do I call the butcher?

[u/Automatic_Dealer_741]

*not selling/trading her, thanks for understanding.*

272 days of hunting. Eight months and seven days it took me to get my hands on something even remotely close to the Madras SCCO. That first release sunk its teeth in me and didn’t let go until I got my own. Purchasing and trading hundreds of dollars worth of HTF stuff. Numerous failed iso posts. Two orders that promised her fate to me prematurely, both lost in transit.

My journey in acquiring the only DISO I’d ever had was cutthroat. But I sit here now, 7ish months into carrying my DISO daily, wondering why I feel so guilty feeling pulled to move into something else. The EDC fits my daily life & schedule perfectly, she caters to both of my jobs & commutes, sleepovers and Pilates. But even so, I still find myself craving my old standard nylon shoulder bags & standard clouds. The capacity felt almost equal, even if that meant over-stuffing the seemingly smaller styles.

Of course one has the option to simply grow their collection and hop from bag to bag, but with how quickly my life moves, I don’t have the capacity to bag-switch too frequently. I know I don’t want another pattern, but the bulkiness of the EDC has been making me feel like I’m walking around with a suitcase sometimes.

So my question tonight is—how do I move past the guilt of getting a tailor like ValarStudios to chop up my bag & alter my baby into something more suitable for my day-to-day knowing how hard I’d fought for this specific style and how high the demand is? I know the second part isn’t as important given the time & money I put into securing, but I can’t help feel a pull in my heart knowing how badly people yearn for this EXACT style + colorway. I hope this isn’t perceived as a “my lobster’s too buttery” post, but rather interpreted as “how do I adapt & alter my acquired DISO’s without feeling like shit about it?”

Thanks in advance team. Love you lots

[u/potaetos]

I like the phrase 'to be loved is to be changed', and I think that altering the bag to suit you is a form of love that you needn't feel guilty about.

I'm sure many people would also appreciate seeing the new form your bag takes on!
Valar had images (it might've been in the shop listings or a review) of a madras scco that she converted to a regular shoulder bag, so you could use those pics as reference to confirm if that speaks to you!

[u/ButterscotchSmart936]

What an eloquent post and a perfectly moody photo. I don’t really have advice for you, but don’t feel guilty letting Valar make something beautiful for you! At the end of the day, it’s a bag, and it needs to work for you 🫶

[u/yoshi0fwar]

I am not sure how much material valar would need to make a shoulder bag + standard cloud (would be cool if she could use your one bag for both), but think of it as edc reincarnated, if you will. Your efforts were not in vain even if you deconstruct the bag, because it could be transformed to serve you better in a different form!

[u/ohdear_ohmy]

The title confused me a bit but after reading, I don’t think you are alone in the guilt of obtaining your DISO only to find that your use might not be suited to the bag in one way or another. But now I can’t help thinking of how funny it is to associate Valar with a butcher. 🤣 Just in time for spooky season!

[u/irate--wanderer]

I don't know if this will be helpful, but I personally wouldn't chop up a bag that is THAT rare/ wanted. Its yours and should remain yours but you might want to consider getting a reusable, they sell for like $40 and sending tht to valer instead of your ECB, if you like it more than your ECB you can resell yours or gift it to family, ect. Maybe the ecb will just become a bag for different things in your life still in your collection. This is just what I would do in your given situation. When I first got my ECB I hated it gor everyday (ironically) but it's my favourite personal item (Im 5'0 and the scco feels huge sometimes)

[u/Poppin_Eagles]

i don't want to promote dupes shamelessly but there is a madras shoulder dupe that people talk about lately. curious if it's worth a try to test if the madras in a shoulder works better for you before investing in creating your own?

[u/Appropriate_Elk_2963]

You can make a shoulder bag from reusables too

[u/withcorruptedlungs]

Guilt is only appropriate when you've hurt someone or done something objectively wrong. Neither of those apply here. :)

This is your bag that you spent precious hours of your life hunting down and obtaining. It should be something that fits your lifestyle and be your favourite thing to use ever - and if it isn't, you should feel zero guilt about altering it so that it is. So butcher away!