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CODE REPUBLIC is new to me, but their laptop bags look luxe, functional, and interesting. The brand boasts that they
blend[] luxury craftsmanship of a high-quality feminine designer handbag with the innovation, internal features & device protection of a perfectly organized laptop bag. Our founder having previously worked for Lenovo enabled our products to be tested & certified to stringent quality & device protection standards by the worlds top PC company Engineers, unlike any other handbag brand.
I like the thoughtful design, which includes two padded pockets, two phone pockets, an insulated water bottle pocket, detachable key chain, a loop for lip gloss, and more designed spaces for power banks, charging cables, pens, and more. (There's even a RFID lined internal zip pocket!) And yes, there is a trolley sleeve.
The featured bag can fit any laptop up to 330mm x 235mm x 23mm.
It was $795, but is marked to $477 today.
This post contains affiliate links and Corporette® may earn commissions for purchases made through links in this post. For more details see here. Thank you so much for your support!
Sales of note for 9.16.24
- Nordstrom – Summer Sale, save up to 60%
- Ann Taylor – Extra 30% off sale
- Banana Republic Factory – 50% off everything + extra 20% off
- Boden – 15% off new styles
- Eloquii – Extra 50% off sale
- J.Crew – 30% off wear-now styles
- J.Crew Factory – (ends 9/16 PM): 40% off everything + extra 70% off sale with code
- Lo & Sons – Warehouse sale, up to 70% off
- M.M.LaFleur – Save 25% sitewide
- Spanx – Lots of workwear on sale, some up to 70% off
- Talbots – Extra 25% off all tops + markdowns
- Target – Car-seat trade-in event through 9/28 — bring in an old car seat to get a 20% discount on other baby/toddler stuff.
- White House Black Market – 40% off select styles
Anonymous
What are you wearing on weekends now? It’s feeling like spring here in Boston and I’ve realized that my weekend wear is all sweaters or short sleeve shirts.
Anon
My weekends involving walking a large unruly dog, so leggings (fleece lined or not, depending on weather), tee, giant fleece, jacket, hat seems to be the way to go unless I am going to church (fierce fashion, b/c I like for God to note my attendance and am unlikely to wreck anything and am largely sitting down) or to a nice dinner (rarely). But I try to elevate my sporty attire to good-outfit versions vs things that are overly sloppy for that category. Sometimes I throw on a puffy skirt or Krimson Klover knit wool skirt — elevates the leggings look IMO.
anon
My church is the only place I find out about fashion trends because I barely manage to go anywhere else between job and kids and pets.
Anonymous
There is exactly one fashionable person who attends our church and she’s a teenager. It is not a place to go trend-spotting. But church is the only place I go where I get to wear anything cute because the rest of life is job and kids and pets for me too.
Anonymous
What I’m wearing now is the same thing I’ve been wearing for years : jeans, t-shirts, hoodies, leather jackets, casual boots, sneakers, danim jackets, sweaters…
I doubt anything is “current”, since I tend to buy things that last several years.
Anon
+1
I do wear a bit more nicer joggers, if I’m just doing errands, and try to stay away from leggings
No Face
In this weather, jeans or athleta pants, plain tops or sweaters, fun sneakers, and either denim or leather jackets. I have a couple of wide leg jumpsuits too.
When it warms up, I am all about Birkenstocks and midi dresses when I’m being cute or skorts and tanks when I’m with my kids. Fun earnings and a bold lip do a lot of heavy lifting for me.
Anon
Jeans and a blouse with a light jacket/cardigan, or a light sweater. Blouse is either pullover or has buttons.
Athleta pants and a short sleeve shirt with a zip up sweatshirt.
It hasn’t really changed.
Anon
Jeans and warm sweaters plus waterproof boots and a raincoat. I really thought I lived in California ….
Moose
Has anyone ever gotten hardware replaced on a purse/bag? Have a crossbody where the leather is fine but the gold hardware had worn out. I checked, and the original manufacturer does not do repairs.
Anon
Look at Artbag out of NYC. They can fix anything well.
Vicky Austin
Do you have a cobbler near you? They’re probably comfortable with leatherwork, or know somebody who would be.
Sciatica
Hello! Have any of you dealt with sciatica?
Who do you see for this issue? A physical therapist? I’m not positive that’s what I have, but I’ve had lower back pain for 2 weeks after wearing heels on a very hard floor all day, then the next day I stupidly did a weight workout even though my back was already tight. Now I’ve got pain above one side of my bottom, radiating down my leg. It was feeling a bit better and then last night, the pain was waking me up!
anon
I’ve been able to get over sciatica on my own with some rest and stretching. I do a lot of laying on my back and pulling knee to chest, or knee to opposite shoulder. Once it’s better, I ease back into weight workouts, starting with body weight squats.
Vicky Austin
My tricks for sciatica have always been pigeon pose, walks with supportive shoes and good posture, and sleeping with a pillow between my knees (to keep things “stacked,” in yoga jargon).
Chl
Yes physical therapy is amazing. If you have a ppo you can usually go straight there but check with insurance if you need a referral. I’ve had better luck with small independent practices but also some great experiences at athletico.
JTM
I have sciatica – I saw a PT for it once who gave me some exercises. I find that a lot of stretching & regular yoga keeps the pain at bay. If I skip more than a day of my stretching routine, I will pay for it in pain & inability to walk.
anon
I saw a doctor to exclude any serious issues. She then sent me to a virtual back health class from the physical therapy department that had such groundbreaking tips like regular exercise and a good night’s sleep. I could have pushed for more physical therapy, but just skipped to finding exercises on my own and implementing.
I use yoga for back and hip pain videos and articles, and really like Bob and Brad on Youtube, the dorkiest physical therapists in the world with a Dad vibe. Doing something every day has been most important, even if it’s 10 minutes of stretches while watching tv at night. I am trying to slouch less at my desk and have a program on my computer that reminds me to take breaks. I also stretch when brushing my teeth morning and evening.
Anonymous
I saw a sports doctor for my back; he was really helpful, and sent me for physical therapy. My PT gave me a set of exercises I do if my back flares up.
Anon
I go to a chiropractor for this but people here will freak you out with alarmist stories, so . . .
Anon
My neighborhood has an e-mail listserv and people area always looking for college-aged or older babysitters (not nannies, just sitters). Do people not hire teens for these jobs anymore? I get that teens are overscheduled now (travel soccer, being in play after play, etc.) and maybe seen as always being on their phones. I know that kids in my state can legally work at 14 (with limits and papers) and drive at 16, so it seems like you get the good sitter population as older middle schoolers and younger high schoolers (and once they can drive, often don’t want to babysit but want “better” jobs like working at the mall, lifeguarding, etc.).
Anon
People in my area hire teens for date night babysitting, but would want someone 18+ for anything that involves driving the kids or being home with them every day after school.
Anon
For sure — and I’m not sure how many kids <18 are really uniformly available like you'd want for daily kid needs (or would be good at executing infrequent specific-to-you needs), never mind with our state's graduated driving laws, I'm not sure they could legally do this (driving at 16 largely is just driving you and family members until at least 17). Our helper for many years was a teacher who had work hours that freed her up when we needed help anyway and she was a safe driver with a reliable grown-up car and understood car seats / boosters.
No Face
This is my line as well. The 13 year old on my street is great for date night, especially because her parents are available if something actually goes wrong. My nanny is a grown woman though.
Vicky Austin
Yup. I was babysitting for next-door neighbors at the age of 12; I did not drive anybody else’s kid anywhere until the age of 17.
Anonymous
For infants and young toddlers, I would prefer an adult or college-aged babysitter. I remember what I was like as a young teen babysitter and it was not good. And I was generally responsible and had a much younger sibling I helped care for. Now that my son is 10 and barely needs a babysitter, I’m totally fine with a young teen.
Anon
agreed. i recently had a younger teen come over to watch my kids (age 4.5) for a few hours while DH and I went on a coffee date. i totally trusted her to keep my kids safe, but she basically let the kids eat anything they wanted, even after i told her (in front of the kids) what the snack choices were and while i obviously didnt expect her to clean up the house, and my kids are responsible for throwing away their own garbage, all the wrappers from the snacks were out, etc. and every toy was out as well. our house looked like a tornado had swept through. i dont know if i’d trust she could get my kids to bed. granted i also once hired a daycare employee on rec from a friend to watch my kids when they were like 10 months old and were already asleep, and one woke up and had a bit of a fever (we rushed home) and the babysitter turned the TV on for my kid!
Anon
I’d turn on the TV for a kid with a fever. A TV is there to distract you from your troubles, no?
Anon
Yeah I’m not understanding about what is bad about turning on TV for a sick kid?? And fwiw my kids have a lot less screentime than many kids I know. But travel and illness are the two situations where all the limits go out the window.
Anon
It’s perfectly normal to not want a 10-month-old to have any TV. A TV will not soothe a sick infant; baby could’ve been held and cuddled.
Anon
Eh, sometimes lights and white noise are distracting / soothing. My kids are miserable when they have fevers. Even when tiny.
Anonymous
I don’t think that’s exclamation point behavior. Totally normal to help a sick kid take their mind off of being sick.
Anon
But it’s not the babysitter’s call to make if an infant can have TV. If she couldn’t manage the 15 min it took for the parents to get back without the TV then she’s not a great babysitter. I’d be similarly PO’ed.
anon
I get it, I would turn the tv on for an older kid with a fever, but not a 10 month old.
Anon
Yes, actually, you’re paying for someone to make a judgment call. Maybe not your judgment call, but I really don’t see the harm of 15 minutes of TV. It’s not like she gave the kid fentanyl. What I want is for someone not to shake my baby or have their boyfriend over w/o telling me. The finer points are for me to do.
Anon
Exactly – as long as the child isn’t in danger, 15 minutes of something you don’t agree with really isn’t that big a deal.
anon
I love screen time for a sick kid, but not at night. Sick kids need sleep and tv makes it hard to go back to sleep.
Anon
I mean, it’s reasonable for a parent to communicate no TV at night but in the absence of a specific direction like that I don’t think what the babysitter did is horrifying. Would I make the same choice, probably not, but it’s not like the babysitter did something actually dangerous like leaving a kid unattended in the bath.
Anon
Yikes.
Anonymous
My kids are 4,6 &9. My teen neighbors babysit for us when they can for things like date nights or snow days or occasional random after school stuff. If I need a reliable after school sitter or someone to do a lot of driving then I have to hire a college student or adult. In MA teens can’t drive non-family until at least 17.
Leatty
I think it depends on your kids. I have a spirited 5 year old and a toddler, so I need someone experienced enough to handle the tantrums and chaos, especially if we aren’t home.
Seventh Sister
When my kids were younger, I had trouble hiring teenagers for anything other than date-night babysitting because our schedules just didn’t mesh. They have sports practice, clubs, play practice, etc. right after school, so even if high school ends earlier than school, they aren’t necessarily able to get my kid at 3:30 from school, even if the teen can drive. It was easier to find an adult (either in or out of college) who was available from 3ish to 6ish. I also get the sense that a lot of parents have a LOT more requirements than I did as a teenage babysitter in the 1990s, where we were just told not to tie up the phone line and keep all the kids alive for a few hours.
Anon
Has anyone here been able to lose weight without becoming obsessive, and if so, how? It seems that the only way to be at a weight I am happy with is just not good for the soul/mentally. Like counting calories, spending too much time exercising, intrusive thoughts about food, etc.
Anon
Tbh, not a question anyone can answer without knowing more about you. I don’t have any desire to lose the last five pounds – the misery required would be absurd. But losing the baby weight was definitely worth it.
What magnitude weight loss are we talking about here? What timeframe are you losing weight in that results in being that strict with your diet and exercise?
Anon
This. There is an amount of attention to my weight that feels healthy to me. It helps motivate me to eat well and exercise and I generally feel good. Trying lose weight beyond that point probably would feel fairly obsessive and hard to maintain.
Monday
No, I had the same finding as you. At my smallest, I was pretty well meeting the beauty standard. But I was hungry and obsessive. My size fluctuated and caused constant worry about clothes fitting. Everything about my life improved when I quit focusing on being thin, went up about 2 sizes, and stopped yo-yoing in my weight.
Anon
I’m in the middle of it and I am not sure what you mean by obsessive but I’m finally managing to lose weight while not loathing myself and not beating myself up about slip-ups. I do count calories to keep track of what I’m eating, but I don’t mind doing it, and it has been helpful to me to see where my calorie “spend” is going.
My doctor advised me to lose weight sloooowly, like a pound per month, and having that goal instead of a rapid weight loss goal (which I have done before, successfully, but it always came back) has made me less down on myself than prior diets. We shall see, but I’ve been doing it since August and am down 20 lbs. I expect to go much slower now and I’m ok with that.
Anon
I found through trial and error that a pound a month is a reasonable rate of weight loss. (It’s also just math: one pound a month = 100 calories per day deficit, which isn’t going to shock the body into starvation mode.) Glad to hear it confirmed by a medical professional.
Anonymous
I’m absolutely losing weight that way but I’ve had to focus on protein and fiber. The weight watchers mentality left me feeling the way you described. I eat upwards of 100 grams of protein a day. This involves protein powder and meat, not beans and nuts. I also strength train twice a week and do cardio for mood but not weight loss and make sure that food is not the only source of entertainment or joy I allow myself daily. (There were some rough times when it was.) I also track my weight almost every morning so I can watch trends instead of focusing on a particular weigh in day and getting emotional. Finally, sleep is a major component of my ability to be able to reduce calories with a healthy mindset so anything that supports that including hot baths and great linens is really important.
No Face
I counted calories until I permanently changed my eating habits and tastes, then I stopped. My primary goals are fitness related, and my body looks better and better. The number on the scale changes very slowly, but I am building muscle so I’m not focused as much on the weight dropping.
anon
Me, once, through strength training. This was when my life was slower because of the pandemic. Strength training changed the overall shape and appearance of my body far more than aerobic exercise ever did, and that helped my clothes fit better. I didn’t have to eat less, and in fact felt like I could eat whatever I wanted (within reason). Caveat that I’ve always had a pretty fast metabolism and don’t gain weight as easily as some people do.
No Face
It’s really a shame that women were so discourage from getting stronger. I look and feel so much better as a stronger person at the same weight.
Anon
You sound like me and I hope someone here has helpful advice.
Anonymous
Eat your fats and proteins.
That’s the only “fix” I know for ANY food related question.
Anonymous
I did, but I am a Type B generally, so it might just be harder if you are a Type A and have to feel like you are always optimizing every thing you do in life and competing with others and needing constant progress and a way to confirm that you are doing “the most” at all times and doing things “right” and then worrying you’re not so needing a log to confirm you are. (Don’t know if that can be tempered, as it’s not me, but it is what I see here a lot and around me and seems deeply ingrained.) For me it was (is) really just a matter of making a good decision every time I ate. Having good, healthy choices at the ready at home. Not having bad choices around. Choosing the best available option when eating out. Snacks were rare, healthful, and always protein or fruit. Always stopped eating at 80% full. Did not talk about it with anyone. No tracking. Weighed regularly but not obsessively and did not keep a log of weight or such. Started walking until I just had to run and then also started strength training when an appealing gym opened in my neighborhood.
CMS
Similar to what someone said above. I paid attention pretty obsessively for 5 or 6 months to figure out what I needed to change, what triggered my bad habits, what substitutions I could live with, etc. Then I just kept doing those things and stopped thinking a lot about it. The weight kept coming off slowly even though I had moved on to thinking about other things.
An.On.
What is a nice retirement gift for a mentor you’ve worked with for ten years or so? Something that can be obtained quickly, since it’s coming up soon. They like wine but know a lot more about it than I ever will, don’t really travel, don’t really have hobbies.
Anon
A nice card, describing what they meant to you, and giving a few examples.
If you feel like you must get them something, I would still get them wine!
No gift other than a token consumable.
Anon
+1 To wine.
This sounds like a good occasion to gift a sparkling bottle. A independently owned wine shop would probably gladly recommend a champagne or a prosecco. It would give them something fun to toast with friends celebrating their next step.
Anon
Beautiful bag!
Anonymous
Can we talk pedicures? I have paid zero attention to my toenails for a while now and am gearing up for my first pedi in a while. Any tips or trends? Still don’t let them cut the cuticle?
AIMS
The only rules I follow are clean salon and square across for toes. A bright cheerful pink is always my go to for spring.