Decisions, Decisions

**If you’re trying to decide what dance bag to buy and would like feedback from experienced dance moms, visit The Ultimate Dance Bag Review!

By nature, I am an incredibly indecisive person. My head spins when I encounter a salad bar with too many offerings. Whenever I actually make a decision, I typically question it for the foreseeable future. I truly dread having to pull the trigger on anything significant because I know I will second guess myself afterwards to the point of anxiety.

Curiously, though, deciding which bag to buy was shockingly easy for me when I was a new, dewy-eyed dance mom. You see, all of the other families had a Dream Duffel, as far as I could tell. While we were waiting for our first team meeting to start, I listened to the chatter of the more experienced dance moms to see if I could pick up any pointers. They used the term “Dream Duffel” in place of “dance bag” whenever they would talk about it. Based on that alone, I figured the expectation was that we new moms would need to purchase an actual Dream Duffel. 

My Eyes Have Been Opened

But after joining and interacting in some of the social media groups for dance moms, my eyes have been opened. I’ve since learned about Glam’r Gear, Diva Dolly, Pack 2 Rack, Rac N Roll, Ovation, Grit Tower, and Closet Trolley. Moms that prefer one type over another are usually pretty committed to their brand of choice.

With so many options out there, it is simply not feasible to buy a bunch to see which you like the best. Instead, many moms who are ready to purchase ask other dance moms for their suggestions. I see posts like this in most of the Facebook groups (that I’m a member of) at least once a week.

Even with all the feedback they receive, moms are still likely to agonize over their decision to some degree. After all, buying a dance bag is a pretty hefty financial commitment. It’s no wonder that the choice of dance bag is one of the toughest calls a new dance mom has to make.

Polling the Community

Awhile back, I published a poll on my Facebook page to ask dance moms which bag they had for their dancer. I was curious about which brand was the most popular among our community members. Here is a breakdown of the results (out of 126 votes total):

Dream Duffel – 45%

Glam’r Gear – 25%

Diva Dolly – 3%

Pack 2 Rack – 11%

Other – 16%

With Dream Duffel scoring nearly half of the votes, it was easily the most popular brand in our dance mom community.  I’ve had our large DD for seven years, and only had a slight issue with one of the wheels coming off when I pulled it up a curb.  I contacted DD, and they sent me a replacement wheel pretty quickly.  Luckily, my significant other is pretty handy and was able to replace it easily. For the past two years or so, the rack tends to “collapse” on one side now and again. Because my girls are not exactly gentle, I can’t say for sure whether the rack has taken more than its fair share of rough handling over the years.  

Looking Ahead

Since my girls are only 12, we have several more years of competing if they decide to stick with dance until they graduate. More than likely, I will be in the market for a new bag within the next year or two. True to form, I’m already starting to feel overwhelmed by all of the choices out there. 

At the very least, I can console myself with knowing that many of these brands have been around for ages. No matter what bag any of us dance moms choose, it is likely to be of good quality and appropriate for our children’s needs. So there is really no need to sweat the decision; as with anything else, there are pros and cons with each option.

Just take some deep breaths, tell yourself it will be okay no matter what, and select “add to cart.”

Dream Duffel actually reposted one of my blogs on their Facebook page (I mentioned my daughters’ use of their DD when I couldn’t join them in the dressing room). Check out On Their Own for more!