The Work Bag You’ve Been Searching For

For the lady who carries her office in her bag, the search for that perfect “work bag” can seem endless. In this search, you may have attempted style over function, deciding that there is no reason the cute bag that looks good with everything can’t also be a work bag. Sadly, many of us know the tragedies of this choice.

Papers and folders get lost without organization pockets, your laptop begins to tear a hole in the delicate fabric, and the straps dig into your shoulders. So, do you sacrifice style for function and comfort? The briefcase route seems severe, and a backpack has us feeling like a 16-year-old on her way to chemistry class. It’s truly the plague of the fashionista CEO.

The designers of Bartaile understand, which is why they have created a bag designed by both fashion and industrial designers. With the hashtag #fashioncanbeintelligent they have put forth a brand and product to meet the needs of professional women who care about their style, but need it to be functional to accommodate their lifestyle. And they’ve thought of everything. For everything that could possibly go awry in our bag, they have a solution. Bags in their C12 line come equipped with a water repellent lined interior, padded 15” laptop/tablet sleeve, microsuede-lined super soft glasses pocket, built-in gold-plated key ring, easy-access cables and chargers compartment, snap pocket for valuables, and a phone pocket.

For everything that could possibly go awry in our bag, they have a solution.

Founders Amina and Felicia first met in college in 2002 and realized they had a lot in common, including a love for travel. They parted ways after college and embarked on their own adventures, living in and working in three continents and twelve cities. In 2012, they finally met again while both pursuing their MBAs at The Wharton School. They shared similar stories of broken suitcases on far away flights and shoulder pain induced by heavy bags digging into their shoulders. So they decided to design a bag for those “going places.”

The name Bartaile was inspired by a small, yet mighty bird. The bar-tailed godwit bird flies 7,000 miles over the course of eight days, as it travels from Alaska to New Zealand. It does so without a break, without water, and without sleep or rest. For the working woman, a long day of commuting, work and caring for a family can seem like a 7,000-mile flight. But if this bag can make us as strong and mighty as the little bar-tailed godwit bird, we’re ready to order ours.

We headed over to bartaile.com to browse the bag options that they offer for the C12 line. The C12 bag in black is a classic pick in our minds. And you can’t go wrong with classic. This bag has a soft, supple, coated canvas body, thoughtfully designed by both fashion and industrial designers. It has 100% genuine Nappa leather handles, straps and trims, and overall, is durable, water-repellent, and very lightweight. We also love that you can wear this bag in 3 different ways:

As a Backpack

Strap this bag on your back and you’re ready to walk to work or across campus. The comfortable straps won’t dig into your shoulder, even if you’re carrying your laptop and a few books or papers.

As a Tote

You’ll be ready to walk into any meeting or event with this bag in hand. It’s professional, functional, and easy to carry.

Messenger Style

We love that we can hook the straps together and sling this bag over our shoulder. It looks fun and relaxed while maintaining the comfort that you need when carrying your office in your bag.

In addition to the classic black, the C12 bag also comes in heathered grey and black leather. All three of these options have the boss lady in us swooning, not to mention the special edition styles also available on the site including polka dot, blue, wine red and more. We’re keeping our eyes peeled for another appearance of these special edition bags because due to their popularity, they sold out fast!

Here at Darling, it gives us joy to see women paving the way to success in their careers, creating innovating products along the way. Bartaile inspires us and makes us smile because not only did Amina and Felicia follow their dreams and design a beautiful product, but they designed a product to empower and uplift their fellow women. They’re giving us a toolbox for our supplies that we can swing over our shoulders as we venture off to change the world. And they’re even making sure we look stylish while doing it.

Thank you to Bartaile for sponsoring this post! All thoughts, opinions and raves are our own.

Images by Allie Jeffers