The Utility Tote - on its last legs?

[falconea]

I see that this is down to only one colour. Is it to die a quiet death, or will it be made again or redesigned?

The Utility Tote is a great bag, and I own at least 8 of them. But I will admit that the Large Shop Bag is an excellent replacement for it if it's no longer to be made.

The only features I will miss are the zippered pocket, and the many colours, which allow me to colour-code my shopping bags. Black/Black for chemicals and soaps - things I don't want to mix with food. Crimson/Navy for meat. Olive/Cocoa for earthy vegetables. Kelly/Navy for green vegetables. Sapphire/Steel for fruit. Storm/Sapphire, Steel/something, Plum/Olive for other groceries. And there's another one or two in the back of the car, as well as the Kelly/Navy that I keep in my office for lunchtime shopping expeditions!

If it's not going to be back, perhaps we need a Conifer sort of shade for Dyneema, so that there are 4 colours of Shop Bag.

Audrey

[Darcy]

I don't think it will be gone forever, but we just don't have time to make it right now. Maybe when we have more sewers!

[yota100]

I recently bought a Utility Tote and now the page for that bag has disappeared from the website! Did I just buy the last one in stock?

(BTW, I am thrilled with my new Tote!)

[Darcy]

You may have bought the last one. Don't worry: the Utility Tote (or something like it) will be back early 2011.

[falconea]

You may have bought the last one. Don't worry: the Utility Tote (or something like it) will be back early 2011.

I'm glad to hear it!

I'm still testing, but I think that if you wrap a BBQ chicken (wrapped in a proper bag) in one Utility Tote and then put it in other that actually gives more insulation than the cheapie insulated bag I usually use.

Audrey

[backpack]

A bag with some kind of insulation would be welcomed.

The ones available now, in various places, are not suitable.
I am fairly certain that Tom and the team can bring us a first class insulated bag that looks as good as it works.

[marbenais]

A bag with some kind of insulation would be welcomed.

I heartily second that.

[yota100]

Good to hear that the Tote will be making a comeback in the not-too-distant future!

[dorayme]

You may have bought the last one. Don't worry: the Utility Tote (or something like it) will be back early 2011.

Is the UT type bag coming back? Or were you referring to the Shop Bag family?

[WenV]

How was the Utility Tote different to the current Shop Bag?

Sent from my GT-N5110 using Tapatalk

[dorayme]

They were made two toned from 1000d cordura with mesh and 200d dyneema trimmings. They had a different shape, formed from trapezoidal panels vs. rectangular ones. They had three pockets. Two large (enough to hold a magazine) exterior slip pockets, one cordura, one mesh, and one upper interior pocket that zipped. The pockets are attached to the handle side vs. the bottom of an end side. As the shop bags have, there are two interior o-rings and a keystrap. Though in my mind the UT is slightly larger than the LSB, in holding two side by side, it appears they are closer than I imagined. I think that deception comes from the trapezoidal panels, they allow the bag to hold either the rectangular shape most shopping bags have, but also something that allows for more front to back give if necessary.
The design is so unique. I really do wish I had more than one. I use it quite frequently. Once again, if anybody has one that they are ready to release, please PM me!

[WenV]

Thanks for the detailed description, dorayme. If you have the time, would appreciate a few pics of your fantastic-sounding tote. Thanks in advance... ☺

Sent from my GT-N5110 using Tapatalk

[dorayme]

WenV I have a few pictures of my UT in my flicker pics. If I have time later, I will hunt them down and link them for you.

[moriond]

How was the Utility Tote different to the current Shop Bag?

@WenV I'll point you to the relevant links and to @dorayme's pictures comparing the Utility Tote to the Shop Bags


In order, from left to right, that's the Little Swift in Hemp, Swift in Cork, Iberian Large Shop Bag, and Utility Tote in Sapphire/Olive

You can read my replies to @dorayme in her ISO Utility Tote with Plum, which gives a complete set of links. (Note: this thread and question was posted under the Just for Registered Members forum. For other forum readers, the main information on the Utility Tote can be found under the The Utility Tote: Newly resdesigned and NEW PICTURES!)

The Utility Tote pre-dated the Shop Bag. You'll be able to read more details in my posts and the links given in them in the threads I linked above, The main reason that I didn't get a Utility Tote, as you'll read in my response to @dorayme answering her questions about the colors on the basis of the bags I tried, is that compared to my Lux bag (Swift predecessor, with slightly different design, and that I still use), the Utility Tote didn't do a good job of remaining upright and stable when partly filled, due to its wider at the top design, as the Lux did (better than the first generation Swifts). And at that time I simply didn't buy any bags that I didn't use all the time, or that I could use another bag in better fashion (for me).

HTH. I started composing this reply a couple of days ago, but got distracted trying to get a better sized picture of the Utility Tote from the old.bligs. The redesign of the forum pages meant that not only can't I get direct access to the blog entries before January 2011, the format used conflicts with a simple use of the Internet Archive's Wayback Machine to grab entries in complete links given in my earlier posts. There was a brief time when I could make both methods of access work, but now I have to basically access the exact date off the blog post I need before I can even try to pull up the associated picture. And I can't do that kind of date access for random posts entirely from memory! There are images in the threads I linked --they're just small.

HTH moriond

BTW I think there's an image of the Utility Tote in Kelly/Navy in one of my posts in a thread about new Cafe Bag Colors (before French blue and Kelly debuted earlier this year)

[WenV]

Thanks dorayme and moriond!

Sent from my GT-N5110 using Tapatalk