how is the quality of mac by mj

SummerSummer

Member
Jul 26, 2007
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i went to the local holt renfrew store yesturday and fell in love with a mac by mj bag. After i checked the quality, i decided to quit. That bag costs 525 $, good price, ah? but the leather quality is sux, worse than Roots. what do u guys think?
 
there has been some discussion about both the quality of MJ collection and MbyMJ bags this season -- here's a thread specifically on MbyMJ: http://forum.purseblog.com/marc-jacobs/not-impressed-all-mbymj-fall-bags-anyone-else-317634.html

Overall, I still think MbyMJ bags are worth the money -- he has changed this leather this season on some of the styles, but I haven't heard too many issues having to do with workmanship and quality. There are still some great bags that are made with buttery soft, thick pebbled leather -- I do know that the Groovee is being made with a different type of leather this season -- it's not quite as soft as previous seasons and it seems to have a finish or glaze over it -- I would think that this would serve as a type of protection or barrier against staining and scratches.

I purchased a new MbyMJ bag from the f/w line but decided to return it (the Lock It Up Camille), and I found that bag to be extraordinarily thick and soft and the details were amazing. If I hadn't had my eye on so many collection bags, I definitely would have kept it. If I ever come across one on sale and/or on ebay for a decent price, I would seriously consider buying another.

Do you happen to know which style you were looking at? Color? At $525, it sounds like it could have been a Groovee or one of the more popular styles this season.
 
I was just in Holt's last week (Vancouver) and my opinion is that the totally turnlock bags, i.e., faridah, quinn & mini quinn, mag bag seem a lot sturdier and well made than the dr. q groovee. I was actually surprized that the grape juice groovee was so flimsy. Without stuffing, it was a thin puddle. In addition, I saw the new black "staples and studs" satchel, which I have been drooling over at zappos but IRL, it appeared to look flimsy as well so I will take a pass. I did snag the fool's gold faridah which is TDF!
 
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iluvmybags:Thanks for your reply. that is Dr. Q Groovee Satchel, portabello.Do you think that is a good buy? I totally love the style, but i can tell the leather is not so good by looking at its lining. And the sales got a new one for me. I was shocked by the black spots on the leather all over the place. he said sorry to me since he thought that was a big problem too.
 
hmmmmm. I just recently saw a big batch of MBMJ at Nordies, and was pretty impressed by them. They looked a lot nicer than what I had expected. But then, if I had expected them to look like the collection bags, I probably would have been a little disappointed. Does that make sense?
 
I own a black patchwork Dr. Groove convertible clutch and I absolutely love it :tup: It is my everyday bag. I also have the MbyMJ turnlock zip clutch in Elderberry and I love it too. Both of my MbyMJ are super soft, super lightweight and I haven't had any issues with the quality.

If you're looking for an everyday bag, MbyMJ is the way to go IMO. I'm a city girl and when you're on the go I rather carry something super light for those days when I'm running late and sprinting to work :P
 
oh, the leather may not be like the previous seasons'. But there has been no reported issues on the quality or workmanship. I have been reading reviews about the new fall/winter 08 groovee, and while a lot have been concerned that the leather is not as thick or as soft as it used to be, nobody has complained that the leather will not hold. And there has been no showing that it is not as durable as the old mbmjs.

so, let's see. but so far, so good.
 
iluvmybags:Thanks for your reply. that is Dr. Q Groovee Satchel, portabello.Do you think that is a good buy? I totally love the style, but i can tell the leather is not so good by looking at its lining. And the sales got a new one for me. I was shocked by the black spots on the leather all over the place. he said sorry to me since he thought that was a big problem too.

maybe this will convince you -- this PFer seems to LOVE her Portabello Groovee - http://forum.purseblog.com/marc-jacobs/dr-who-dr-grooooveeeeeee-350809.html
 
Somebody wrote about holes in the leather of the new Groovee a couple of weeks ago. She had problems with the exchanged Groovee, too.

I have the S/S 08 Groovee and the leather is soft and thick. It seems to be a little thicker as far as I can tell from the pictures, but I really love the colors of the new Groovees. The dark portobello looks amazing on leenie15. It is a great color.
 
I really like M by MJ - although I like the collection bags better, I have a Turnlock Teri in Midnight and it has been a real workhorse bag for me! The leather is great and sturdy, it has stayed in great shape and I am just really impressed. The only thing I don't love about it is the zipper, which after a couple of months started to stick a bit, but I should probably just get around to putting some WD-40 on it.

I really like the leather - it is thicker but yet still very soft. Really good quality IMO and also not as delicate as some other leathers out there if you are looking for an everyday knockaround bag that doesn't need a lot of pampering.

Really good value for $400 IMO - I have some bags in the $600 range that have not held up nearly as well as the Teri!
 
I actually posted this on another thread- but, I bot the grape groovee from Nordys. The leather was extremely distressed - I returned it, but kept looking at it at other stores because I like the style. Went to the MBMJ boutique and noticed a big difference in the quality of leather. Smooth, silky and not as distressed as the department store ones - Maybe my imagination, but the quality seems to be better from the boutique (unless I got lucky with this one bag). I love this bag and tend to use my MBMJ's on more casual days...
 
Seems there are a number of mentions of this topic here in the forum. I purchased and returned an elderberry Faridah at Holt Renfrew last week. The leather was papery and dull (here's my lament in another thread: http://forum.purseblog.com/marc-jacobs/whats-going-on-with-mbmj-bags-323816-3.html#post7716525). Yesterday, however, I visited a different Holt Renfrew and found the MbMJ leather to be MUCH, MUCH better in quality; so I bought the Faridah again (yay!). I took a look at the other items on display and, in the larger bags, found that the quality of the leather varied. The leather used for the Teri's was better than that of the Faridah's, generally speaking. The smaller accessories, e.g., clutch, pochette, etc. seemed to have the best leather. Definitely buttery and soft, if somewhat more pebbled than the leather of previous years. So I guess it's important to see this season's pieces IRL before buying.
 
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