Doughnut Macaroon Backpack, worth it or skip it?

Reviewing products could be tricky. When I found flaws in them, did the rest of the products from that company have similar quality issues? This was the question I had when I sat down to write down my thoughts on the Doughnut Macaroon backpack that I just bought. I like to be honest with what I see and how I feel about the bag, and at the same time, I understand this may not be everyone's experience.

Although it is slightly cheaper to get this specific backpack on Amazon, I decided to buy it on their official site. Doughnut is a company based in Hong Kong, so that it would be international shipping for my order. Before I pressed the order button, I visited the website multiple times to check out options and pricing. The website looked nice and polished, but it was a little glitchy, and the loading time could be slow as well.

Doughnut logo patch on the front pocket

There were so many beautiful bags on the website. The reason I chose to buy the Macaroon Large was that it was made with Cordura fabric. Cordura Nylon fabric is supposedly stronger and more durable compared to some other Nylon fabrics. Besides, it has an extra zipper pocket at the back, and that's not what Himawari's large backpack is offering. The color I decided on was from their Navy Series. The whole bag is in this deep blue color, even the leather, the webbing, and the hardware.

After placing my order, it came in 5 days from Hong Kong! Considering this is an international order, I would say the shipping was speedy! The backpack didn't come in a box, and it was wrapped in a plastic shipping envelope like when you bought something from eBay. Taking it out of the packaging, I was happy with the size! The size was comparable to the Fjallraven Kanken 17" laptop backpack I recently bought. I loved the deep navy color. It was gorgeous and stylish! On the outside, it has a fancy hang tag that is showcasing the feature and the bag's uniqueness. Apparently, Doughnut is doing a much better job than Himawari in terms of packaging.

Now, let's talk about the material. Supposedly, Doughnut made the backpack with 1000D Cordura Nylon fabric, but compared to the bag I previously purchased from Timbuk2, which also used Cordura, this doesn't feel as durable. The material is on the thinner side; even the Vinylon F fabric on Vjallraven also appears thicker. I did splash water on the bag to test the water-resistant feature, and the water mainly did bounce off from the surface.

The finish on the hardware is quite nice. With the matching navy color glaze, it elevates the look of the backpack. The paddings on the back are thick, and they felt comfortable when I tried the bag on. The leather details on this Doughnut backpack are very similar to what Himawari is using. However, the inside of the leather tab for the top handle is rough, as if they forgot to put on a finishing coating. Overall, the stitches on the backpack are consistent, except I found a skipped stitch on the top handle, and the stitches on the zipper tab look rough and need work.

Rough and uneven stitches on the zipper leather tab

Look inside the backpack, I would say it's mostly ok, but the zipper pocket on the back did appear to be slightly wonky, and the same happened with the webbing. This is a backpack that looks great in general, but you don't want to stare at the detail; the more you look, the more things are off. Inside the Himawari and Fjallraven backpacks, you would find product tags detailing the material, care instructions, and where it was made. Interestingly, that's not the case with the Doughnut backpack, and it doesn't include information on the material or where the bag was made. At this point, I would instead conclude, their craftsmanship needs improvement, slightly worse than I saw on my Himawari backpack.

I'm not particularly eager to finish with a negative feeling, but if I am allowed to be brutally honest, I would say it is not worth it to pay double for a Doughnut backpack. The quality is highly similar to Himawari, and Himawari is almost half the price. Are we paying extra for the fancy website and packaging? I am still interested in the organic cotton series they have, but looking at the craftsmanship of this Doughnut Macaroon Large I am holding, I would hesitate to order another.

Doughnut Macaroon Backpack, worth it or skip it?

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