Back in December when I didn’t buy the Celine Triomphe bag at the Celine store in Hawaii (because it was $4000!!) I decided to instead go with a secondhand Celine bag purchase from my favorite luxury reseller Fashionphile. I originally got both the Celine Teen Box and this Celine Tabou Bag (the price of them together was still several hundred less than the new Triomphe), but returned the Box because it was too small and already showing some creased and cracking leather. And even though I was a bit unsure of keeping a purple bag, I’m so glad that I did because it has fast become a favorite!
This is the first Slimane-era Celine bag I’ve purchased and love. There’s something so classic about this saddle bag, and yet it’s quite simple and refined. The lock makes me think of LV bags, but to me it’s better than LV because there are no logos or branding. The only place you can see the Celine logo is on the lock. TBH it looks like any old bag, which is great when you’re trying not to be so conspicuous.
But the bag itself feels like pure luxury. The exterior calfskin is quite durable and resistant to water spots (it got fully rained on a couple times and I just wiped off the water—I didn’t even use a leather sealant on it yet). I do have a couple scratches on the leather, but thats because I will literally toss my bag anywhere. The inside is lined in lambskin, which is so soft to the touch (and prone to scratching but I haven’t noticed any yet).
Inside there are two gusseted compartments that can expand to fit quite a bit. I carry my sunglasses, reusable produce bags, wipes, hand sanitizer, lipstick, and extra masks in the larger middle compartment (and yes it’s quite stuffed). I usually carry my phone in the other compartment and then my card case in the zippered pocket.
The shoulder strap is adjustable and removable. The one negative thing I will say about this bag is that the end of the shoulder strap often comes out of the loop so sometimes the end of the strap is flapping around. I have yet to figure out a way to keep the end of the strap in the loop (but I’m tempted to just glue it lol).
The bag closes with a snap closure that’s easy to use. There are times when I’m wearing the bag over my shoulder and have the snap undone (usually while I have my wallet out and am doing a transaction and such), and I like that nothing spills out of the bag. It might tip forward a bit, but I have yet to have anything fall out.
Overall, this is a highly functional, minimal, and classic bag. At times it reminds me of the Celine Trio bag because of the compartments. But the Tabou can fit way more than the Trio ever could all the while holding its shape (sometimes if you overstuffed the Trio, it would look misshapen).
As for the color, purple is a bit out there for me but really I’ve stopped noticing. Plus I’ve always thought I needed more color in my life!
And if you’re interested, you can find all my other Celine reviews here.