I've been really loving this bag for every day use. It fits my water bottle, and the million tiny things I like to keep on me during the day, with plenty of little pocket space for those knick-knacks (chaps stick, sunglasses, travel perfume, feminine hygiene bags, etc). I could also probably get away with keeping my iPad in there when I need to have it on me during the day. The bag isn't as Wide as I thought it would be (found out it did fit my water bottle & lunch bag together) but it is certainly deep enough if you have a lot of smaller things to carry with you in a day. This was a not a deal breaker though. Also, I spilt some coffee on this things like 2 days into having it and the liquid just beaded right off, with no staining, so that was miraculous! I got the Goldie tote and was a little afraid of staining , since I am a feral kind of woman, but I've been pleasantly surprised with how clean it is keeping. I've never bought from Thread before, but I would again after having this tote :) Also, the strap is kind of wide, so if that is not your thing, I would suggest a different bag. I like the strap that way though (I could probably use this thing as a swing rope, it's that hearty).