Lately I been busy with real life work and trying out new stuff, one of them the notion of the man bag and did some research of my own and reevaluating the bags that I actually own and what’s missing. Though its common for men of Europe and America to carry tote bags, I am surprise that its catching up in Malaysia too and our neighbour the Singapoeans are at the forefront in this trend in Asia. Perhaps its traveling a lot on foot becomes practical and utility on bag usages for the urban man. Or the fact that your fat wallet, loose change, car keys, cigarettes, lighter, pocket knife, hankie is making you pants pocket look big and uncomfortable when you are sitting on it. Nevertheless, men’s bags are coming back in a big way recently that possibly going to rival the ladies.
After trashing open my store room and dragging out all my old bags (except my travel luggage which will be another tale or blog later) I’ve discovered I have multiple copies of similar backpacks and free as corporate gifts in the form of bags with their huge logos and cheap built (why you think its free?).
The boring laptop bag for my work HP laptop
The awesome leather briefcase for my chic MacBook
The classic briefcase is the basic urban man bag with the advent of mobile workforce and lifestyle, you’ll need one of this to carry your laptop safe from the elements and accidental drops. The most common are those that comes with your laptop manufacturer, albeit they are designed for safety and fit for your laptop, but most of the time it looks average and most case poorly constructed. Opt for a leather briefcase with a timeless design that adds a level of professionalism to your work and separate you from the rest of the corporate drones.
The everyday messenger bag
With the spat of snatch thievery targeting laptop users due to the easily identified manufacturer logo, it pays to carry a messenger bag as your laptop bag. Besides, it doubles as useful day to day bag to carry your wallet, keys, cellphone, iPod, books, magazines, breath mints, spare clothes and cards.
The gym bag
Every man needs to keep fit and do sporting of some sort, and its no fun carrying your gear in a plastic bag. A gym bag is versatile enough to carry most of your sporting gear of a spare change of clothes when you hit the gym. Ideally the gym bag should be a duffle type bag with thick canvas or leather so that its easy to maintain/clean and not prone to tearing when you stuff your dirty gear/shoes in.
The great weekender getaway bag
With work culture evolving into a 24/7 non-stop global trend, its no surprise that its difficult to be on away for long holidays unless you decide to quit your job. So most folks take short holiday getaways for the weekend and you’ll need a bag size to carry enough stuff for a great weekend. Or double as a bug out bag in the event of a disaster.
The hiking bag
For some serious adventure or bush walking, you’ll need a bag that can stand the elements and have enough compartments to store the various survival / camp gear needed and enough straps to hold your sleeping bag, spare mug, shoes, camp equipment and water bottle.
The tote bag with the 'I <3 Nuffnang' button
For the serious urban adventure of the shopping kind, a denim tote bag is useful for carrying your stash of the day, more reliable and environmentally friendlier than the plastic bag.
Admitingly it was hard picking out the right bag purchase as there are loads of choice out there with mind boggling price points and functionality. So pick the style and type of bag you’ll likely use in the situation or occasion you’ll be in. If you have some trouble making some decision you can check out this great site, The Satchel Pages, ita packed with Men’s bag literature.
