Is The Saint Laurent Monogram Clutch Worth the Price?

I’ve been on a Saint Laurent kick as of late and recently purchased the Saint Laurent Monogram Quilted Clutch to add to my collection.

If you watch this video here, you’ll know it was love at first sight. But now that I’ve had the bag for a few weeks, I wanted to share what my experience has been thus far and weather or not this would be a purchase I would recommend. I’ll cover all the initial pros and cons I’ve seen thus far and hopefully give you a better idea on if this bag is right for you.

Quick Overview

Height: 6.3 in
Width: 8.3 in 
Depth: 1.2 in 

Base Price: $775.00 USD

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The Cassandra Saint Laurent Matelasse Flap Pouch (We’re just going to call her the YSL Monogram Clutch) may ultimately be just a run of the mill evening clutch, but she’s a cutie at an introductory price if anything else.

Coming in at not much larger than the Chanel WOC, the YSL Monogram clutch will fit the basics needed for quick earns or a night out. But it’s not going to hold more than that.

It is constructed from grained calfskin leathers on the exterior and generally comes in several shades of browns, tans and blacks. Though they do release some very fun seasonal colors . The wristlet strap that comes with the bag is also in the same beautiful calfskin leather and is very sturdy.

The D ring as well as the plate on the front are crafted from a polished golden bass, though certain models may come in silver or in a colored lacquered metal.

The interior is made up of a slightly textured black cotton drill fabric. While this isn’t my favorite for a bag like this, it almost certainly keeps the price down.

While the YSL Monogram Clutch is viewed as the ‘cheaper’ option to the their wallet on chain, which starts out at almost double the price, this clutch can easily be converted. Brands on Amazon and well known Samorga sell conversion kits that you can slip into the clutch and attach a chain to.

While many prefer this method, I prefer to just loop a chain (from my Pochette Felicie) through the D ring and over the flap. For me it feels more secure because the chain is attached to the bag and I have no issues with the chain flipping off the flap.

How It Wears

This bag is intended to be worn as a clutch and it works well enough for that.

The material on the wristlet is tight so it does feel secure on my wrist when I tried it out that way. But ultimately I feel like this handbag is a bit too big and bulky to be a comfortable clutch for evening or causal wear.

Instead, I find that this bag shines when it’s worn with a chain as a shoulder bag or crossbody bag.

I personally really enjoy wearing this as a cross body during date nights, as its light weight and easy to find my things in. I have also worn this for some quick errands around town and it worked out okay, thought I did have a few grievances, which we’ll touch on next.

Minor Annoyances

While I love singing a bag’s praises, it’s importance to share the good and the bad during reviews.

The first minor annoyance I have with this bag deals with the snap closure. It just doesn’t want to close. It’s something I always have to fidget with, which isn’t a problem for evening events, but slightly annoying for causal errands such as shopping.

I feel like this has more to do with the shape of envelope style bags, as I have this issue with every envelope style bag that is a snap or lock closure. For bags like these, I feel like a strong magnetic closure would have been a more convenient option.

The other issue that I have is with the interior slip pocket.

It is so small and tight, that its really not functional. You can fit one or two cards in it max. At this point, it seems like it would have been a better idea to create card slots instead, similar to the ones found in the Toy LouLou and the Mini Lou Camera Bag.

What Fits

This isn’t a bag you purchase expecting to fit the kitchen sink in. This is a SLG, so you should expect it to fit a bare complement.

That said, if you’re looking for a true clutch for your wardrobe, this is a great option.

Inside I can easily fit :

• My phone
• Key pochette
• Six Ring Key Holder
• Makeup compact
• Lipstick & gloss
• Card Hold
• A small lotion
• A small hand sanitizer
• Eye drops
• Travel sized pill bottle
• A small perfume
• Hand wipes

Again, you’re not packing up your whole room in this bag, but it certainly to carry everything you need for the night in it.

I do want to note that while I can fit a Bath and Body Works hand lotion or a roller ball sized perfume inside this handbag, It get harder to close and kind messes up with how I organize this bag. So I choose to carry sample sizes when carrying this bag.

Who This Bag Is For And Overall Thoughts

Overall, this is a fairly basic introductory piece form Saint Laurent. It may feel repetitive if you already own a clutch or WOC, because the structural function of this piece is…well, basic. There’s is nothing innovative or imaginative about this bag at all. And yet, it’s still feels so beautiful, elegant and classic for Saint Laurent.

With that in mind, I feel like this piece is best suited for folks just starting out their luxury collections, people who are looking to dip their toes into Saint Laurent or for those who want to buy a luxury branded clutch for a night out.

Of course, this bag is also a good option for those who love Saint Laurent as a brand and want to add the their WOC style to their handbag collection for half the price.

If you have a bigger collection thought and not necessarily a huge fan of Saint Laurent, then maybe this is a piece that you skip and you probably won’t get that much use out of it. And clearly, If you’re not a fan of mini bags at all, then I would just stay clear of this one and check out the College bag or the Loulou instead.

For me personally, while I own a few mini bags and clutches, I love this one in particular for the shade of green that it is (prefect for St. Patty’s Day!). I find it funny that green is my favorite color and yet this is the first bag ‘green’ handbag purchase that I’ve made. It goes well with most of my bright wardrobe colors and I feel like this is going to be prefect for this up coming spring!

Anyways, do you have this handbag? Or are you interested in it? I would love to hear your opinions!