Hello everyone. I was watching Minnie on Minks4all on YouTube. She was reviewing the Lucca hobo and Florentine satchel. I’ve never bought Dooney but immediately placed both on my wishlist. She warned that coupon codes don’t work for the hobo (want in fuchsia). I signed up anyway and received a 20% off code. It didn’t work but would work for the satchel. I am not ready to purchase the satchel because I’d only wear it in fall. Anyway, I haven’t bought anything yet. I’d like to ideally buy the hobo this spring and then buy a satchel or 2 in the fall (love the natural and the navy). How good are the sales in the fall? Will I still get a great deal then? How often does Dooney have sales?
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Welcome. Dooney's main site and their ILoveDooney site have sales all the time.
And ILoveDooney also has an Ebay site. Prices and sales on all 3 sites are different and can change at any time.
My best advice is to stalk the bags you want. Check all 3 sites. Get familiar with the pricing and sales. Then, if you see a really good sale you can buy the bag (after checking all the sites that same day).
Colors are not always available.... especially fashion colors like fuchsia. This is especially true in the Florentine leather collection. And they sometimes don't come back for several years. There are generally more color options available
in pebbled leather styles, but here too, once a color sells out you might not see
it back for quite a while. Core colors, like black, natural or caramel, and red
are usually available. But I've seen years where there wasn't a navy Florentine bag in any style.
Dooney often does the same style, or very similar styles in different leathers.
So just be sure what you are ordering is the one you want. Sometimes the bags look alike, but the dimension are slightly different. Or one style will have different interior or exterior pockets or trim.
Sign up on the Dooney and ILoveDooney sites. They will send you emails (or texts) with info on the sale. Lots and lots of emails.
And also check in here on the forum. The ladies/gents are very good about sharing info on great sales.
Happy handbag hunting.
By the way, I love Dooney Florentine leather and pebbled leather. My collection of both is quite large. I've been collecting them for over 25 years. I don't own any of the new Lucca leather.... yet. It's on my list. Just waiting for the right
style at the right price.
One more tip, before I forget.... Dooney and ILoveDooney have decent return
policies.... but items on Clearance are generally final sale. So just be aware,
because the final sale info doesn't usually appear during the check out process,
it might be on the item page or the Clearance section page.
I've been lucky over the years and I haven't had to return more than 1 or 2 bags
(out of many) for any quality issues. The bags I've gotten from Dooney and ILoveDooney have been very well made and had no issues. But I know the styles and the colors and I know what to expect when I order the bags.
As a new buyer, I would think the flexibility to return an item would be important.
So be sure to double check when you order. Sometimes the measurements for a handbag on the site are wrong. Sometimes a bag just doesn't work for you.
Sometimes it's too heavy or you don't like the strap etc. Being able to return a
handbag is important. Ordering online and having to return items is a pain, and there is a cost.
But, it's important. And the small cost is worth it, especially when the initial shipping was probably free.
policies.... but items on Clearance are generally final sale. So just be aware,
because the final sale info doesn't usually appear during the check out process,
it might be on the item page or the Clearance section page.
I've been lucky over the years and I haven't had to return more than 1 or 2 bags
(out of many) for any quality issues. The bags I've gotten from Dooney and ILoveDooney have been very well made and had no issues. But I know the styles and the colors and I know what to expect when I order the bags.
As a new buyer, I would think the flexibility to return an item would be important.
So be sure to double check when you order. Sometimes the measurements for a handbag on the site are wrong. Sometimes a bag just doesn't work for you.
Sometimes it's too heavy or you don't like the strap etc. Being able to return a
handbag is important. Ordering online and having to return items is a pain, and there is a cost.
But, it's important. And the small cost is worth it, especially when the initial shipping was probably free.
Thank you so much! These posts are so informative and exactly what I need. I’m just curious though, is Ilovedooney Dooney and Bourke’s outlet/sake website? What is the difference between it and the main website?
I Love Dooney is the official online outlet for Dooney. They usually don't have the very newest styles, those are on the main Dooney site. And often for styles that are on both sites, as many styles are, the main site might have newer or more colors.
It is possible to get a customer return on either site, but it should be in new condition.
Some people think that there is a better chance of getting a factory wrapped item
on the main Dooney site. From my perspective, as long as the handbag I get is in
great condition, it doesn't bother me if someone unwrapped it first. After all, if you
buy in a dept. store, the items are handled by many people before you get them.
In my experience, the quality of the handbags is the same. And when I get a handbag,
I always evaluate the quality against the price. I never accept a handbag with structural
issues like a bad zipper or missed stitches, (which rarely happens anyway). But some leathers, like Florentine, are minimally processed and can show more natural characteristics
(like pebbling, or the rain of the leather in some areas, or even light scratches). In those cases, I have to decide if the price and the overall appearance of the bag pass my personal
inspection (and I'm very picky). Light scratches on Florentine leather can buff out, pebbling
is a natural characteristic of the leather, etc. so I don't let these things bother me, generally.
But if a handbag doesn't make me happy, then back it goes. (I return very, very, very
few handbags). Pebbled leather handbags are generally perfect, and the process tends to
blur natural characteristics of the leather.
Sometimes there are special sales on ILD where the items may be samples, returns, etc. These special sales are separately identified and will include disclaimers and are usually final sale.
BTW, on the main Dooney site, near the bottom of each item page, there is often a description of the leather used for that handbag. It's very informative and I sometimes
use it as a reference when deciding upon a newer leather to add to my collection.
I don't like coated leathers, like Saffiano. So it's useful for me to read the details.
I can also see info on the thickness of the leather. Not all leather and not all collections
are the same. Terms like pebbled leather are often fairly general and describe how the
leather looks.... but there are different types of pebbled leather that Dooney offers.
I don't have a problem with any of them, but some are better (thicker, etcr) than others.
Also remember that the same leather when used in a different style handbag will
feel differently. If the bag is unstructured, like a hobo, for example, the leather may feel
soft and smooshy. If the bag is very structured, like some satchel designs or some tote
designs, the the leather won't feel as soft.... same leather, but different construction of
the bags.
Thank you so much for another very informative reply! I will definitely check ilovedooney as well then. I think before I ordering anything, I’ll visit a local department store to see what they have. Even if they don’t carry a particular style or color I want, I’d like to get a feel for the leather. We have no Dooney specific store where I live. From what I understand, the brick and mortar Dooney stores are few.
I thought I directly replied to you, but it looks like I just made a new post. Oops!
As you investigate and shop, feel free to ask questions. Posters on the Dooney forum like to talk about handbags we love and can be very helpful.
We understand that everyone has different handbag styles, budgets, and needs. But posters here try to share what they have learned and experienced over time.
No matter how smart someone is, or how many handbags they own, no one knows everything. We all get smarter by learning from each other. And we know that things are always changing, so the new version of that older style may
not be the same as the version made years ago. This applies to any handbag
brand and probably everything else on the planet too.
Every handbag brand is different, and it takes a while to make sense of a brand that is new to you. As many handbags as I have, I still struggle to understand Coach handbags, for example. I'm enough of a handbag and leather nerd to want to know all about the leather, not just the style and pretty colors. And I know that the leather quality itself will make a difference in how the handbag looks and wears over time, how it feels, and whether I will love it.