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If there’s one thing we devotedly believe in, it’s the fact that you can never have too many tote bags. Whether you currently rock the Carolyn Bessette-Kennedy–approved L.L. Bean Boat and Tote or else still can’t part ways with that free-with-subscription “New Yorker” bag you got a decade ago, let Merit Beauty‘s newest launch be the next addition to the hooks on your wall.
As part of its fourth-anniversary celebrations, the brand that’s beloved for taking a clean and minimalist approach to makeup introduced The Everything Bag — made of heavyweight canvas material and boasting perks like wide handles, two interior pockets, and an embossing of Merit’s tagline (“Makeup you can live in”).
Merit The Everything Bag
Price upon publish date of this article: $52
As for dimensions, the item is roomy without being a nuisance: clocking in at 12 inches in height and 22 inches in width, with an 8-inch handle drop. Its main compartment can store anything from groceries to your laptop, and the aforementioned smaller pockets are perfect for housing Merit’s bestsellers — including the Retrospect L’Extrait de Parfum (which our Senior Beauty and Lifestyle Commerce Editor, Claire Sullivan, said “feels timeless in a way that very few perfumes can”) or the Clean Lash Lengthening Mascara (“I get compliments on my lashes when I wear it,” Sullivan reported).
This bag drop marks the first time that Merit has veered away from its classic pouch silhouette — double-lined, washable, and sporting a slouchy, hobo-style silhouette — which the brand graciously includes in every customer’s first order.
Merit has, however, created a few limited-edition designs of its Signature Bag in previous years. 2023 saw the creation of the Merit x Proenza Schouler bag, the brand’s first designer partnership that merged luxury ready-to-wear fashion and beauty — providing customers with a reversible vegan leather alternative to the typical corduroy material (although an element that remained was knot-tie closure). In 2024, Merit continued its collab streak by joining forces with the womenswear fashion house Tove. The resulting Signature Bag was an elegant and soft mink satin number: with an elongated tie detail and a rich neutral color straddling the line between camel and cocoa.
The Merit x Proenza Schouler bag, left, and the Merit x Tove Signature Bag, released in years prior as limited-edition offerings.
Courtesy Merit, Tove
Merit’s 2025 canvas moment is perhaps an attempt to tap into the fisherman aesthetic taking the world (specifically, the soon-to-be-extinct TikTok world) by storm this year. The best canvas tote bags, after all, have a materiality that is more down-to-earth and suitable for everyday wear than a comparable silk or leather finish — channeling “winter escape to the coast” vibes versus “fashion show after-party” ones.
Whatever its motivation for crafting the brand-new The Everything Bag, we’re so here for it. And we want to let you in on a little secret: Until stock is fully swept up, the Merit tote bag ships free with orders over $125. And for the first time ever, too, it can be purchased separately of any other Merit Beauty product — retailing at a cool $52. Below, shop the tote before it’s gone for good.
Merit The Everything Bag
Price upon publish date of this article: $52
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Meet the Author
Stacia Datskovska is a Senior Commerce Writer at WWD. Previously, she worked at ELLE DECOR as an assistant digital editor, covering all things luxury, culture, and lifestyle through a design lens. Her bylines over the past five years have appeared in USA Today, Baltimore Sun, Teen Vogue, Boston Globe, Food & Wine, and more. Prior to joining ELLE DECOR, Datskovska learned the ins and outs of e-commerce at Mashable, where she tested products, covered tentpole sales events, and curated gift guide roundups. She graduated from NYU with a bachelor’s degree in journalism and international relations. Datskovska regularly reports on new product releases in the beauty and fashion spaces (she’s also the owner of one too many tattered and faded tote bags).
