mini cafe bag

[mrae]

I use the Imago for my everyday bag. But I always add a small shoulder or convertible bag in case I only need something very light during the day. I tried my small cafe bag but it's too large for this purpose.

Any possibility something like this could be made? Even the medium size pouch with some kind of strap would probably work.

[Just]

I'm picturing like a fanny-pack sort of deal?

[mrae]

Fanny pack would be fine. Or convertible fanny/shoulder pack.

[timarelay]

I am on Spring break and have discovered that unlike while I'm in the US and at school, my Imago is not a perfect all the time companion and I have resorted to borrowing a small shoulder bag from a friend to carry around essentials (has room for my wallet, my camera and chapstick. And a few other tiny things.). It would be great if there were a mini cafe-bag type that was very lightweight and portable.

But not a fannypack. I wouldn't like a fannypack.

In the meantime, I'm hunting for something cheap and simple. Probably going to end up with one of those small purse vaguely-messenger type shoulder bags I've been seeing around.

[Darcy]

What you're describing is something that is often requested, and is definitely on the short list of Tom's products to design in the near future.

It would definitely be a shoulder bag and not a fanny pack.

You might want to check out the small shoulder bags over at Battle Lake Outdoors. Specifically, the Shoulderoo Pouch. Battle Lake Outdoors products are made in Minnesota.

[backpack]

What I would like is either a mini cafe bag or a medium pouch with a zipper on the shorter/portrait side instead of the longer/landscape side and a comfortable ajustable strap.

It would need to be big and long enough to hold a traditional plane/train ticket and a passport and maybe keys, wallet and even the quart ziplock for liquids.

It would be worn around the neck or accross the chest comfortably so that he could be removed very fast at security checkpoints but otherwise kept close to the body for maximum security while traveling.

A grape, blue, steel and black color would be ideal. The first two colors to spot the bag/pouch really fast amoung the stuff inside airport security bins and the more neutral ones to blend with business/more conservative outfits and bags.

[dzd]

I also vote for a mini Cafe Bag type style! Is this still in the works? Any ETA?

My favorite bag for short outings/shopping trips is the Eagle Creek Compass - one of the very few small (messenger style) bags out there with a handle. It can fit something along the lines of: wallet, keys, phone, notepad, small water bottle, and a few other small odds and ends. Like mrae, I also like these small bags so I can just keep the essentials/valuables on me while I leave the big bag behind in the office during lunch, etc.

The Compass has no O-rings, though (probably not a big deal, for such a small bag), and the colors aren't as electrifying as TB's great color combos. I think the color combos would look super cute on such a mini bag! :drool:

Also, I'm just wondering if a TB bag this small would have a flap. I usually prefer just zippers to flaps. But don't get rid of the handle!! :)

[backpack]

I also vote for a mini Cafe Bag type style! Is this still in the works? Any ETA?

My favorite bag for short outings/shopping trips is the Eagle Creek Compass - one of the very few small (messenger style) bags out there with a handle. It can fit something along the lines of: wallet, keys, phone, notepad, small water bottle, and a few other small odds and ends. Like mrae, I also like these small bags so I can just keep the essentials/valuables on me while I leave the big bag behind in the office during lunch, etc.

The Compass has no O-rings, though (probably not a big deal, for such a small bag), and the colors aren't as electrifying as TB's great color combos. I think the color combos would look super cute on such a mini bag! :drool:

Also, I'm just wondering if a TB bag this small would have a flap. I usually prefer just zippers to flaps. But don't get rid of the handle!! :)

Below is the link for The Side Effect
http://www.tombihn.com/page/001/PROD/ACC/TB0412


It has everything you are looking for. :)

[flitcraft]

The Side Effect isn't the same as a mini cafe bag--not the same vertical orientation or the same versatility in organization. A fine bag, but not a mini cafe bag. Sign me up for three or four...

[yeti]

I'm also still hoping for a Mini Cafe Bag -- I like the vertical orientation of the Cafe Bags. I've looked at the Eagle Creek Compass too, but it doesn't have quite the balance of form and function that is characteristic of the TB bags. It does seem like a practical option, but I'm holding out for a Mini Cafe Bag ;)

[Shiva]

Hi folks: I have been really happy with Baggalini for a small lightweight compact bag that does not look too pursy, but can also handle some stuff. A mini cafe bag would be great--but until then...

[backpack]

When I wrote about the Mini Cafe Bag in 07, I didn't have a Small one.

I since bought 2 and will most probably buy more, it holds my essentials.

If I want anything smaller, I clip one or two Passport Pouches and my phone's Small Pouch to the Simple Strap (the one sold with the Side Effect).

I am sure Tom can make a Mini Cafe Bag but for people who own the FJN it seems redundant..


I have owned bags from some the other manufacturers mentioned but they don't last.

[yeti]

When I wrote about the Mini Cafe Bag in 07, I didn't have a Small one.

I since bought 2 and will most probably buy more, it holds my essentials.

If I want anything smaller, I clip one or two Passport Pouches and my phone's Small Pouch to the Simple Strap (the one sold with the Side Effect).

I am sure Tom can make a Mini Cafe Bag but for people who own the FJN it seems redundant..


I have owned bags from some the other manufacturers mentioned but they don't last.

I do own a Small Cafe Bag, and while I find it very useful, I frequently wish that it were scaled down a bit. That preference is probably due to a combination of the amount of stuff I carry, my size (5'2", ~105 lbs), and the fact that I with some frequency want to throw my "purse" with essentials into my backpack for commuting to campus, or into a larger travel bag like the Tri-Star. I notice the "superfluous" fabric most in these situations.

There seems to be a large size difference between the combined volume of one or two Passport Pouches + Small Pouch and the volume of the Small Cafe Bag. My guess is that a Mini Cafe Bag would significantly exceed the capacity of that combination of Pouches attached to a Simple Strap, and even if it did not, at least I would find it much less unwieldy.

I don't agree at all that the Mini Cafe Bag is redundant with the FJN. To state this assumes that one would want to carry a notebook at all times. Personally, I don't. If I am carrying a notebook, I prefer to put it into a large bag along with my essentials bag. I am looking for an essentials bag that carries mobile phone, iPod touch + headphones, wallet, lip balm, Small Shop Bag, sunglasses, gum/mints and keys -- most importantly, though, is that I can carry all of these things in a bag large enough that I don't have to partly unload its contents to access one of the items, and the bag isn't so solidly stuffed that it bounces on my hip as I walk. Thus, the Side Effect is a little too small for my purposes (the sunglasses and Small Shop Bag are what really put it over the top). But as I mentioned, I have plenty of experience with the Small Cafe Bag, and I continue to find that I wish there were a Mini Cafe Bag.

IMO, there would be a good niche for a small, vertically-oriented flap-closed bag that hugs the hip like a Cafe Bag, is attractive enough for EDC (the Cafe Bags have a stylish simplicity), and fits easily into a larger bag when one needs to carry day-specific items. I like the Cordura colors, of course, but a bag of this kind could even be made from Dyneema to maximize molding to the body and flexibility when putting it into a larger bag.

That's just my experience and opinion, of course.

[backpack]

When I used the term redundant, speaking about the Mini Cafe Bag and the FJN, I was picturing myself with the FJN, the Synapse and the Small or a lightened Large Cafe Bag.

I am 5'7" and I understand how light the Small Cafe Bag is when compared to the Large one.

Of course, I would be delighted to see the Mini Cafe Bag coming in the line up of TB bags, I can always find uses for more TB bags. :)

[blackfungi]

you might as well not have a bag on you if you want a bag smaller than the small cafe bag. use your coat.