I upgraded to a 13” 2015 MacBook Pro with Retina display after a two-week working vacation in Costa Rica. The extreme heat laid on me during my time there was enough to fry the 11” MacBook Air that I’d brought with me in a way that made it all but impossible to use. There was just one problem: All of the accessories I had for my old MacBook Air were too small to use with my new MacBook. I had to invest in something new. The first item on my list: a classy-looking case for my stupid expensive new laptop. It would need to be able to protect my computer while I was out doing inadvisable things. It would also need to look good for the times when I pretend I’m a professional, attending meetings or press junkets.
After shopping around online, I discovered Picaso Lab’s Classic Brown Leather MacBook sleeve. Three years in, I feel like it’s one of the smartest investments that I’ve ever made.
The sleeve is made from lined Napa leather which, on the outside, has a bit of a texture to it. This makes it easy to grip the sleeve. The texture is slight enough that the pebbling doesn’t screw with the sleeve’s clean lines. The leather is tough, but supple. When my laptop’s not in the sleeve, the leather can be bent, this way and that, despite being pretty thick. I’m betting that this is one of the reasons that the sleeve still looks so good after riding around in my backpack or the back of our Jeep for the past three years. The sleeve’s stitching still looks just as handsome as the day that I got the sleeve in the mail.
One of the things that I really love about this case was that I was able to have it personalized, with a bit of engraving.
“Now, I want you to go in that bag and find my laptop.”
“Which one is it?”
“It’s the one that says…”
I half expected to get an email from Picaso Lab saying that they wouldn’t engrave it for me. Nope.
In the time since I bought this sleeve, it looks like the company has added a number of new products to its lineup. If they’re anywhere as well made as my laptop sleeve is, then they’re worth every stinking penny being asked for them.
Images via Seamus Bellamy