A couple of years ago I was really hooked on the penny auction site, Quibids. I don’t know what possessed me, but I won an auction for an Ogio Hamptons Tote bag.
(My house is probably stuffed with different backpacks, satchels, and gym bags but – for some reason I always think we need more.)
It was a good year before I found a use for this one and that was only because I had picked up crocheting again. This cute over-the-shoulder bag is the perfect modern tote for crocheters who want to take yarn and supplies on the road with them.
It’s the one I use for storing my latest project next to my sofa, too, so everything’s handy should I sit down to watch TV and want to multi-task with some work on whatever pattern I’ve got going at the time.
This worked perfectly last month when I had jury duty and wanted to bring my lap blanket with me to work on while I waited.
It’s really designed to be a laptop bag with a padded compartment inside but there’s plenty of room for your yarn, pattern instructions, hooks, needles, scissors and more.
The description said it would hold a 15″ laptop – which I have – but I can’t for the life of me wedge the laptop into that pocket horizontally. I have to stand it up on its end but the enclosure flap for that compartment is elastic so it stretches up and over the end and secures with velcro. The top does stretch enough over the end of my laptop to zip securely.
The exterior dimensions are 17.7 x 21.6 x 29.5 inches and the bag’s outside shape and interior pocket taper from wide at the top to slightly more narrow at the bottom.
I’ve stored an entire lap blanket, two books, paper instructions, and 5-6 skeins of yarn on the inside. In the image above I have a book and one 2.5 ounce ball of Lily Sugar’n Cream.
There’s nothing that comes between the interior contents and the zipper closure of the interior so I try to put any paper pattern instructions or a piece of cloth over the top before I zip it closed so that no loose yarn or my project is snagged when I open and close the top.
The interior is a nice, soft nylon with a vibrant, polka dot print. The front has large, decorative buttons and a little tie done in the same material as the bag. The polka dot print is repeated on the insides of the handles, too, so there’s a little flash of color even when the tote is all zipped up.
There’s a back pocket with two zippers that reveals lots of space for scissors, hook kits, measuring tools, pins, plastic needles and clips. The back section also has holders for pens where I slip in extra, individual crochet hooks.
I’m 5′ 2″ tall so short bag handles usually work best for my height but the handles on the Ogio are a little short even for me. When it’s completely full it doesn’t always want to stay on my shoulder. If you’re going to do a lot of walking with the bag (and I’m not sure why you would) it might not be ideal. However, if you’re just using it to take back and forth to the car then it’s perfect.
What I love most is that it doesn’t look like a craft bag – it looks just like a casual tote with a modern feel. Because it’s not wide, it doesn’t knock into things as I’m walking along, either. It also comes in other colors like red, taupe and black.