Yeay! It's here!

I just got my Lexie Barnes Lady B bag today!!! The pattern is called Neptune and I bought it at kpixie. Happy-happy-happy! The extra "happy"s are there because I had to go through a bit of an extra hassle with this bag - my fault, though. I had initially ordered this bag in the print called "Makiko". It is a red bag with cherry blossoms in the background, and in the foreground are large circular bells with pictures inside of them. When it arrived, something looked funny to me with the pattern...the images inside the bells were all upside down...! At this point, I must say that if you're not familiar with traditional Japanese imagery, you would probably not notice. However, I am half Japanese, and I did...and it bugged me. The images included: gourds, stylized bonsai and hollycock leaves; these are things you would see in old paintings. They are also used in some family crests; examples are most commonly found on laquerware and armor.

I wrote to both kpixie and Lexie Barnes. Kudos to both companies for immediately offering to exchange the bag. I was very happy with the customer service I received! Lexie Barnes even wrote back to me, explaining that they chose to show the Makiko pattern the way they did so that the cherry blossoms in the background would appear upright. (however...cascading cherry blossoms are another popular traditional Japanese image...) I totally understand it was a design choice, and I respect that, but it will always look upside down to me (and my mom and all my friends of Japanese ancestry).

Anyway, I exchanged the bag with kpixie, and I got my Neptune bag today - all this happened in less than a week! Talk about fast! I love kpixie (they even credited me for the shipping charges) and I must say, I really love this knitting bag! Tons of sleeves for accessories and 2 for straight needles. Waterproof, dirt proof exterior, nylon interior, and non-slip handles. Really cute and holds a ton of yarn. A sweater would fit in there no problem!

Lesson learned: look closer at what I want to buy...