Review on Totes Close Umbrella Black British Umbrellas by Christine Fugleberg

Update 2021: The umbrella is still amazing. No creases, no fraying, no breaks. The opening-closing mechanism works trouble-free even after 2 years. However, the material of the handle does not hold up well. I keep it in a normal temperature room, I don't think it's ever been left in a hot car, but for some reason the grip deteriorates. It is sticky, after which a very noticeable residue remains on the hand, lint and dirt have accumulated on it, which cannot be cleaned. It looks like a bad batch of plastic/rubber to me and if the umbrella wasn't that good I'd probably replace it so I don't have to fiddle with the handle. I bought this umbrella to replace an older version of the same model from Totes, the one I'm replacing lasted almost 5 years before I broke one of the rivets when folding. I have had dozens of umbrellas and almost every one of them was too small to keep my feet dry walking in the rain. This Totes umbrella folds to about the same size as a regular umbrella but is MUCH larger in diameter, so I can take full strides while walking without legs or feet. gets wet from the rain and drips from the edges of the umbrella. Also, it does a great job of keeping my backpack dry as the bag is completely under the umbrella so no rain drips onto the bag from the edges of the umbrella.