Remember back in the day when you were in high school and the bag you had defined you? Those were the days.

You might have been a satchel kind of person, signalling that you were never too far away from being stuffed in a bin.

Or you could have been a two-strap type of guy. It's the comfy and sensible option, as a backpack is designed to be worn over both shoulders as to distribute weight properly.

However, not all people play by the rules.

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There were those that went for the one-strap, or, alternatively, threw that singular strap over their head so it looked like you had a quiver for a bow and arrow sitting on your back.

After them came the draw string bags, usually given out for free in the likes of JD after you buy a pair of trainers. Finally there were the mavericks who didn't bother with a bag.

A bag is just as much of a fashion accessory as everything else you're wearing.

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Whether the backpacks are from Primark, Topman, H&M or whatever high street store you're fond of, you may have noticed that they all have one thing in common: A diamond in the centre.

Is this a design feature taken from a common ground? Is it the Illuminati? No, it actually has a purpose.

Credit: Topman/Vans

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It has a name, too. It's a lash tab. It's there so you can pass your shoe strings through and carry your shoes on the outside of the bag, according to Business Insider.

It's great if you've filled your bag up and your trainers don't fit, and it's even better if you're looking to make a statement by parading your Sketchers on the OUTSIDE of your rucksack.

"Originally, it was designed to carry an ice ax," Jamie Cormack, co-founder of Herschel, told Today. "It's a nod to the past, to pay homage to those old alpine bags that had these."



The feature was originally developed for hikers and ramblers, which makes sense.

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"What a hiker of climber would attach depends on what type of adventure they are on - could be a water bottle, could be climbing rope, could be almost anything," Ann Daw, JanSport's vice president of marketing, told Today.

"But no matter what it is they are attaching, it would be something the person needs quick access to and thus the lashing square, so it's on the outside of the pack."

