Review: Prada Saffiano Lux Tote

Hello. I had the pleasure of purchasing the Prada Saffiano Lux Tote in the larger medium without the strap about 2 weeks ago. I'm not really going to bother with images since its quite a well known bag and I've got poor lighting. Maybe I'll come back. Actually here it is:

Artificial lighting

Sun light

I initially bought it in red simply because I didn't want to spend grands on a mundane bag. It has a very simple, structured cut so I thought it'd be nice to get it in a different colour then to make it a bit more special. The red is beauuuutiful. I was in love with it (still am), but I quickly found it wasn't suited for my lifestyle.

Prada allows a 10 day exchange/store credit thankfully so I was able to exchange my bag in the nick of time for the classical black one. I'll start off by saying there is a difference. I'm not sure if this was always the case or if the black Prada just recently had a change to its interior. The inside is the fabric Prada lining and the pockets of the red one was made of the fabric too. The black one is actually made from the Saffiano leather which is much better, obviously. So I'm very glad I made the swap. I've seen in youtube videos though that the coloured bags do get the saffiano leather pockets too, but they were with the smaller size.
The dust bag is also different, but I think it was more Prada changed their dust bags recently so I got a more newly manufactured bag. The red one had a white wooly dust bag, but the black one comes with a navy blue silk one which I prefer.
Each product you buy from Prada also comes with an authentication card which comes in the cuuuutest envelope.
After a week or two with this tote, I was greatly displeased with the functionality of one of the zips. It was slightly dipped, which I know isn't a problem, but if I'm gonna splurge on a bag, it better be perfect. This third bag doesn't have this problem. But it was a sample bag, not saying it was of worse quality or anything, but obviously it has been laid out and used in the store. The leather feels softer than my brand new one (meaning older) and the four studs down the bottom are all scratched :(. But it was either that or a dipped zip, so I decided to go for the one that looked more aesthetically perfect. Prada could do with some more quality control. If there's something you take away from this post, its that. Prada could do with some more quality control. Ffs, hire me, I've done a few lessons on what standards are. I PAID FULL PRICE FOR AN IMPERFECT BAG. Argh that really gets me! But its not gonna stop me.

Functionality

It looks quite structured and feels quite hard which I love. And its beautiful from every angle. It has a trapezoid shape when you snap the two sides together but I wear it open to fit all my junk. I first got this with the intention of having it as my going out bag, but I'm not one to practise patience so I just wear it to uni. I'll wear it till I get a new uni bag. It's not a small bag, but it certainly isn't a big bag so I wasn't sure she'd be able to hold all my crap, but alas I was wrong. I can fit my lab coat, 5 subject notebook, 6 pens in a pocket, small bag, scarf and massive wallet in there. With space to spare. So it is definitely very usable as an everyday bag. She does get quite heavy with all that though. I went shopping for hours carrying that on my arm and by the end of it, I was just shoving it on my shoulder. This messes up the shape of the bag and the 'straightness' of the zip but when you let it sit, it reshapes itself so yay. Tick!

I've also cruelly subjected it to the rain. I was half terrified but half curious as to what it could handle. After being rained down on, the droplets just slide down the bag and the exterior remains the same. So tick!

Boos

Now the downside. Unfortunately there are downsides (plural). I have a few complaints about the quality of Prada which I should have picked up on earlier.
1. The handles. My handles! If you look at the leather, it has a nice sheen to it from the coating. One of my handles lacks this so it looks a bit duller and you can see the cuts they put on the leather. It looks so mechanical. This bothers me. This was the case with both the black totes I picked up.
2. The gold hardware attaching the handle to bag. One of the ringlets has weird shit on it. I've tried taking it off but I can't so I might have to pay them a visit. I can't tell if its from poor quality product or if something's just gotten stuck to it. This does not bother me.
3. Can I also add, that having been through 3 bags, they were all different? One of them had smooth zips, some of them didn't. Some had shiny handles and some didn't. There was no consistency. Its a hit and miss buying from Prada. I can only hope their smaller leather goods don't have such an issue holding up itself.

My red bag also had some some quality issues too. There was a patch of discoloration on the bag which is picked up when light hits it. Like the actual area is a pinkish white. No one is gonna buy that particular bag.
I did some research online and apparently there have been numerous complaints from their customers for different reasons.

But overall I love it. It is definitely worth its money. Make sure you stick to your one SA, because the other ones don't care for you, I guess maybe because they're not getting paid to mop up someone else's customer. Or maybe its just rude service.

Yays

I hate to leave on a bad note. The bag is beautiful. It smells like a gorgeous cow. There were concerns online about how there's no basing for the bag so things can clump and pull the bottom of the bag downwards. I have not had that issue thus far. Saffiano leather is just so tough that it maintains its shape quite well.