Saint Laurent, or YSL
In fashion circles, the brand ‘Saint Laurent’ is also fondly referred to as ‘YSL’ (for Yves Saint Laurent). A fan of YSL bags myself, I’ve personally written about a number of Saint Laurent bags, including the following:
- Saint Laurent Lou Mini Camera Bag
- Saint Laurent Toy Lou Lou
- Saint Laurent Wallet On Chain (Cassandre Chain matelassé textured-leather wallet)
They all also happen to be mini bags. Almost embarassingly, there’s a pattern here: when i collect YSL bags, I collect them sized small.
Or mini. Or toy.
And here’s the next one: Saint Laurent Loulou Mini Puffer bag
Saint Laurent Loulou Mini Puffer
On the Saint Laurent’s website, the bag is officially named the Toy Puffer. Historically, it was once termed the Loulou Mini Puffer (not to be confused with the current iconic Loulou bag proper).
Back view
Anyhow, the bag does resemble a smaller version of the iconic Loulou bag, known for its matelassé stitching and puffer-style design.
Likewise, this one also comes with a chain that can be either pulled out for a crossbody, or tucked in to hide for use as a clutch.
Comes with a chain
Crafted from soft nappa lambskin, the Saint Laurent Loulou Mini Puffer is buttery soft and velvety to touch. No kidding – it feels super luxe, and on some days when I’m sitting on the train or bus, if the bag’s with me with me, I catch my own fingers absentmindedly stroking its squishy smooth leather.
Easily sits upright, especially if bag is filled
The bag has a magnetic-snap flap closure and a versatile, slightly slouchy shape.
Magnetic snap closure
As far as sizing goes, its dimensions are 22.5 x 16 x 8 centimeters or 9 x 6.1 x 3.3 inches.
The nappa leather is sooo soft and buttery.
What fits in the Saint Laurent Loulou Mini Puffer
x1 lipstick, x1 Hermes Bearn Wallet, x1 eyeshadow, x1 keyholder, x1 cardholder.
What fits in the Saint Laurent Loulou Mini Puffer
Even when the bag is empty, honestly, there ain’t room – it is truly for carrying one’s basic day (or night) essentials.
Opening – looks narrow, but it is nearly as wide as the bag
Empty inside
Though possible to have a cardholder in the back pocket, it may be hard to zip, depending on the kind of cardholder you have.
In this attempt below – with the classic Chanel cardholder – closure is impossible.
Card holder in the (open) back
As such, personally i don’t actually use this section much (I stuff the occasional receipt there). So this is really just for show.
Fit is tight
Surprisingly, some models of long wallets may actually fit in the main compartment. The Hermes Bearn wallet, for instance.
In goes the Hermes Bearn wallet
In it goes, and it’s almost an exact fit.
Actually does fit well
Throw in the key holder and card holder (this was the one I took out from the back zippered pocket).
With keyholder and cardholder
And then, the lipstick and eyeshadow.
All in!
These days, I tend to use lipstick holders as well. I didn’t for the mini puffer here, but that’s just because space was super constrained. So yeah, these cute little holders, while optional, are a fun bag organizing tool.
Optional for organization: Lipstick holder from Zoomoni
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This one holds multiple lipsticks, or an eyeshadow palette
Check out more bag organizers on the Zoomoni website here.
Mod Shots
For reference, I am short. I am 154cm tall, or a little over 5 feet.
In my humble opinion – there is only one good way to use this bag – as a crossbody.
Crossbody
It CAN be a shoulder bag, but the strap length is not adjustable. So technically, while it can double up as a clutch, I don’t quite like the look of the straps sticking out at the holey ends.
Notice how the straps stick out from the top?
Disclaimer: I think I got lucky with the LENGTH here – I love how it sits exactly at / slightly above the hip, which is my sweet spot for crossbody bags.
Close Up
Overall Pros and Cons
Pros of the Saint Laurent Loulou Mini Puffer
- The leather. Soft nappa lambskin makes the bag feel luxurious (and addictive to touch). The comfort level you get just by enjoying the bag’s texture is out of this world. Soft and squishy, yes?
- Has an obvious logo, but the YSL hardware is done very tastefully. It is not loud or flashy.
- Comes in a variety of colours including classic neutral colours (e.g. black, beige) and the occasional seasonal colour.
- Very cute; small enough to be a mini bag but carries slightly more than a wallet on chain.
- Magnetic closure: very easy to open and close; easy to get in and out of the bag.
A wallet? No… it’s a Wallet on Chain, without the Chain
Cons of the Saint Laurent Loulou Mini Puffer
- May or may not become obsolute / get phased out; Saint Laurent does come up with new product lines every now and then, and I can’t confidently say that this bag is truly considered a classic / will be here to stay.
- Extremely poor resale value. As far as resale value goes, expect to lose around 75% (give or take 10%) of what you paid for.
- The strap length is fixed. Unlike some other mini bags where one can either adjust or loop around to change the strap lengths, this one is either all or nothing.
- While I’ve not had any issue using nappa leather (it’s seriously not as fragile as it looks), many worry about the leather being too fragile / forming creases with increasing usage. I can’t speak for everyone, but i will agree that something with a more caviar or pebbled-like texture tends to be more durable.
Hope this helps anyone who’s thinking of getting the bag.
Saint Laurent Loulou Mini Puffer
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