Senreve Quality and Durability

[LupineLake]

Hi Everyone! I just received the Senreve Maestra bag to hold my laptop for work. I sometimes like to carry a bag by its top handle instead of using shoulder straps. When I took the bag out of the box and held the top handle I noticed the threads attaching the top handle to the bag on both sides were stretching just with the empty bag’s own weight. The threads seem pretty thin and there is only a single seam on both sides at the top. The design of the bag causes it to tilt forward, which I don’t mind, but I am afraid the the threads on the top handle will break once I fill it up. I have included some pictures. Has anyone else seen a similar issue And how has your handle held up? Maybe I should exchange it? I haven’t looked into the warranty Policy of the bag But I would be afraid that if the handle threads broke after 6 months senreve will say this is normal wear and tear. This is a fairly pricey work bag and I would like for it to last!

 

[dltpal]

I actually just reached out to Senreve because I wanted to visit their SF store location and they said it's open by appointments only. Now that you posted pictures, I'm questioning whether to buy the same bag or not. Maybe the midi or mini Maestra bag might be okay because they're smaller, thus weigh lighter?
How is your bag looking now that it's been over a month since you posted?

 

[LupineLake]

This is my experience thus far with Senreve:

On the positive side: I reached out to senreve and they have fabulous customer service. They respond via email within hours (sometimes within the hour) even in the middle of the night. They immediately reassured me that there is a lifetime guarantee and offered to exchange my bag. I received a new bag within 3 days. Then they followed up with me several weeks later to see how the bag was holding up. After using the bag for 1.5 months the exterior looks pristine and I am not careful at all! I received compliments about the bag from both men and women.

So here is the negative side: The replacement bag has the exact same defect with the stretched stitching on the top handle. I have been carrying my laptop with other work items in the bag for about 1.5 months and so far nothing worse has happened to the stretched stitches. It looks the same and has not broken. The top flap also pulls a little bit when the bag is being carried by the top handle and backpack straps. I think that is a design flaw because the top handle and backpack straps are sewn on to the portion of the top flap that is not attached to the body of the bag instead of the portion of the flap that is attached to the body of the bag so a lot of the weight is being put on the flap and subsequently transferred to the front buckle strap. When you see the bag, look at where the straps are sewn into at the top flap and you will see what I mean. I think if they attached the top flap and the handles to the body of the bag and added another row of stitching, it would feel much more secure and prevent the stretching. I also think that because of the placement of the straps, the top of the bag tilts when you wear it as a backpack and causes the bottom edge to dig into my back a little bit. It is not horribly uncomfortable but it does not sit flat on my back like a normal backpack. Last critique is that there is supposed to be a strap that secures your laptop in the laptop pocket but it is too short and does not allow me to buckle the strap. I have a 13 inch HP so it fits in the pocket and doesn’t move so it’s pretty secure and this is not a deal breaker for me.

In summary, I think they need to work on the handle placement. The customer service is stellar though, and the lifetime warranty is reassuring. As a caveat though, this is only my experience with the Maestra bag and these issues may not occur with the smaller sizes.

 

[dltpal]

This is my experience thus far with Senreve:

On the positive side: I reached out to senreve and they have fabulous customer service. They respond via email within hours (sometimes within the hour) even in the middle of the night. They immediately reassured me that there is a lifetime guarantee and offered to exchange my bag. I received a new bag within 3 days. Then they followed up with me several weeks later to see how the bag was holding up. After using the bag for 1.5 months the exterior looks pristine and I am not careful at all! I received compliments about the bag from both men and women.

So here is the negative side: The replacement bag has the exact same defect with the stretched stitching on the top handle. I have been carrying my laptop with other work items in the bag for about 1.5 months and so far nothing worse has happened to the stretched stitches. It looks the same and has not broken. The top flap also pulls a little bit when the bag is being carried by the top handle and backpack straps. I think that is a design flaw because the top handle and backpack straps are sewn on to the portion of the top flap that is not attached to the body of the bag instead of the portion of the flap that is attached to the body of the bag so a lot of the weight is being put on the flap and subsequently transferred to the front buckle strap. When you see the bag, look at where the straps are sewn into at the top flap and you will see what I mean. I think if they attached the top flap and the handles to the body of the bag and added another row of stitching, it would feel much more secure and prevent the stretching. I also think that because of the placement of the straps, the top of the bag tilts when you wear it as a backpack and causes the bottom edge to dig into my back a little bit. It is not horribly uncomfortable but it does not sit flat on my back like a normal backpack. Last critique is that there is supposed to be a strap that secures your laptop in the laptop pocket but it is too short and does not allow me to buckle the strap. I have a 13 inch HP so it fits in the pocket and doesn’t move so it’s pretty secure and this is not a deal breaker for me.

In summary, I think they need to work on the handle placement. The customer service is stellar though, and the lifetime warranty is reassuring. As a caveat though, this is only my experience with the Maestra bag and these issues may not occur with the smaller sizes.

Thank you so much! Just looking at the images they have on the site, you wouldn't really see those 'flaws.' I can definitely understand what you meant now that I look at the images you shared. I'm going try on the mini and midi sized Maestra at the store and see if that's a better fit for me. I might even look at their Aria belt bag as well.

 

[LupineLake]

You’re welcome! I think the smaller bags are cute and I will probably look into one of those, as well, when we’re allowed to travel again! Good luck with your trip to the store and I hope you’ll find something nice for yourself! Please share some pics if you end up getting a bag!

 

[teathyme]

Thank you so much! Just looking at the images they have on the site, you wouldn't really see those 'flaws.' I can definitely understand what you meant now that I look at the images you shared. I'm going try on the mini and midi sized Maestra at the store and see if that's a better fit for me. I might even look at their Aria belt bag as well.

Please let me know if you see any flaws with the mini sized Maestra as I have just purchased one. I am still waiting for it to ship and I have not had the opportunity to see the bags up close. I have only seen it on people passing in the streets. It looked super cute!

 

[*NYC Princess*]

Did you find the original size maestra uncomfortable especially with a laptop? I just bought one for a sleeker backpack out with the kids on a weekend holding their stuff (water bottles, change of clothes, snacks, diapers and wipes). But even empty, I’m finding the straps kind or uncomfortable.

 

[LupineLake]

I almost always carry the bag as a backpack since it’s most convenient in that form. I haven’t found the straps to be uncomfortable but I usually carry the bag for about 10 minutes at a time while walking from my car into the office and vice a versa. I’ve carried it for about 30 minutes while running into the grocery store after work but that’s about it. I would imagine that if you were using it for a diaper bag that you would carry it for longer periods of time for trips to the park though. It is a nice bag though and you’ll get lots of compliments. Last week a 6’3” football player type said that my bag was “dope”! Good luck with your decision!

 

[Ling11]

This is my experience thus far with Senreve:

On the positive side: I reached out to senreve and they have fabulous customer service. They respond via email within hours (sometimes within the hour) even in the middle of the night. They immediately reassured me that there is a lifetime guarantee and offered to exchange my bag. I received a new bag within 3 days. Then they followed up with me several weeks later to see how the bag was holding up. After using the bag for 1.5 months the exterior looks pristine and I am not careful at all! I received compliments about the bag from both men and women.

So here is the negative side: The replacement bag has the exact same defect with the stretched stitching on the top handle. I have been carrying my laptop with other work items in the bag for about 1.5 months and so far nothing worse has happened to the stretched stitches. It looks the same and has not broken. The top flap also pulls a little bit when the bag is being carried by the top handle and backpack straps. I think that is a design flaw because the top handle and backpack straps are sewn on to the portion of the top flap that is not attached to the body of the bag instead of the portion of the flap that is attached to the body of the bag so a lot of the weight is being put on the flap and subsequently transferred to the front buckle strap. When you see the bag, look at where the straps are sewn into at the top flap and you will see what I mean. I think if they attached the top flap and the handles to the body of the bag and added another row of stitching, it would feel much more secure and prevent the stretching. I also think that because of the placement of the straps, the top of the bag tilts when you wear it as a backpack and causes the bottom edge to dig into my back a little bit. It is not horribly uncomfortable but it does not sit flat on my back like a normal backpack. Last critique is that there is supposed to be a strap that secures your laptop in the laptop pocket but it is too short and does not allow me to buckle the strap. I have a 13 inch HP so it fits in the pocket and doesn’t move so it’s pretty secure and this is not a deal breaker for me.

In summary, I think they need to work on the handle placement. The customer service is stellar though, and the lifetime warranty is reassuring. As a caveat though, this is only my experience with the Maestra bag and these issues may not occur with the smaller sizes.

Thanks for sharing your detailed thoughts about your bag! I recently just saw the alunna mini in my Facebook feed and it looks terribly cute! I am not familiar with this brand but it seems a lot of Youtubers push it and it gets a lot of negative hype :/

The stitching problem is disappointing I hope for the smaller bags it may not be as obvious that stretched stitch would drive me up the wall tbh

 

[idlehen]

Thanks for sharing your detailed thoughts about your bag! I recently just saw the alunna mini in my Facebook feed and it looks terribly cute! I am not familiar with this brand but it seems a lot of Youtubers push it and it gets a lot of negative hype :/

The stitching problem is disappointing I hope for the smaller bags it may not be as obvious that stretched stitch would drive me up the wall tbh

Hi, I don't know if this will help but I just bought the Alunna during their pre-black friday promotion and I do not think the stitching issue is a problem on it. The top handle is a different style (sewn on top of the flap rather then sewn on the back portion where the buckle is also sewn). Therefore when you hold it from the top handle, the weight is straight down and not at an angle like on the Maestra bags. Also, even if it did have the same issue, the Alunna is quite small so I doubt the bag would get heavy enough to cause problems anytime soon.

Unless you really like tiny bags, I would recommend the fullsize over the mini Alunna. When I received mine (I got the fullsize), my first thought was that it was smaller than I imagined (and I actually wanted a small bag lol). There is a Youtuber angeleyn that does an unboxing/first look at both the sizes that I found helpful. I also found it hard to get much info on this brand as everyone on Youtube seems to be sponsored by them and there really aren't any reviews on the Alunna yet either since it's pretty new, but the it kept calling to me so I decided to go for it. I haven't had much chance to take it out yet but I do like the quality and feel of the bag. Their packaging is also very nice and it was shipped super quick. I think the quality is there and right now they are just pushing most of their marketing through Youtube since they are a young company. At least that is what I hope. So far I am happy with my bag though and am now eyeing the Aria.

 

[kristiny]

I just want to comment on the Alunna and the stitching issue. I just recently discovered that the stitching of the leather piece on the right D-ring is stretched. I don't know if wearing it as a backpack was the cause of this issue. I also don't overstuff my smaller purses/handbags. I'm a little disappointed because I really like this bag. The stitching problem was the reason why I didn't go for any of the Maestra bags because I tend to stuff the heck out of the bigger bags.

I dropped off my Alunna bag at a local cobbler to get fixed this morning and won't get it back till next Tuesday. I purchased the Alunna from Shopbop so it's not even covered by Senreve's limited 2 year warranty. I remember when they used to have a lifetime guarantee warranty. The bag isn't even a month old!