If you have a hospital grade pump like the Medela Symphony, you more than likely have a difficult time carry your pump around. The Symphony is quite large and has a huge handle on the top, making it difficult to stuff into a bag when trying to pump on the go.
For a price, you can purchase a Medela brand tote bag that is designed to fit the Symphony. It looks like this:
I am don’t know about you, but I think that bag is hideous. I used to wear heels and suits to work every day and carrying something like that just does not seem professional. It looks like you might be carrying some sort science experiment or hazardous waste.
Either way, it is not easy on the eyes.
Thankfully, there are designers who understand this dilemma. Nursing moms still want to be stylish and carry a bag that makes them feel great.
That is what I love about the Sarah Wells pump bag collection. She makes some beautiful bags that look like purses but function better than most pump bags!
It can be hard to find a bag that fits the Symphony because of its size but Sarah Wells has you covered.
Enter the Kelly.
Let’s Talk About the Sarah Wells Kelly Bag
The Kelly breast pump bag is one of my favorites from Sarah Wells. Not only do I love the look of the bag (the black and white design is amazing) but it is so versatile. You can convert the Kelly from a bag to a backpack in seconds!
The straps for the backpack carrying and shoulder carrying can be hidden into front and back pockets leaving you with a choice on how you want to carry the bag.
If you travel or take a train to work, this would be a great option. Being able to wear it as a backpack while traveling and then convert to the shoulder strap when you are in a more professional environment is a huge plus in my book. I used to take the Metro and subway into downtown and I can tell you what a pain it can be to walk all that way carrying things. Having a backpack option is an amazing feature.
But the main gift that the Kelly gives to us is finally a bag big enough for the hospital grade monsters like the Medela Symphony. The Symphony fits perfectly into the breast pump pocket still leaving plenty of room in the other pockets for expressed milk (there’s an insulated pocket for that), a laptop, personal items, lunch bag, etc. You can carry it all!
Click here to see my favorite hands-free pumping bra!
The Kelly has 8 pockets of fun so the stuff you can get into it is limitless (within reason of course).
What Do Moms Think of the Kelly?
The Kelly is one of the most loved bags by Sarah Wells. Moms love the extra room which isn’t all that surprising since we will stuff things into any open space just to have it. You can never be too prepared as a mom…
I actually have read a few negative reviews complaining they felt the bag was too big. This actually made me laugh. Moms, listen up, this bag is BIG! It fits the Medela Symphony and has room for other stuff for crying out loud! If you do not intend to carry a lot, then opt for one of the smaller bags like the Lizzy or the Annie. Still lots of space in those but I found them to be more compact.
Click here to read my review of the Lizzy!
Some moms wish this bag had a cross-body carrying strap which I get but it is already a hand carry and a backpack. The cross-body strap might be an overkill.
There are also some comments about the materials used for this bag. I had to really look into that because I actually liked the look and feel of the Kelly. It is made of nylon and some reviewers thought it seemed cheap feeling. The Kelly can be more sporty or dressier depending on how you wear it. Other options like the Annie give you that really professional leather look if that suits your fancy.
Click here to read my review of the Annie!
Also, the zippers are made of plastic. I had not really thought much about the reasoning behind that but found this great response to a reviewer’s question about the subject from Sarah herself (Sarah is very responsive to questions and concerns about her products being sold by her on Amazon – great to see):
Glad you really like the bag! I understand you would prefer metal zippers. When I launched my first bag (the “Maddy”) back in 2013, it had metal zippers on both sides and top. I took a year of selling that bag to collect feedback from mamas on what changes they would like to see – and one of these changes was to make the side pockets more discreet. A number of moms said they felt the flashy metal of a zipper the whole way around highlighted there was some kind of end pockets. Therefore, in my new designs, I moved to a high quality plastic zipper that is custom dyed to match the color of every bag, making the pockets subtly blend into the sides (while maintaining pretty metal hardware pulls to dress it up a little). I totally respect you’d prefer metal, but wanted to share the reason behind my design decisions. Thanks for your support! All the best, Sarah
So there you have it. Straight from Sarah herself.
I think the material and style is going to come down to personal preference. I absolutely love the look and design of the Kelly. It is one of my favorites!
Here are some reviews from real moms and what they thought of the Kelly:
Read more about what moms had to say about the Kelly here!
Bottomline
Overall, I think any mom would agree that a nice pump bag really helps in their day to day routine. Having the ability to combine several bags into one is a huge thing to me. It was such a wonderful stress relief.
I truly love Sarah Wells bags and would recommend them to any moms who have the same struggles I did. I still carry my Sarah Wells bag around even though my pumping days are over at the moment. It made a great diaper bag too!
Treat yourself to one of these lovely bags and see how much it helps. I hope you love your bag as much as I love mine!
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