JJ Cole Satchel

Functional but not durable – I bought this bag when my second one was due. It is roomy n organising two kids stuffs is easy. However, it compares nowhere on durability to the first bag i had and used for nearly two years. I've been using this one for four months now (only on weekends though) and its stroller grip has broken, shoulder strap hooks are cracked n chipping off... And we hardly carry this bag on shoulder!! Rest looks fine so far.

Beautiful & practical – I bought this bag when baby #2 was on the way as the first nappy bag I had (Isoki reversible) looked pitiful after 2 years of almost daily use. I needed something that was very spacious, as I would still need to carry a few things for my toddler such as spare clothes, water bottle, snacks. I was specifically looking for something lightweight with a full zip closure, as this was something my Isoki did not have. I also wanted something stylish without the Storksak price tag (love the look of the Elisabeth Storksak but couldn't justify the price for leather).

Pretty much everything else on the market is quite ugly or just not spacious enough for my needs, or did not have a top zip closure. I found the JJ Cole bag at Babies r Us and loved the grey exterior print with fresh lime-green interior. It was also almost as roomy as my Isoki but had the zip closure I was looking for and was very light-weight. It has 2 large side pockets which easily fit my water bottle on one side, and my toddler's water bottle on the other. It comes with a simple change-mat and no other additional fussy and unnecessary accessories (some bags have additional small bags for bottles or clothes, or overly fancy change mats). It does have one accessory that I LOVE: stroller clips! Best invention EVER! These little things attach to pram handles and hold the bag on the pram with easy to use, hard-wearing clips. Super easy to take the bag off or put on. The only downside is that they have once become detached from my pram handle whilst in the pram-fold-down-stuff-into-boot routine. Fortunately I found it on the garage floor as I'm not sure if replacement clips can be bought.

I've only been using this bag (daily) for 2 months now so I can't comment on durability, but so far, so good.

The only thing I don't like is that it has 2 dinky little zippered pockets on the front which can barely be described as pockets. They are only big enough to hold a packet of tissues, or hand sanitiser, or dummy if you use one, but I guess they do make the bag look nice. Certainly a bit deceptive to describe them as pockets, though, as they can't really fit anything.

Have received a few positive comments on the bag & stroller clips and I am still loving the design and functionality of this bag. A bit expensive for a nylon bag, and would have liked it to be a touch more roomy (I seem to carry around lots of stuff) but otherwise an excellent purchase and I am yet to see anything on the market that compares. If I could give half stars, this would be 4.5 stars, only deducting a half star for dinky front zip pockets & slightly expensive (for what it is) price tag. Stylish, practical, roomy, zip closure, stroller clips