Any Bal & Prada owners?

akillian24

akillian24

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Aug 16, 2008
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2
#1
Hey All!

I'm looking at getting a black bag from Santa this Christmas (or so I'm writing for one...) and wondering: For those of you who own both Bals and Prada, what are the Pros/Cons of both? I truly can't decide between the two. A Prada Guaffre (nappa or tessuto) or a Bal City with GSH.......
Currently, I only own a Chanel Jumbo (caviar, beige).

Thanks so much for any insight!
 
#2
I own both Prada Guaffre tessuto and Bal City RGGH, but my gurffre is the small size, so it doesn't hold as much as Bal City. A medium Guaffre probably weighs about the same as a giant City.
And the shoulder strap on Guaffre also much longer. When carrying it on shoulder, the bag hangs around the hip. Some petite people can even wear it cross body.
I myself cannot wear City cross body, and I'm only 5'4".
Speaking of the style, I love both of them. I do feel Guaffre is slightly more ladylike, but since mine is in tessuto, I don't baby it AT ALL. Worry free. Bal city can be dressed up or down, very versatile. However, recently I feel Bal Giant is too heavy for me, so now I carry regular hardware most of time.
Just my 2 cents.
 
#3
I have several of each & one difference is that Prada leather is much tougher than Bal. Bal leather wears out quicker (corners are particularly bad) & scratches more easily. My bags are all light colors & the Bals pick up dirt much easier, though you won't have that problem with black.

You need special cleaning & treatment products for Bal leather. I clean my Pradas with this cream from the local shoe shop, works fine. I throw them around and don't worry about them, the Bals it is always, 'careful! I shouldn't hold it by the handle too much'.

If you can't pick your Bal in person, be very careful - the leather quality & characteristics varies a lot between the same Bal bag. Pradas, if one bag is good, all of the same bag tend to be good, the leather is more consistent.

Bag usage & style is very personal, but I find the best looking Bal styles somewhat impractical in use (City & PT), whereas the classic Pradas at least I find much more accessible.

Advantage to Bal - I'm a blue/green bag person & Bal has the variety of colours, some just beautiful, to die for. That alone makes them worth the drawbacks, most of the time anyway.
 
#5
Ok, after all that MissFlurryCat has said, I need to add this on. I find myself using the prada gauffre and my city very differently. It depends on what I'm wearing cos they look very different! I have the option of carrying the prada cross body as I am petite. So that gives it a more casual look. However, when carried on the arm, it can look more sophisticated and classy, especially a black gauffre. The city on the other hand gives a more tough biker chic appearance which is very different from the gauffre.

Which suits your lifestyle better? For me, that would be the question to ask cos they are VERY DIFFERENT bags. ;)
 
#6
I own both Prada and Bal, but they are incomparable because they are so different. I own both soft calfskin leather and regular calfskin leather bags. To be honest, I like the soft calfskin leather more because it just feels better. Yet, the regular calfskin leather is so durable that it's almost impossible to scratch the bag up! I like Prada bags because they have many different styles to go with different outfits. However, the color selection is pretty boring every season. Whereas Bbags come with so many different colors every season. Their leather is so yummy! I also like Bbags because its a very low key bag that doesn't have any logo on the bag.
 
#7
Both are very different but great bags. If you have enough moolah you should get both! But it depends mainly on your usage. I have both guaffre tessuto and city sgh. I use the prada when im going out with my toddler, because its lightweight, can be carried crossbody and dont need any babying. For my balenciaga, I wear it when i go dating with my DH or to work when I need to glam up my look.

Hope you can reach a decision soon :smile:
 
#8
^Everyone has said everything so well, that there's not much to add! I have several Pradas, and IMO, they are very classy, stylish, and well worth the money. I am more "new" to Balenciaga. I had one years ago when they first came out, but recently got another one.

I have a Prada antik noce gauffre tote that I can wear crossbody and, like bagmania said, it can look casual, but when hand-held looks extremely classy at the same time. I have used it well, but it still looks amazing and has little to no corner wear. I've heard Bal leather is not as tough, but with so many gorgeous colors coming at us, who cares, LOL?!!? As erinz said, if possible, I'd recommend having both! Variety is the spice of life!
 
#9
I have both Prada tessuto Gauffre and bal bag of course :smile:
they are very different to me. Bal will suit a more stylish, punkish kind of dressing while Prada Gauffre is more formal, ladylike and work appropriate ... if you already have a chanel jumbo which is quite formal as well, maybe a bal bag will be a better option?
 
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