Please note that the promotion included in this blog post has ended. You can check our our Promo Codes & Discounts page to see our current offers.
Making leather tote bags by hand and to order means spending a lot of hands-on time with each bag -- and thinking about whether there's any way that we can make our signature totes even better.
One feature that the production team has wanted to rework (just a little!) is the way that we attach the optional crossbody strap onto our original leather totes. So we took some before-and-after photos to show you what's changing, and tell you everything you need to know about our new and improved crossbody strap.
Read on for all of the details on how the crossbody strap is changing (and why it's better than the original design)!
The new design is more lightweight
Here's the first thing to know: The crossbody strap itself isn't changing, but the way that we attach to the tote bag is.Up until now, we've attached the optional crossbody strap to our original tote using solid brass D-rings and trigger snaps.
The D-rings were riveted to the sides of the tote with a loop of belting-weight leather. While we love brass hardware, it *can* get a little heavy. So we're doing away with the D-rings and using brass grommets instead. They're still solid brass, but they're a lot thinner -- and therefore a lot more lightweight.
The crossbody strap doesn't affect the silhouette of the tote
With our original crossbody strap design, the weight of the D-rings and leather loops had the potential to alter the silhouette of the tote a little bit, by weighing down the top corners of the bag. That was especially true on slouchy leathers, like our bestselling Tan Kodiak tote.
The new grommets weigh a lot less than the old D-rings. (In fact, the grommet weighs about the same as the rivet that we traditionally used to attach the leather loop and D-ring.) The grommets don't weigh on the corners of the bag and won't affect the top line of the tote. It's a win-win!
The tote looks more streamlined
With our traditional crossbody strap attachment, the leather loops and D-rings extended beyond the top edge of the tote, by necessity. The grommet is a much more streamlined way to attach a crossbody strap.
The grommets are always visible on the outside of the tote, but they don't extend beyond the tote line of the bag. The new design also reduces the number of hardware colors that you'll see at each corner of the bag. Instead of a brass D-ring and a copper rivet, you'll just see a brass grommet.
Still confused? Check out the before-and-after!
The photo above shows a side-by-side comparison of the original crossbody strap attachment design, and the new method. You can see exactly how the two compare in terms of silhouette and placement. (More before-and-after photos below!)
The new crossbody strap design only affects the way the strap attaches to the bag, not the strap itself. The strap is still adjustable between the lengths of 44 inches and 51 inches, and features brass hardware. Additionally, the new design only affects our original totes, not our mini totes, and we can't add a crossbody strap to a carryall.
We're celebrating with FREE crossbody straps!
Just in case you forgot -- we get it, we wrote A LOT about those crossbody straps -- we're celebrating the launch of the new design with free crossbody straps! The deal applies to any of the leather tote bags in our regular Tote Bag collection. (Scratch-and-dent totes, branded totes, and other one-of-a-kind totes aren't eligible.)
Just add a tote with a crossbody strap to your cart, and the discount will automatically apply at checkout. We can't wait for you to try out a KMM & Co. tote with our new crossbody strap. Our whole team is excited about the new design, and we hope that you love it as much as we do!
If you have questions about the change to the crossbody strap, we'd be happy to help! Just drop us a line at hello@kmmco.com and the team will get back to you ASAP.