Beating up a perfectly good bag on purpose feels rather ridiculous to me, but having it develop a natural patina or distressing over time is absolutely fine. Would you intentionally destroy a new book just to make it seem like you're an avid reader? No. Of course not. But I know that if I ever come across a heavily annotated book - with its pages dog-eared, and its spine wrinkled and falling apart - that it was well-loved by the person who possessed it. And as far as I'm concerned, that is the highest form respect you can pay an object - to utilize it fully and appropriately.
I think the vintage look is cool. Loved the Kelly that Kendall had. What I like about Jane Birkin or the Olson Twins is that it was authentically their style. Stay true to yourself.
As a simple man in Japan a Birkin is far out of reach, but vintage unlined leather Coach bags are everywhere in this country for around ¥8000 and I am literally obsessed with them
Lydia Millen's aesthetic is not "old money", particularly in the UK context. It aspires to be old money but it's more TOWIE pretending to be a Sloane Ranger.
Yes! Lydia Millen and her style are the epitome of aspirational new money, it just goes to show how these terms and ideas of class are so different in other countries and cultures. The upper classes don't aspire to be anything because they don't have to. Some people think terms like Sloane Ranger are the UK version of Preppy but it's very different. A Sloane Ranger is a joke caricature, no one would want to be that, especially the people it's satirising. The only people who aspire to this kind of style and behaviour are outsiders who are only showing that they don't understand the class system in the UK.
1. Birkin gets her bags for free, so she is not paying the price tag 2. Her bags look worn but not dirty and the corners are no peeled like the magazine examples
I think the testament of a good bag, regardless of the price point, is how well it holds up, holds your stuff, and how well it "comes back" so to speak in the material. I have had quite a few affordable so called luxury bags, (not a birkin or kelly). But I loved them and wore the literal hell out of them. I think if one wants a "Instagram ready bag", then get a second one to model lol I loved Jane Birkin's style, and I wish that a "basket bag could be made in her honor"> May Lowe could do it. I love your posts.
That's a brilliant idea, one of these luxury houses needs to hop on the OG Birkin Basket bag. Yes, not going to lie, I've wanted to get a double of some my bags so I can just have a fresh back up. Thank you so much for watching❤
I wouldn't beat my bags up on purpose but I enjoy using them as bags, which means they'll inevitably start looking worn one day. When I first got my Speedy I never wore it bc of the raw leather and bc I had never spend so much money on a bag. But once I started adding charms and recently even stickers (which down stick too well on the canvas sadly) I really started using it as an everyday bag bc it finally feels like my bag and not just a speedy. I'm not accessorising to destroy the bag but of course the stickers might damage the canvas, the charms are heavy and pull on the canvas and the clips leave dents on the leather and so on but it gives my bag character and I got so much more relaxed about using it and it showing signs of wear. But I do think it's in part bc I know I could just buy another one if this got destroyed completely. if you know that the speedy/ firkin/ Kelly / whatever that you have is the one and only you'll ever be able to afford, of course you are going to treat it differently. It's no surprise all of the super worn Hermes bags are owned by super wealthy people.
Love that you personalize your speedy and you can use and enjoy it. I see what you mean about only buying 1 H bag and just having that one and only. Thank you so much for sharing your perspective❤
I love the idea behind using the bag to the fullest and just using it for the functionality. But also admiring the beauty behind the bag. Having my bag in good enough shape but still using it for 10+ years is my goal!
Can’t wait to watch this video. I genuinely can’t wait to see what you post next. You cover these topics so casually but loaded with information. It’s like TikTok bitesize but with YT quality ✨
It was made for her,she used and loved it. Had no intention of selling it. It was worn n went everywhere. Its the newer generations that are making buying these bags resell business. Not to use and love it and pass it on. Its not a culture to use bags,thats the purpose of purchasing them. To use.
This reminds me of the Mulberry Cara I bought fresh out of uni in my early paralegal days. Took me a long time to save up from my pay cheque each month and was my first major designer purchase. Love how it can be a backpack, on the shoulder or simply carried and due to its versatility - I have used it a lot over the years, from work to uni for post-grad, days out and travel trips. It’s absolutely worn out now, looks as tired as I feel, scuff marks all over, leather is fading in places, but the hardware has stood the test of time. The line is discontinued now and wish my younger self had bought the hard-grained leather over the soft, but that is the kind of lesson only experience teaches. I don’t wear it anymore and only held onto it for sentimental reasons. Makes me really happy that worn expensive bags are seen as a positive now. Might just take it out of the dust bag for Autumn/Winter 2023…
Had to look that one up, but I can see why it was such a practical but chic bag. I think if anything, this approach to wearing bags will allow us to appreciate and really use our bags. Thank you for watching Aisha❤
thank you for mentioning Lydia Millen coz her style is absolutely timeless, elegant, and consistently elevated 💯💯💯 I have seen her grow from the tie she didn't even have her own house
Great topic, thank you for sharing your view and research. I have a Mulberry Bayswater from 2005 and it’s perfectly broken in and I don’t reach for it a lot but when I do, it’s classic and shows my love and it’s quality.
I have two Birkins - a black 35 and and orange 40 - both are super old and I’ve never cared properly for them, so they look a little rough. But I love it because they don’t look perfect but they’re still in great shape. I love Jane Birkin’s aesthetic. RIP Jane.
The Olsen Birkin ish is the coolest hands down it projects the je ne sais quoi ethos all branding gurus can only dream to create for current market revenue.
Kelly bags look really old but not in a good way imo, they look so stiff, my grandmother had more youthful timeless designs. I think you should enjoy wearing your best clothes, bags and shoes every day but I don't like shabby, dirty, stained, etc. The only fashionistas who carry stained, faded, etc. bags are those that we all know can afford to spend a lot of money on a new one, and it is quite shameful the way they misuse beautifully crafted bags just to look like the Olsen twins, etc. Only wealthy people would treat a bag like this and still come across as cool (not to me). I love Jane Birkin but those horrible old stickers are ugly to look at, but we all know she was gifted this bag and she could buy another one if she wanted to. In the UK wealthy aristocrats are known for having mansions but wearing clothes with holes, jackets with patches, etc. Of course they also have pristine couture items in their wardrobes. There's a fine line between everyday luxury and chavvy, shabby behaviour. I respect my clothes, both cheap and more expensive ones. Caring for your items of clothing, shoes, bags, etc. is chic and smart, mistreating them, esp. deliberately, is the opposite.
Such an interesting conversation, thank you for this video! As I always say, I through and through have notoriously used and worn my bags/shoes/what have you, to the ground and found that when buying from the brands we love so much, this almost ensures that one can wear their bags to infinity while still keeping the integrity and function of the item. That being said, I do realize the inherent privilege that promotes this idea or even flashes it, even if it’s unintentional… items that I have always used and loved and worn in, may be someone’s goal wishlist item. All in all, people view luxury items differently, and so I respect both sides to the coin. However (we all know my thoughts on how ridiculous tiktok trends are) when something is done just because of a trend, that’s when I start to second guess and rethink my own viewpoint and intentions and make sure I’m always coming from as authentic of a place as possible.
Yes I agree, there is no right or wrong and we can enjoy these beautiful things in our own unique ways. I'm still team vintage, loved, preserved and cared for. Such a valid point about privilege and the intentions behind trends. Thank you so much for watching❤
forgot the name of the instagram, but there is someone in there who always clocks influencers and b/c list celebrities for carrying fake birkins and kellys, and i think the beat up worn in trashed but still fully functional h bags are the antithesis to that; your fakes are not going to hold up as well as the real deal, no matter how “good” they are, and if you continue to carry that bag for years and years it signals that you’re doing it more for yourself than for anyone else (which should be everyone’s approach to luxury in my opinion)
I always take care of my possessions but have them for decades, therefore they look warn out! I think Jane Birkin’s Birkin was in that condition (state) because she just lived her life. Her life was too important and busy to care too much about getting new bags on a regular basis
I will only baby my black 1995 moschino heart bag because its plastic/laquer outer material&because i wanted it since i saw it first on the nanny as a child not knowing the price of course hahaha so i fulfilled a dream buying it - thats the bag for special wear and good weather every other bag has to survive my lifestyle
So amazing you have a Moschino heart bag. My first designer bag was a Vivienne Westwood heart bag but at 18 I was pretty reckless with it. Also Fran Drescher's style in the Nanny was gold!
i'm not big on leather as I'm mostly vegan and not wearing leather is my 'quiet marketing' way to promote a plant based diet. Even with that, a leather club chair that's worn in just right...I just adore them. If furniture was my thing the way it is for some of my friends, I would hunt one of those down high and low,. It's a "looK and feel" that's special. So maybe that's how the women feel about their bags? And/or rich people are used to trashing things, someone will clean up behind them, or they can easily buy it again, so is that part of this lifestyle perhaps? Not my thing but interesting to learn that it's "a thing". thanks for sharing.
