OK, so we travel a fair amount, about once a month. For years we had a large Eddie Baur toiletry bag. It was great for a family of five, but way too big for a solo business trip and even too large for a couples getaway. So, now that I am traveling more for work and the kids bring their own stuff, it was time for a new toiletry bag. After talking with a few friend and looking through Amazon reviews we selected this Dot&Dot bag. While it is hard to compare it with the bag we had for twenty years, here are our early thoughts. Pros: * Color--hard to miss as you are packing up to leave the hotel * Size--big enough to hold all our stuff, but still fit in our carry-on. In fact, it is still big enough to hols enough stuff for a family of five. * Construction--at a quarter the weight of our old bag it is hard to believe that is is as robust, but it does seem surprisingly rugged and the zippers move with ease. Organization--the vast majority of the items stored can be seen through the mesh. There is a small pocket for items you may not want to be visible. Cons * Organization--OK this is a bit of a stretch, but we were hoping for a perfect place for everything. It does have a good number of compartments and elastic to hold bottles and the like in place, but we still pile some of it in. Yes, we know it is too much to ask and that it is impossible to design a bag that perfectly stores everybody's stuff in its own perfect place, but knowing that it is a stretch it is our only con. So, if you are looking for a lightweight, well-constructed, compact, and easy-to-use bag look no further. P.S. We've only used it once so far, but it was nearly perfect. We have every reason to believe that it will be a long-term solution. P.P.S. While we'd like to think that it did not have any effect on our review, in an effort to provide full disclosure Dot&Dot offers the potential to review additional products in exchange for free products. We'll let you make of this what you will. Read more
I purchased this product in December but only got to use it this month. My last toiletry bag used to hold products for four people but since my husband and I are now empty-nesters, we no longer needed such a large bag. This bag is perfect! It is large enough to hold what I need, yet compact enough to take minimal space in my carry-on luggage. I like that it has a small compartment for things such as bandages, nose strips, small sewing kit, tweezers and the like. The main part of the bag has two larger compartments. In the top one I was able to store a small flat iron, two full-sized hairbrushes and still had room to spare. The other section held other miscellaneous items such as tissues, toothbrushes, q-tips, razors, makeup and accessories, etc. TSA items also fit in this section once checked in. The fabric is easy to maintain; I kept mine on the bathroom counter. If it got wet, it dried immediately and left no stain. My favorite color is blue so that is the one that I chose. It's a nice bright blue, very appealing and suitable for a man or a woman. I loved that the packaging was also practical. It came in a nice bag with zip top closure that I was able to utilize in my travels to store my wet bathing suit. Overall, I am very happy with this bag and look forward to purchasing some additional Dot&Dot items. Read more
Unlike several of the reviewers here I didn't receive this from the company; I bought this from Amazon myself. I travel a great deal on business, mostly internationally, and have been looking for a new toiletry bag for a while. The ones I've used for the past 20 years have been somewhat rigid and difficult to clean. I recently bought this one in advance of a two-week trip abroad (four cities and three continents in 14 days) and am very pleased with it. First, itโs light, flexible and seems durable. I really like the design. It folds out into three compartments. The bottom two are approximately 8x11 inches and covered by a reinforced, zippered mesh making the contents easily visible. The top compartment is a 4-1/2x8-inch zippered nylon pouch (no mesh.) The bottom two compartments are easy to organize efficiently. I can separate toiletries (razor, hairbrush, gel, toothpaste, etc...) in one and items like medications that I use less frequently in the other. The smaller, top compartment is perfect for spare contact lenses, band aids and emergency items. The hook at the top makes it easy to hang this up in a hotel bathroom. If a hook isn't available, the whole kit folds up into a compact 8x11-inch case thatโs 2-3 inches thick (depending on how much you put in it.) It's also easy to pack into a small suitcase when space is at a premium. Itโs not rocket science, as they say, to design one of these properly. It seems, however, that this is a sturdy kit that will wear well. Unlike others I've had, itโs easily washable. At the end of my two-week trip some lotion leaked inside it. I just wiped off the excess, threw it in the sink, washed it with mild soap and warm water, and it dried within a couple hours. Iโm very happy with it and look forward to years of use. UPDATE: My original review was in Feb. 2015, immediately after buying this and taking it on a long international trip. It's now more than three years since I began using this toiletry bag. I still love it. I'm on the road 12-15 weeks per year. This thing just works and is so easy to hang up in a hotel room bathroom and fit in a carry-on. I'm a very happy customer. Read more
