#reviewsdaytuesday: I Love My Kanken

A couple of weeks or so ago, as you may have seen on my twitter, I took the plunge and bought myself a Kanken. For those of you who don’t know, a Kanken is a rucksack made by Swedish brand Fjallraven and it was originally developed to help the backs of schoolchildren. I have suffered from back problems ever since highschool when I had to carry around up to five exercise books, a P.E kit, my lunchbox, my water, pencil case and any additional textbooks my classes might need every single day. Now at university some of the books I have to lug to and from campus are massive, and more often than not I want to take my laptop onto campus too.

My old River Island rucksack has seen me through the last two years relatively successfully, but it is starting to look more than a little disheleved and, as the ties are pulling away from the fabric, I really wouldn’t trust it with my laptop anymore. No to mention that the style of the bag (it sits really low on my back) means that it wasn’t really helping my back problems at all.

I had heard so much hype around the Kanken, but I was really wary of spending so much money on a bag. I spoke to a friend who has the Kanken Classic and she told me it was definitely worth getting. She also confirmed for me that I was going to have to splash out a little extra and get the laptop specific bags, as her biggest problem with the bag is that her laptop doesn’t quite fit in.

So, eventually, I went for it. The bag I got – the 15” KankenLaptop – retails at £85, but luckily for me I timed it right and managed to get 20% off. Ultimately the bag set me back £68, which is more than twice the price of any bag I have ever bought before. However, I can happily say this has been money very well spent.

The bag is made more really durable, waterproof material. The straps feel really solidly attached to the body of the bag and there is a decent amount of padding on the shoulder. It has two water bottle pouches on either side, a front pocket with a zip for little bits and pieces, as well a pouch inside for A4 paper. The rear compartment for the laptop is padded and reinforced at the corners, so I’ve got no worries about it carrying my laptop safely. The label on the front is reflective too – which my mum loves!

I think my only criticism is that there isn’t a smaller pouch inside the bag for my phone. I don’t know how safe it would be to keep in the outside pocket.

Other than that it is perfect. I went for the Forest Green colour – which is a really deep grey-green. I really wanted a dark grey bag, but the only grey option they had was far too light for me, so this colour was the perfect compromise, and I’m really pleased with it. It sits really nicely – and quite high – on my back, so it’s really comfortable to wear. I always used to think my laptop was really heavy, but carrying it in the right place on my back has made me realise that it really isn’t.

In short I can proudly proclaim that I LOVE MY KANKEN! I would really recommend it for anyone who has to carry large amounts on a regular basis, and even though it is a little bit pricey I would even suggest parents buying it for their children to stop them from having the back problems I (and most of my friends) developed over our school careers.

Just as a little disclaimer, this isn't a sponsored post (none of the posts on my blog are), so I don't get anything by linking to the site and recommending it to you guys. I just really love this rucksack.