When fashion people started carrying L.L.Bean's Boat and Totes en masse during the summer of 2022, they did it with a wink. The bags' canvas outers became a canvas for cheeky self-expression in work bag form: Ironic Boat and Totes, embroidered with "Birkin," "Full of It," or simply, "No ❤️," flooded TikTok and the front rows as a way to show one's personal style and sense of humor. I reported on the ironic tote trend for Harper's Bazaar and ordered my own, a mini tote with "scooped," an inside joke for journalists, in script on the outside.
Cut to two years and some change later. A new L.L.Bean Boat and Tote launched for fashion girls to send to their group chats, but this one has had an attitude adjustment. Instead of bitingly sarcastic or self-deprecating, it was quietly confident and charmingly practical. More importantly, it was the result of a collaboration with Tibi, a New York Fashion Week staple that's always understood how to dress women for real life while being themselves. Shoppers were so enamored when it first debuted last winter, it sold out in 72 hours, according to a release from Tibi. But now, it's back once again.
