Review on 👜 Stylish and Functional: Discover the Vera Bradley Cotton on The Go Crossbody Purse by George Matthews

I have used Vera Bradley bags for many years. Unfortunately, new bags from China are always changing. I used to prefer Mandy but my wallet got stolen so I wanted a shoulder bag to make it harder for light fingers. I recently bought my 3rd On the Go Crossbody. I don't like the pipe they use in the outseams now. On my last shoulder bag (#2), which has been in use for about 18 months, a small piping strip on one corner has worn away from rubbing against my body. The remaining 3 corners are also worn, but the white paint is not visible yet. My original shoulder bag (#1) had no piping in the seams. The new shoulder bag has a different lining, the description says polyester, it feels like a smooth fabric for umbrellas. With this new product, too, the number of patch inner pockets has changed from 3 small to 2 large, but that doesn't bother me. I knew beforehand from the product description that the outside zip pocket is now metal as opposed to the (nylon?) zip for the top opening. When I first opened the metal zipper I thought I would have to return it because it got stuck and I had to pull on it several times to close it. I don't use the outer pocket very often and now I know I don't have to close it all the way. Then comes the modified base. In the past, all of my Vera Bradley bags have had heavy card stock that slipped into a pocket on the inside bottom to provide stability and not fall off. (Older versions require the cardboard to be removed when washing.) This latest shoulder bag has no bottom pocket with cardboard. When it arrived the base was folded in half lengthwise so it was flat when shipped. At first my bag didn't stand up, kept falling down, but after a few weeks of use it stood up. In general I still like Vera Bradley bags, but in my opinion the old ones are a bit better quality than they are now. My original shoulder bag, gifted to me over 13 years ago, looks brand new, unfaded, unworn and probably the longest worn. I just wanted new prints.