.
With regards to the ones that got away, I once really liked the idea of shopper totes - think Celine Cabas, LV Neverfull. When I was in college, I used to want a Neverfull GM so bad because I felt like I needed the large open space, but after saving up for quite some time and trying one at the store I found that my style simply has changed and evolved during that period of time. I think I also outgrew monograms in general, largely because how my job as a journalist just wasn't the best time and place for visible logos.
Even now, I'm looking at smaller bags that's the same length as a continental wallet - something I wouldn't even consider 3 to 4 years ago when I started building my collection. Maybe I'll even ditch all these for a camera bag one day