At 62, the Hands-Free Bag That Ended My Aching Shoulder
At 62, the hands-free bag that finally stopped my shoulder aching
Six things the Meres gets right that everyday handbags get wrong, from a woman who is not a fashion writer.
Caroline Richards · Customer · Nottinghamshire · 5 min read
Let me be plain about who is talking. I am Caroline, I am 62, I live in Nottinghamshire, and I have never once sat down to write about a handbag in my life. What I have done is haul a heavy handbag around for forty years, forever hitching the strap back up my shoulder and rummaging in the bottom of it for my keys. So this is not a review. It is a woman whose shoulder has finally stopped aching, saying why.
The one I am writing about is called the Meres, from Nottingham Boutique, a small boutique that has been quietly dressing women our age for a few years now. I first saw it on a woman at the shops, moving about completely unburdened with her hands free, and when the boutique later asked if they could put my letter up for others to read, I said yes, on the condition I could be completely honest in it.
A crossbody bag. I can hear you, because I said the same to my friend Sue. Those are for teenagers and tourists, I thought. Then I saw how comfortable she was, hands free and nothing dragging at her shoulder, and I changed my mind. Read on.
Here is what forty years of handbags taught me. The bag we tend to carry comes in two sorts. The heavy sort, the big leather handbag that drags at one shoulder and has you hitching the strap up all day. And the too-small sort, the little bag that looks neat but will not hold your glasses and your brolly. I have owned plenty of both and never once had one that was comfortable and roomy at the same time.
A heavy bag dragging at one shoulder, or a little one that holds nothing. Those were my choices, and my neck and shoulder paid for both.
The Meres is the first bag I have owned that is neither, and having used mine every day since, I can tell you it comes down to six things.
The morning it arrived. Soft and light in the hand, with proper zips and pockets.
IT GOES ACROSS THE BODY, SO YOUR HANDS ARE FREE
This is the whole point, and it has changed my days. You wear it across the body, the strap over one shoulder and the bag resting at the opposite hip, so it stays put and your hands are completely free. Free for the shopping bags, for the handrail on the bus, for a grandchild's hand. And because the weight sits across you rather than dragging off one shoulder, my shoulder and my neck have simply stopped aching.
Hands free at last. It sits across me and stays put, and my bad shoulder has stopped hurting for the first time in years.
Christine B., West BridgfordIT IS LIGHT AS A FEATHER, EVEN WHEN IT IS FULL
So many handbags are heavy before you have even put anything in them, all that thick leather and hardware. This one is a soft, light nylon, so it weighs next to nothing empty and stays light even when it is full. For those of us whose shoulders and necks are not what they were, that lightness makes all the difference to a day out.
It weighs nothing, even packed full. My old leather bag was heavy before I even filled it. This is such a relief to carry.
Margaret E., SouthwellIT IS DECEPTIVELY ROOMY, AND SWALLOWS EVERYTHING
It looks a neat, tidy size, but it is deceptive. It swallows the lot, my purse, my phone, my glasses case, a folding umbrella and still room for a paperback for the bus. I no longer have to decide what to leave behind, which at my age, with everything I like to have to hand, is a small daily joy.
Deceptively roomy. My purse, my phone, my glasses, a brolly, and still room to spare.
It holds far more than you would think, everything I need and then some. I do not have to leave a single thing at home.
Dorothy S., BeestonPROPER POCKETS AND SECURE ZIPS
Inside and out there are several pockets, so my keys and my phone have a home and I find them at once instead of rummaging in the bottom of the bag. And everything closes with proper zips, so nothing falls out when I bend down and it all stays safely shut in a busy shop or on the bus. There is real comfort in knowing your things are secure when you are out and about.
Pockets for everything and secure zips. No more rummaging, and nothing falls out.
The pockets and zips are wonderful. I find my keys straight away and feel safe with it zipped up in a crowd.
Pauline H., ArnoldTHE STRAP ADJUSTS TO SUIT YOU
The strap slides longer or shorter, so you can wear it right across the body or shorter up on the shoulder, whichever suits you. It adjusts easily over a summer top or a winter coat, and it works whether you are tall or, like me, on the shorter side. A small thing, but it means the bag sits comfortably exactly where you want it.
I can wear it crossbody or on my shoulder, and it adjusts over my big winter coat with no trouble. So practical.
Eileen T., NewarkEIGHT COLOURS, AND IT WIPES CLEAN
It comes in eight colours, from a sensible black like mine to a wine red, a grey, a blue and brighter ones besides, so there is one to go with everything you own. And being a wipe-clean nylon, a damp cloth is all it takes if it gets marked, no special care at all. It is the easy, practical, everyday bag I did not know I was missing.
Set down for a cup of tea. The easy everyday bag that goes with everything.
Such a good black that goes with everything, and a wipe with a cloth and it looks like new. I want the wine red too.
Maureen C., BinghamThe Meres, against the handbag you have been carrying
You can find a handbag for thirty-odd pounds almost anywhere. I know, because I have a wardrobe shelf full of them, most of them heavy or too small. Here is the difference, laid out plainly.
Heavy, and drags at one shoulder
Strap you hitch up all day long
Too small, or a rummaging black hole
Open top, things fall out and feel unsafe
Hands always full carrying it
Worn across the body, hands free
Light soft nylon, no aching shoulder
Deceptively roomy, holds the lot
Pockets and secure zips, safe and tidy
Adjustable strap, sits where you want it
About the price
The Meres is £26.95 at the moment. It was £54.00.
I will pass on what the boutique told me, which is that the popular colours are the first to go, and once a colour has gone it can be a wait for it to come back. Their words, not mine. What I can tell you from my side is that half price is usually where I start asking what is wrong with a thing, and I have found nothing wrong with this one.
And I do not trust perfect scores, so I read the reviews before I ordered. Just over three hundred of them, sitting at 4.2 stars, which sounded like real women rather than robots, so I read on. The same six things I have just walked you through come up in them, over and over, in other women's words.
If you are tired of a heavy handbag dragging at your shoulder and rummaging for your keys, and you would like one that is light, roomy and comfortable to carry, this is the bag I would put over your shoulder myself, while your colour is still there. Stop dithering and go and have a look.
Caroline
MERES | ALL-PURPOSE SHOULDER BAG
- Worn across the body, hands free
- Light, soft nylon, no aching shoulder
- Deceptively roomy, holds everything
- Multiple pockets and secure zips
- Adjustable strap, crossbody or shoulder
- Eight colours, wipe-clean, one size
- Free UK delivery and 30 day returns
The popular colours go first.