First look
It came neatly packed, with the Linjer box nestled within a standard cardboard box. One look and you know this packaging is definitely fit for gifting. Everything was packed so neatly, from the padding of the bag down to the tying of the drawstrings on the dust bag.
The Bag
The leather smells divine and smooth to touch. The brass metal parts added a touch of elegance to the bag. It was slightly bigger than I imagined, and because it is a structured bag, I figured petite women might have an issue with it. Nonetheless, I have nothing to complain about the look of the doctor's bag.
After admiring my bag, it was time to open and see the insides. Like I said in my earlier post, the major problem of this bag was the hinges. It was so darn hard to open. In fact, I couldn't open it at all. I wasn't sure whether I should apply more force sor was I opening it the wrong way. I decided not to risk damaging my bag and drop Linjer an email.
Roman replied pretty fast, and suggested some ways to loosen the hinges. His reply did gave me some reassurance that things will be solved somehow. It made me feel that a real person is actually trying to help me solve my problem so I really appreciate that.
Here's a screenshot of Roman's message for those who are facing the same issue. Hope it helps.
So... I did try the above but it didn't help at all. I even got my mom to help with it and no matter how hard we pull or press or push, it didn't bulge a bit. At one point, the flap even sink further in until it was really hard to have a good hold of it to pull open the bag. Because of the pulling and pushing, my bag ended up with some finger nail marks :(
I dropped Roman another email, telling him that his methods didn't work. He was very apologetic and said he will send a new one over together with a small token that is not available on the webshop.
It took another 2 weeks or so before the new bag arrived. The small token wasn't there but that wasn't my motive so it didn't really bother me much. I tried opening the new bag the usual way and it still wouldn't open! Twice in a row, could it be that I really didn't pull it hard enough? I got my mom to help me again. We tried until our arms were aching and it didn't move a bit.
My mom suggested putting some 'lubrication' so she got out her needle oiler and carefully put some at the hinges. We tried again. This time, it seemed there was some progress with the slightest creaking sound of two layers rubbing against each other. We worked on it for almost half an hour before it finally opened! The hinges were seriously too tight and it wasn't easy to close it too. Once closed, it took us a long time to open it again.
While I appreciate Roman's effort in helping me solve my problems, the technical aspect of this bag is one major flaw. What's a bag if it's not functional? I have decided to take it out once in a while to open and close it to loosen the hinges before I dare to bring it out. I cannot imagine if I'm rushing for time and I had to struggle to open the bag just to get something from my bag! I do believe that over time it will loosen and it will be a lovely bag, but having to overcome this first obstacle is a big problem.
Overall
More photos of the bag's interior and close-ups can be seen below. Tight hinges aside, it really is a lovely and quality bag. The bag is spacious, sturdy and thoughtful. I would definitely see myself carrying it to work or a dinner.
Linjer's next step is to really work on solving the hinge issue.
