This is a review of the Saint Laurent Toy Loulou bag.
Saint Laurent
Saint Laurent, known as YSL for short, is a luxury fashion house known for their highly popular bags. Looking at their well-known items – the Sunset, Kate, or Wallet on Chain – all their bags feature a clean, somewhat edgy and modern look. Of course, for the modern woman, there are bags for her worklife (think the YSL tote or Sac du Jour) and play (any of their mini bags).
Mini Bag: Toy LouLou
In my entire bag collection blogpost (August 2020), I revealed having the Toy Loulou in a velvet material and navy colour (very dark blue).
Saint Laurent Toy Loulou in Velvet (Navy)
Measuring 20 x 14 x 7.5 cm (7.8 x 5.5 x 2.9 inch), the Saint Laurent Toy Loulou appears black under dim or yellow-ish light, and navy under white light.
the Navy Velvet shade pops in natural light
The front flap is graced with the trademark YSL initials in gold. Overall, the Toy Loulou carries the Y-quilted overstitching (also fondly referred to as a chevron pattern), giving it a 3D textured effect.
Again – depending on the lighting, the 3D-ness can be very obvious or very subtle.
a more subtle 3D appearance under lighted areas with shadow
Structurally – the bag is pretty square-shaped and has a simple front flap opening.
with a magnetic closure
Both the inner flap and bottom is lined with leather.
Leather bottom
It also comes with a leather strap that could be converted into a wrist strap, but i rarely use it on the wrist as it’s heavy and cumbersome to convert back and forth. As a shoulder bag, it has a strap drop of 57cm.
Leather strap
What fits in my Bag
I consider these the bare essentials: card holder, small wallet, handphone, and a bit of make up – eyeshadow and lip balm (or lipstick, depending on the day).
Not pictured: handphone
What fits in the Saint Laurent Toy Loulou – is determined largely by the bag’s internal structure, which has:
- 1 central flat pocket (in the middle)
- 3 card slots (front side) + 1 additional small pocket
- 1 zipped compartment (back side)
- 2 separate internal compartments
Note the zipped compartment at the back
Three built-in card compartments at the front.
Looking at the interior, it’s easy to see the card slots. Less obvious is an additional small pocket that’s behind the card slots – and it’s large enough to fit a card holder.
With three cards + lady dior card holder
However, for the sake of easy access, I usually prefer putting my card holder in the middle central flat pocket.
Middle pocket – despite how contained it looks, card holders, loose cash or receipts easily slide in and out of the space without much hassle
The zipped pocket also easily accomodates the card holder. Personally, I rarely use this as i find it more cumbersome.
Zipped pocket
Usually, I carry my chanel compact wallet in one of the pockets, and again it fits just about right, with even a little bit of space to wiggle about on the left or right.
Easily snaps shut – Without a laptop
In the other pocket, cosmetics are placed right there. Even if it’s not obvious (I didn’t slide the cosmetics in all the way down, for picture’s sake), there’s a LOT of room left and I can include my handphone (samsung galaxy note 5) OR a couple more cosmetic items (e.g. mascara or blush).
Just the right amount of stuff 🙂
This is a bag designed for the minimalist day or night out however, so I wouldn’t overstuff it. Mini bags are meant to be lightweight after all.
Velvet: symbol of luxury
While the Saint Laurent Toy Loulou comes in both leather and velvet versions, the velvet material embodies that extra luxe factor.
Not only is it soft to touch, it evokes the feelings of a rich, expensive fabric that’s silky to the core.
At MO Bar, Mandarin Oriental Singapore
Thus, it’s a great companion for fancy events or high tea at hotels. I’ve brought it out for afternoon tea at Mandarin Oriental before, and the whole ambience of cosyness – plush sofas, dim lighting – was just the perfect occasion to use a velvet bag.
I mean, doesn’t it just blend in?
Honestly, the velvety Toy Loulou complements black-tie occasions and formal dresses like no other. It elevates the whole outfit, and more importantly, really FEELS like luxury.
At the Mandarin Oriental hotel, Singapore
Maybe i’m crazy, but it even looks good with the bathroom sinks as the backdrop…
Mod Shots
Carrying the Toy Loulou with jeans and a polo top to show that it can be paired with casual outfits, and NOT look out of place.
‘Bag of the day’ shot
I only carry this bag one way – as a crossbody. It sits slightly above the hip on my frame (For reference, I am 154cm tall, or 5 feet 1/2 inch).
Excuse the body language. I’m really short, I was on tippy toes in the hotel bathroom.
Love how it looks from the sideview. (And Yes, my face is blurred)
Overall Pros and Cons
In summary, my general thoughts of the Saint Laurent Toy Loulou are as such:
Pros:
1) It’s a unique mini bag – particularly the velvet version, you don’t usually see something like this on the market.
2) Internal compartments: great for organization (but some are put off by this as it limits what they can fit inside… so to each his/her own)
3) Price point. For a luxury bag, the price point is reasonable. At the time of buying, it costed about 1500 SGD.
A similar mini bag from chanel (think the coco mini handle or chanel mini), dior (e.g. lady dior mini) or hermes (the constance 18) is waaaay more expensive. Other ‘cheaper’ mini bags (e.g. Mulberry lily – which is 2/3 to 3/4 the price of the toy loulou) tend to not feel as luxe.
I do have another YSL mini bag – the mini lou camera (see reviews here!), and the price point is also similar to this Toy loulou
Cons… I only have one.
It’s made of VELVET.
While stains and scuffs can be cleaned or more easily restored with leather and canvas, unfortuantely, it isn’t the case with velvet.
This makes the velvet version significantly less carefree than her leather counterpart. It means being more careful with greasy or wet hands. Rubbing on rough surfaces, according to my SA, also may damage the velvet itself.
Personally, i have not found the bag to be THAT delicate, but again I use it only at more elegant places.
What about my dear readers? Does anyone have experience with velvet bags that they care to share?
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