Ivory Clasp Box Review

I am a huge sucker for a Facebook Ad. So when Ivory Clasp showed up on my news feed I immediately had to pause and see what this new subscription was all about. It is a great concept, for $45 every month, or every other month they send you "one of our latest, in-season handbags."  On their homepage it states receive a $120+ handbag for $45. You take a short style quiz and then you are all set. If you are thinking that this is too good to be true, then we are in the same boat. I set out to find some reviews on this company, as I do for any subscription style service, but found nothing. So I decided to jump in and give it a try myself. I saw a coupon on their Facebook for 20% off, so that brought it down to $36, so I figured I would give it a try. Their Facebook is HereThis is a fairly new company, started in May 2016, so I expected that there might be some kinks to work out, website found here.

I put in my subscription on August 8th, the box shipped on the 11th and arrived on August 13th. Their team was very responsive to emails and got back to me quickly at every step of the communication process.

It arrived standard USPS and the tracking number provided in the email was accurate as to the arrival date. The box was nothing fancy.

Inside the box was this note, stuck down at the bottom. It is standard office copy paper with their logo printed on the top. The text is "Hi Audrey, Welcome to Ivory Clasp! We hope you love your bag! XO Team Ivory Clasp. It is signed by 4 members and has a label with their address. It is rare to receive anything handwritten anymore. It felt personal and charming. Like BFFs sharing clothes.

Without further ado, here is what I received.

 

It is a brown bucket bag from a company called Austin and York. I have never heard of this brand before, and if you just Google Austin and York there are no results that lead to this company. Luckily the tag and their full web address on it www.austinandyork.com. The brand does exist and they have a nice website. It is also a new company, based in LA.  From their website:

 "Austin&York is all about the intersection of style, fashion, quality and durability. All of our handbags are 100% genuine faux-leather and designed with the utmost focus on quality and precision. All our designs are created and inspired by nature and beauty with a particular emphasis on durability and style.  Austin&York is built for the fashion-forward youth, who wish to stand out in the sea of trends, while maintaining a healthy balance of beauty and class"

I think the phrase 100% genuine faux-leather is a hilarious statement, but ok.  Their bags range from $108-$198, so it is safe to assume that Ivory clasp fulfilled their promise in terms of retail price. I say assume because this particular bag is not on the website. I can't find it anywhere online. Austin and York was founded in 2016 and have only one collection. I would like to think this bag is upcoming in their Fall line, maybe? I tried to Facebook the Austin and York, but when you click their Facebook link and Twitter link you are taken to Shopify's Facebook.

All that being said, the bag is pretty nice. I like the shape. I have been sort of looking for a bucket bag. The color and shape should be really nice for Fall and I love that the inside is red. It came wrapped very nicely, stuffed with paper and all of the bits wrapped in paper or plastic so that none of the metal was dinged. Clearly care was taken to ensure this bag came to me in good shape.

The bag has some faults though. It has a strong smell that I am sure comes from the material being rubber based. I am sure that in time with use and exposure to the air it will dissipate, but coming out the box it is strong. Though this is common for many bags that are made in China.  Additionally the bag had a few small flaws. I am perhaps being a bit picky, but when it comes to bags I always look at the details. If a company is charging a high price it had better be for quality not just the name.

As you can see in the two photos above and the one below the tag has an embossed stamp in gold. The gold lettering did not fully transfer and is a bit hard to read since the brown "100% genuine faux-leather" is visible underneath. Additionally on the strap there is mark of color from when the trim was added to the strap. These are minor and in no way make the bag unusable or unattractive.

I still have some questions about this bag, so I reached out to Ivory Claps with the following Facebook message:  

"Hello, My bag came in the mail yesterday and I am getting ready to write a review, I had a few questions I was wondering if someone was around to answer. How do you pick the brands that go out? Are they current, last season, I cant seem to find the bag I received anywhere online. I am hoping to show a price comparison on my blog, since a big draw to you is the price, do you know what my bag retails for? It is a brown Austin and York bucket bag? Does everyone get the same bag? Lastly my bag has some slight defects on it, Is that a common thing to expect? Are these small imperfections the reason that a subscriber can get a $120+ bag for the cost of subscription? Thanks for your time"

I am still waiting for a reply, to be fair I am blogging on a Sunday, and I will post an update with the response as soon as I get one. [Update: I did receive a response that post can be found here] The bag is nice, I like it and plan to keep it. If they offer to replace it without any defects I will send it back for replacement. If they don't offer to replace it I will still keep it. I think the bag is absolutely a steal at $35 dollars and if Austin and York take off as a brand I can see the bag becoming a popular item. I would not have paid $120+ dollars for this bag though. I think the price suits what it is. I am looking forward to getting some compliments on the bag and seeing how it holds up with my use. I plan to keep my subscription, I chose bi-monthly and we will see what I get in October. 

Are you a subscriber to Ivory Clasp? I would love to see what you got! Tell me about it in the comments! Any questions for me about the bag or Company? I would love to answer them.

Full disclosure I offered to write a review for a discount on my next month.