Loewe x Spirited Away

[zipporah]

The soot sprite charm is so cute! If I could indulge my greed in an affordable way, I would love one.

I will have to wear the flamenco in colder weather with my black workwear or the thicker grey dress I have. Or try to find an T-shirt in a suitable shade of green to dress it down with denim shorts. Another problem is I wear a lot of patterns and I really want this bag to have its own moment!

There was also a couple in front of me with black tops/shirts that said Loewe on the back across the shoulders in blue. Was really curious if they were Ghibli items, but I couldn’t manoeuvre myself to get a good look.

 

[howlsze]

Haha good to know! Works quite well with the Bo hoodie heh
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Nice

 

[baglici0us]

Taking no face out for Korean food today!

 

[BareniaKelly]

There are a fair number of AA fake items from the Loewe x Totoro collab on Vestiaire Collective. Some of the fakes are items that weren't even in the collection (like the small basket bag with black raffia at the base). The fake coin cardholder with the blue totoro has eyes that are a different size to the authentic item, also the blue is the wrong shade.

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FAKE
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AUTHENTIC
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Hello

I have the green card wallet from the old Totoro collection that I missed out on so I had to buy it from a reseller.
It the one with the small white Totoro carrying a leaf.

The serial number inside the wallet is shared by more than one wallet that I saw listed on eBay. They seem to be reputable sellers with long histories of selling designer goods.

I was told by Loewe that those are not serial numbers specific to an item so not there for the purpose of authentication.

What still makes me a little unsettled is the seemingly strong smell of glue, or something, that does not smell like leather. I know the work on the pictures on these pieces are done by glue, and the leather good is very small, so perhaps proportionately the smell of glue is more apparent, than usual.

Any of you have the same experience?

It was purchased by my reseller from Mercari, and the receipt shows originally purchased from Loewe at Matzukaya in Nagoya, Japan.

At this point I am ready to accept the possibility of a super fake which quality and price I am happy with, so I can just move on. Although I am optimistic this is real.

Any input from any of you would be much appreciated.

 

[BottegaBunny]

Hello

I have the green card wallet from the old Totoro collection that I missed out on so I had to buy it from a reseller.
It the one with the small white Totoro carrying a leaf.

The serial number inside the wallet is shared by more than one wallet that I saw listed on eBay. They seem to be reputable sellers with long histories of selling designer goods.

I was told by Loewe that those are not serial numbers specific to an item so not there for the purpose of authentication.

What still makes me a little unsettled is the seemingly strong smell of glue, or something, that does not smell like leather. I know the work on the pictures on these pieces are done by glue, and the leather good is very small, so perhaps proportionately the smell of glue is more apparent, than usual.

Any of you have the same experience?

It was purchased by my reseller from Mercari, and the receipt shows originally purchased from Loewe at Matzukaya in Nagoya, Japan.

At this point I am ready to accept the possibility of a super fake which quality and price I am happy with, so I can just move on. Although I am optimistic this is real.

Any input from any of you would be much appreciated.

I also purchased a cardholder from Mercari, and immediately noticed a distinct glue and plastic scent, which is highly unusual for genuine leather products. Additionally, the "Made in Spain" stamp was awkwardly placed and difficult to read, failing to match the style number—a frequent error in counterfeit items.

Intriguingly, the seller used a legitimate LOEWE receipt to repeatedly sell the same model of the cardholder. I conducted further investigations and discovered that this seller had consistently sold numerous counterfeit versions of various LOEWE styles across platforms like eBay, Mercari, and Poshmark. This experience has made me wary of purchasing from third parties unless I am absolutely sure of the item's authenticity and rarity. The risks and complications associated with such transactions simply aren't worth it.

Ultimately, trust your instincts when something seems off.

 

[despair]

I can assure you no legitimate Loewe product regardless of the amount of marquetry on it would have the glue or PVC smell that’s found in replicas. I similarly bought a Loewe Totoro heel pouch from a Japanese seller that was so clearly fake that I almost didn’t need to send it for authentication - only did it to facilitate the refund process from the vendor.

 

[BareniaKelly]

I am returning it

A close up of the marquetry convinced me that the smell is not only glue but because the leather is not even leather. The work is very tidy and impressive though. Until you zoom in on the marquetry with your camera (can't see with my naked eyes).

For those of you still hunting for Loewe with marquetry, I can highly recommend inspecting very closely the quality of each marquetry but asking seller of EXTREME CLOSE UPS of the edges of each piece. THERE SHOULD NOT BE ANY GAP/S, AT ALL.

For now the seller has been very accomodating and they are going to return it to Mercari themselves. I have lodged a Paypal dispute with the agreement of the seller just so we have a record of its return while I wait for my refund.

It is so sad how hard it is to shop Loewe in the pre-owned market these days. Has it always been like this? If so, I do not remember it. The stresses were enough for me to do a few revenge shopping at Loewe directly.

Weirdly enough, buying a high value Hermes bag from the secondary market was less stressful compared to my 4 attempts at buying Loewe items in the preloved market. Only 1 out of 4 was successful, and even then it was stressful. That is a very poor success rate!

In the case of Hermes bags, I can tell from their smell of their leathers since they tanned their own leather supply, and I stick to only a few types of their leather that I like and am familiar with. But with Loewe, I feel very blind, because they are not very consistent, with various changes that occurred in different things seemingly sporadically. Their puzzle bag is a good example of this. Some of their latest leathers do not even have any smell, and so that is one less thing we can rely on to gauge authenticity. Perhaps they are doing this on purpose, to outrun the counterfeiters, or to discourage us from purchasing after market. Who knows.

Our ability to discern quality is our only weapon against counterfeiters. They really keep up with updates very quickly these days. Social media helps I am sure. I am even sure they are even reading this.

 

[BareniaKelly]

I can assure you no legitimate Loewe product regardless of the amount of marquetry on it would have the glue or PVC smell that’s found in replicas. I similarly bought a Loewe Totoro heel pouch from a Japanese seller that was so clearly fake that I almost didn’t need to send it for authentication - only did it to facilitate the refund process from the vendor.

I am still looking for a Totoro Loewe but am now way too scared especially since many of them are asking for a lot more than retail!

 

[runtywendo]

Hi all! Sorry for reviving this thread, but just wanted to see if anyone can share if this is an authentic detail for the Otori-Sama trifold vertical wallet. Does the control code stamped inside look like this inside the top left of the money compartment (photo below)?

View attachment 5812028

If you can find another item being sold with the same control code unfortunately it is likely fake. I've purchased 2 super fakes now and they all had "public" control codes and it's impossible to tell what is real based off photos. These superfakes are incredibly well made and have "real" marquetry. Usually only 1 tiny detail is off and again it's very hard to spot in photos.

The main telltale signs I've seen have been the smell as mentioned and most importantly the feel of the leather. Loewe classic calfskin has a distinct moist, soft texture and a specific thickness that is extremely hard to replicate if not sourced correctly. If the superfakes I've purchased had the same quality as the authentic ones I may not have been so disappointed, but the difference is still very apparent. I've only succesfully purchased 1 authentic item secondhand from these Ghibli collaborations. Be careful and stay safe out there!

 

[BareniaKelly]

If you can find another item being sold with the same control code unfortunately it is likely fake. I've purchased 2 super fakes now and they all had "public" control codes and it's impossible to tell what is real based off photos. These superfakes are incredibly well made and have "real" marquetry. Usually only 1 tiny detail is off and again it's very hard to spot in photos.

The main telltale signs I've seen have been the smell as mentioned and most importantly the feel of the leather. Loewe classic calfskin has a distinct moist, soft texture and a specific thickness that is extremely hard to replicate if not sourced correctly. If the superfakes I've purchased had the same quality as the authentic ones I may not have been so disappointed, but the difference is still very apparent. I've only succesfully purchased 1 authentic item secondhand from these Ghibli collaborations. Be careful and stay safe out there!

I am eyeing one. But the level of fakes, and the asking prices are so high for used ones, that even if I am sure they are real and they are in like new conditions, I am no longer willing to take the risk. A pity really. It will be interesting to see if prices in the secondary market will level off. Personally, after having to deal with 3-4 returns and claims, I am done with trying to buy Loewe x Ghibli in the secondary market.

 

[mandiicandii]

I am eyeing one. But the level of fakes, and the asking prices are so high for used ones, that even if I am sure they are real and they are in like new conditions, I am no longer willing to take the risk. A pity really. It will be interesting to see if prices in the secondary market will level off. Personally, after having to deal with 3-4 returns and claims, I am done with trying to buy Loewe x Ghibli in the secondary market.

Unfortunately also I think the Totoro collection had the least number of items made so it probably has the least amount of authentic pieces available on secondary market compared to the other two collections as well.

 

[runtywendo]

If you can find another item being sold with the same control code unfortunately it is likely fake. I've purchased 2 super fakes now and they all had "public" control codes and it's impossible to tell what is real based off photos. These superfakes are incredibly well made and have "real" marquetry. Usually only 1 tiny detail is off and again it's very hard to spot in photos.

The main telltale signs I've seen have been the smell as mentioned and most importantly the feel of the leather. Loewe classic calfskin has a distinct moist, soft texture and a specific thickness that is extremely hard to replicate if not sourced correctly. If the superfakes I've purchased had the same quality as the authentic ones I may not have been so disappointed, but the difference is still very apparent. I've only succesfully purchased 1 authentic item secondhand from these Ghibli collaborations. Be careful and stay safe out there!

Oops I forgot to mention why I replied the post in this post (if that makes sense). I think my post with the photo of the control number has been removed unfortunately. But that item was a Otori-Sama trifold wallet on Fashionphile that turned out to be fake. Just wanted to mention that!