The Helix by Ju-Ju-Be

Hi again lovelies!

So, like I mentioned in a previous blog post, I have been getting acquainted with a lot of new brands since becoming a mom and I must say one of my absolute favorites is Ju-Ju-Be. They make the most amazing diaper bags and when it was time for us to get one there really was no competition. I felt like they were the only ones that offered all the features I wanted (and more, to be honest), while all the same never compromising in regards to aesthetics or quality.

I realize everyone has their own taste, so what I like may not be what someone else likes, but in my honest opinion I really do feel like Ju-Ju-Be has something to offer every parent. They carry a lot of different prints and styles and the features are simply fantastic.

Now, when I first got the B.F.F. my fiancé agreed that it looked really nice and classy, but quite feminine (I got it in the print the Commodore, which is a mix of the Admiral and the First Mate and in my opinion absolutely gorgeous!). One of his concerns was that he felt it was too feminine for him to tote around if he were to be out and about with baby by himself (even though it's quite obvious it's baby's bag, not daddy's). So when Ju-Ju-Be launched their XY collection I was excited to let him know about it and check it out and when offered to test the Helix I was definitely up for the challenge. The XY collection offers more "dad-friendly" styles and patterns and they offer a sportier look than the other bags so my fiancé was game too.

This is our Helix in the color Chrome.

The Helix is a messenger style bag that comes in five different colors: Chrome, Black Ops, Carbon, Gene and Gray Matter. The outer fabric, as well as the lining, is 100% polyester. We got the Helix in the print Chrome, which is a gorgeous dark grey mélange with black trimmings that we both really liked - and as it turned out, it looks even better in real life. Like other Ju-Ju-Be bags, this bag also has a contrast colored inner lining. The print we got has a lining that is a gorgeous red with white double stripes, also called "racing striped red lining" on Ju-Ju-Be's website. This is a really nice feature, because not only does it look really nice, but it also makes it a lot easier to see what you have in the bag, as opposed to having to rummage through a dark bag in search of what you happen to be looking for. Furthermore, this lining really adds to the sportiness of the bag! The zippers and hardware on this bag are a semi-matte silver colored metal and definitely seem high quality and feel very sturdy. I have to say I really like that Ju-Ju-Be uses metal for their hardware instead of cheap plastic that may (and probably will, at some point) break. Not only does it put my mind to rest that the bag is high quality and will stand the test of time, but it also looks so much classier. This was actually one of the things my fiancé really liked about this bag as well. The Ju-Ju-Be logo is placed in the upper right corner and it's a subtle, yet stylish, matte black plaque.

The classy Ju-Ju-Be logo on a matte black plaque.

Photos of the semi-matte silver colored hardware. Note the sturdy
D-rings and the easy-to-grasp zipper pull tabs.

The racing striped red lining - closeup to the left, broader view to the right.

What's really cool about this bag is that it can easily be used by both dads and moms. At first when we looked at it online I figured I wouldn't really using it that much myself, as I felt it was a bit masculine for my liking. But once it came in the mail and we opened the package I have to say I was pleasantly surprised by how much I liked it. Having said that, I don't mean it was any less masculine than I had first thought, but the intricate features and the build of the bag quickly won me over, and I honestly do feel like this bag is a great unisex bag that both women and men can feel confident carrying around.

Now, lets discuss the features of the bag further. Like I mentioned before, Ju-Ju-Be has the best features for their diaper bags in my opinion. This bag is no exception. It has a detachable and adjustable messenger strap that is actually quite long, so even a more broad shouldered man, like my fiancé, can wear the bag cross body style. The messenger strap comes with a super comfy removable memory foam shoulder pad, which is great especially if you're carrying the bag for a longer time. The messenger strap was another one of my fiancé's favorite features of the bag. He said it felt like it was very high quality and the actual strap reminded him a bit of a high quality seat belt, which to my car loving fiancé obviously was a bonus :D I suppose that goes well with the racing striped red theme of the lining as well. He said the bag felt comfortable to wear and the memory foam pad was a really nice addition.

Here my fiancé is wearing the Helix cross body style. We have adjusted the messenger strap to the longest setting for him because he has quite broad shoulders, but the strap is easily adjustable, so if I were to wear the bag after him, it's just a quick fix to get the strap to desired length (or shortness :D) for me.

Speaking of memory foam, this bag does come with a changing pad, but it doesn't have the memory foam in it like some other Ju-Ju-Be bags' changing pads (for instance the B.F.F.). I believe this is because a memory foam changing pad would have been a lot bulkier and this bag is all about the sleek, sophisticated silhouette. I do love the memory foam changing pad in my B.F.F., but don't really mind so much that this changing pad is sans the memory foam, as I always carry towels in the diaper bag anyhow, so I can just use them for a bit of extra padding if needed. Most changing tables have some sort of padding anyhow, so I kind of feel like this changing pad is more just so you don't have to place baby on a surface that you can't really know the cleanliness of (which is a big no-no for me at least). One side of the changing pad has the grey mélange and the other has the racing stripe red. The changing pad has the same Teflon™ fabric protector as the rest of the bag, which I think is really, really nice.

Here are the two changing pads, the one to the right is the Helix changing pad
and the one to the left is the B.F.F. changing pad. This is the "upside" of the pads.
The pads are the exact same size, the only difference is in the thickness of the pads.

And here is the "linging side". To the right we have the Helix, to the left the B.F.F.

Here you can see the difference in the thickness of the pads. The B.F.F. on
the left has memory foam padding, hence making it thicker, while the Helix
on the right sports a thinner look.

As for the Teflon™ fabric protector feature.. You guys, seriously.. This stuff is amazing! When I was reading up on Ju-Ju-Be and read about this feature and watched some videos demonstrating it I was impressed, sure, but at the same time I wasn't really all that convinced of how well it really worked at repelling stains. That is, until the first time I spilled something (juice) on my diaper bag.. At first, sheer panic :D Then when I saw the mess just slide right off I just stood there completely amazed - and somewhat confused, to be honest. It really does work and I have to say I think this is such a brilliant feature to have in a diaper bag. Another really cool feature regarding the fabrics of the bags is the Agion® treatment that protects the inner lining. Now, what this is supposed to do is to inhibit the growth of odor causing bacteria, mold and mildew. I for one, and I'm pretty sure most moms and dads out there, appreciate this feature. You definitely don't want anything like that anywhere near baby's things.

The crumb drains are also a really fun and innovative feature, they make keeping the bag nice and clean a lot easier and you don't have to empty out the whole bag and turn it upside down if you want to get rid of crumbs. I think this will come in handy once we start giving baby solids and we'll be carrying snacks around. The drains are quite discreet as you can see in the pictures below.

The crumb drains are situated at the bottom of the bag on the back, there is one on each side.

Speaking of snacks and food, the Helix has two interior insulated (Thinsulate by 3M) bottle pockets that will help keep the contents of the bottles either warm or cold. In keeping with the Helix' sleek and sophisticated silhouette, these are actually "recessed", so to speak. This means they're not really visible on the outside, so they don't add any bulkiness to the bag, but instead you only see the zippers from the outside and the actual space for the bottle is inside the bag. I thought this was so cool when I saw it in real life. There is one pocket on each side and the pockets fit a regular size water bottle (0,5 liters). However, I must say it was pretty darn difficult getting the bottle to fit. It may just be because the bag is relatively new still and we haven't used the bottle pockets that much yet, so maybe it will get easier over time getting the water bottles in and out. Either that, or we could just use a smaller bottle. Because the Helix has two bottle pockets you can either carry two bottles for baby, or one bottle for baby and a water bottle for yourself, very convenient!

To the right: a photo of one of the empty bottle pockets.
To the left: bottle pocket with 240ml baby bottle. 

It took some nudging back and forth, but I was able to fit a 0,5l bottle in the
bottle pocket.

The inside of the bag, or the main compartment, has 3 gusseted pockets to help you keep things organised: one big one at the back and two smaller ones in the front.

The main compartment, photo taken without flash.

The main compartment, photo taken with flash. One one side you see the large
gusseted pocket, on the other side are the two smaller gusseted pockets.

In addition to the two bottle pockets on the outside the Helix has four more pockets on the outside. First, the front pocket, which is normally referred to as the "Mommy pocket" on most Ju-Ju-Be bags. I suppose you could call this the Daddy pocket. The Daddy pocket has a gusseted pocket on the inside as well, so this helps keep things in their right place.

The daddy pocket.

Closeup of the daddy pocket.

Right above the Daddy pocket there is a zippered cell phone pocket, which is lined with this super soft fabric, so you don't have to worry about getting any scratches on your phone. This pocket is quite deep, I can fit my whole hand in it. There is another one of these deep cell phone pockets on the back, so if you have something else you want to keep protected from scratches, say maybe a pair of sunglasses, you could use one of the pockets for your phone and the other one for your sunglasses. The abundance of pockets to help keep things organised was another one of my fiancés favorite things about the Helix.

Deep zippered cell phone pocket on the front.

Another zippered cell phone pocket on the back.

The pocket for the changing pad is on the back as well, but you can easily fit more stuff than just the changing pad in that pocket, as it basically covers almost the whole back.

To the right: the Helix from the back. You can see how the back pocket
basically covers the whole back of the bag.
To the left: the changing pad in the back pocket.

To the left: the large back pocket empty.
To the right: the large back pocket with the changing pad.

Finally, a feature I'm sure all parents can appreciate: this bag (as all other Ju-Ju-Be bags) is machine washable! You just pop it in the machine and then let it air dry, easy and convenient!

When I asked my fiancé what he liked most about the Helix he said that first and foremost it feels like it's very high quality and it seems very durable. He really liked the metal hardware on the bag, the color of it and the messenger strap. Another one of his favorite features of the Helix was the abundance of pockets, which should help keep things organised.

In the photo to the left and in the middle photo the Helix is worn cross body style and in the photo to the right it is worn on the shoulder.

All in all, I think this is a great bag for shorter outings and I feel it can easily be used by both men and women. It's small and convenient, but it still fits a decent amount of stuff - the volume measurement of this bag is 10,75 liters and it measures 38 cm (14.96") in height, 31,5 cm (12.4") in width and 9 cm (3.54") in depth. It's quite lightweight too, weighing in at 770g (1.7 lbs) when empty.

The Helix retails for 89,95-99,95 euros or 90-100 USD. You can purchase the Helix here if you live in Europe or here if you live in the US.

If you have any questions about this bag, feel free to post your questions in the comment section below and I will try to get back to you as soon as possible.


xoxo,
Tanja