My Saint Laurent Small Kate Chain Bag Review

Saint Laurent Small Kate Chain Bag Review

I’m here with another designer bag review! This time it’s on one of my favourite new additions to my closet – the Saint Laurent Small Kate Chain Grain de Poudre Bag in Black. This bag comes in many different colours, but black is the one that I picked up.

How did I acquire this beautiful YSL bag? I was in Selfridges in London with my boyfriend as we had gone to pick something up for him. As we passed the YSL department downstairs, I thought I would just try on the Small Kate in green for future reference as it was a bag I’d noticed regularly, but hadn’t intended to buy. I actually ended up falling in love with the size, design, fit, style… so I asked to try black, which they didn’t have downstairs, so I headed up to the women’s department on floor 3.

I asked the lovely sales assistant there if she could show me the Saint Laurent Small Kate in Black, as I just wanted to check it out and see it, for reference for a future purchase, however… this didn’t go as planned! As soon as I saw the bag and put it on, I knew that I had to take it home! It was everything I had dreamed of, but since I don’t really wear black bags that often, I was a little apprehensive about the colour. My boyfriend gave me a huge thumbs up though and said it’s stunning, and is actually his favourite bag that I own, so that worked out really well, ha ha.

So in short, I didn’t intend to get the Small Kate anytime soon, but I fell in love with it so much that I absolutely had to! I came home and sold some of my other designer bags immediately to pay for it. I’ve sold so many designer bags and shoes lately, to pick up a few new purchases, which I will be sharing with you soon, but carry on reading for the review of this bag!

 

Buy the YSL Small Kate in the UK and USA below:

 

*Tip – NEVER wear it with the chain doubled up (LIKE THIS) as my sales assistant at Saint Laurent said this damages the edges of the leather on the bag, due to the chain rubbing against it. This is not covered under the 1 year warranty, so please don’t wear it this way! I know down in the bag hall in Selfridges, London, they told me you can wear it on the shoulder this way and were totally unaware of the chain damaging the edges of the bag, which was kind of shocking. I was told if you want to wear it as a shoulder bag, to tuck the rest of the length of the chain inside the bag, and either tie the chain in a knot or perhaps use a hair tie or something along those lines, to secure it, so you just have one chain, not doubled up. I have worn it this way and it looks fabulous, so I just wanted to include this in the review!

The Small Kate Design

The Kate design from Saint Laurent has been a style of bag that I have loved for years, but hadn’t yet purchased. I originally fell in love with the version with the tassle, but after trying that on in person, I found the tassle to be a little too much for my personal style, so I opted for the original version.

It’s a gorgeous shape, isn’t it? It’s a small rectangle, which has a lot of depth to it as you can see from the side. The front flap has the classic YSL logo in gold, which is what makes the bag stand out, and there’s a matching, sturdy gold chain as the strap. This is quite weighty and of great quality. The front flap opens with a little magnetic closure, and inside is one main compartment and an interior slot compartment, so it’s simple and very easy to use, with a classic, elegant design. It’s also made in Italy.

The Small Kate Size

This is the Small Kate, as I mentioned, and it does come in size medium as well as envelope clutch versions. I have tried the medium on, however it’s just too big for my smaller 5ft 4, UK size 8, US size 4 frame. I am always better suited to the smaller versions of bags, and my bank balance appreciates that, ha ha.

The size of this bag measures 20cm, by 12.5cm, by 5cm, or if you prefer inches, that’s 7.8″, by 4.9″, by 1.9″, so you can see it is literally the perfect size to be worn as a cross-body bag for daily wear, or evening wear. The medium size is quite a bit bigger, especially in length, so it wasn’t as easy to wear.

The Leather & Hardware

The main thing that sold me on this bag was the leather! It’s 100% calf grain de poudre, however, the grain coating that it has means that it’s UNSCRATCHABLE! Yes, you read that right! You cannot scratch it!

I was so amazed by this when the sales assistant was showing me, she even told me to scrape my nail against it and I was extremely hesitant, but I did, after she showed me, and I was blown away. There’s not a mark on it! I don’t know what they do to this leather to make it scratch resistant, but it’s so cool! It does have a coated, pebbled, grained texture to it as you can see, so it’s not smooth, but it’s so durable, I’m amazed!

The hardware is coated in yellow gold plating, which can scratch, as can the chain, so do be careful with the hardware, unlike the leather. This hardware is so sturdy and well made though, as the chain is weighty and of really good quality. It’s not removable though, for anyone wondering.

The Details & Price

Since this bag is so minimal and sleek, there aren’t many details to include that I haven’t already said, and you can see them all from the close ups of my photos. There are 2 gold circle hardware holes at the top of the bag, which is where the chain goes through, so it wont scratch anything.

Now the price, I know Saint Laurent recently had another price increase and I purchased this bag in December 2022, where it retails for the current price of £1440. This price in the USA is slightly more, due to import, and it’s $2100. It is pretty much a standard price for a designer bag of this size, but I will say that I think the Small Kate is one bag that would literally last forever, and never look tired or old, due to how durable the leather is.

The Small Kate Wear & Versatility

I’ve worn the Saint Laurent Small Kate bag 4 times already and it’s extremely versatile! This outfit showcased here is a winter style look with a coat and layers, which it’s perfect for, but I’ve also worn it with a nice black, summery dress for another outfit, a turtleneck and skirt as another, a leather jacket etc. so it’s one of the most versatile bags that I have, while still remaining classy and not looking casual.

Even though it doesn’t look casual because of the shape, glossy leather, and shiny hardware, you can still wear it with a t-shirt and jeans and it looks just as good! It’s truly amazing! I love it so much that I want it in Taupe too. As with any chain bags, the chain strap can dig into the collarbone if you don’t have a fully covered top, but that’s nothing that us seasoned bag wearers aren’t used to!

Overall Opinion

I’m pretty sure you can see that my overall opinion of the Saint Laurent Small Kate cross-body bag in this review is a hugely positive one! There’s not one thing that I don’t like about it at all. I mean I would prefer if there was a proper way to double up the chain and wear it that way, but it’s no big deal as it’s designed to be cross-body more so than it is a shoulder bag. Other than this, I have nothing negative to point out at all. I love it! So if you’re looking to buy it, you will not be disappointed in this classic! I say go for it immediately!

If you have any questions about this bag review, please leave them below!

 

Buy the YSL Small Kate in the UK and USA below:

 

 

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