Authenticate This Lanvin
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Does anyone have an opinion? The seller "promises" that it's real, but can't offer up any proof. she has no receipt & when I asked her if she could contact her bank & get a copy of the charge she said she couldn't. She has no tags, care cards -- the bag did come in a Lanvin sleeper & a large blue Lanvin box. When I mentioned that her SA didn't have a record of her purchasing this bag, she said that she & her then BF went shopping & she picked it out & he went back to buy it -- I asked her (and I apologized for suggesting it!) if there was a chance he may have bought it somewhere else & didn't actually buy it from Lanvin, but she hasn't replied to that question.
Her SA at Lanvin said she's not sure what colors this bag came in & is doing some research for me & is supposed to call me back on Mon, but my SA in Las Vegas said that it was released about 3 seasons ago & she's pretty sure that it wasn't available in grey (at least the Lanvin stores didn't have it in grey -- she said it's possible that it was made available to other resalers).
The on thing that puzzles me is the fact that Lanvin repaired the bag. She said that it would have to be real in order for them to do the repairs. And you'd think that if the bag were sent to Paris -- where Lanvin's "home office" is located -- that they'd know whether or not this was their bag. But then again, it could be that the quality is so good, they didn't have reason to suspect that it wasn't real (the leather's super soft & smells good, hardware's up to par -- you wouldn't think that this was fake).
I could even believe that the petal looks the way that it does from being carried & worn -- what troubles me most is the even & consistent pattern of the wrinkling on the bag. I've looked at pics of other wrinkled leather bags from Lanvin and none of them are wrinkled in a pattern - they're all pretty random. The pattern of the wrinkles matches the ones on iOffer exactly.
I spoke to ebay to give them a heads up because she's already hinted that she'd be happy to take it back because there was interest in the bag after it was sold -- if I return the bag, I'm doing it because it's fake, not because I changed my mind or don't want it. I don't want her reselling a fake bag to some unsuspecting buyer who may not catch on to the subtle inconsistencies. Ebay says they will flag it & to be sure to file a claim before sending it back so that they can monitor her sales & make sure she doesn't try to sell it (at least on ebay) w/o providing proof of authenticity.
If anyone has this bag or knows anything about it, I'd really appreciate your help!! Thank you in advance!!! I'm hoping for some good news, but am not holding my breath!
Her SA at Lanvin said she's not sure what colors this bag came in & is doing some research for me & is supposed to call me back on Mon, but my SA in Las Vegas said that it was released about 3 seasons ago & she's pretty sure that it wasn't available in grey (at least the Lanvin stores didn't have it in grey -- she said it's possible that it was made available to other resalers).
The on thing that puzzles me is the fact that Lanvin repaired the bag. She said that it would have to be real in order for them to do the repairs. And you'd think that if the bag were sent to Paris -- where Lanvin's "home office" is located -- that they'd know whether or not this was their bag. But then again, it could be that the quality is so good, they didn't have reason to suspect that it wasn't real (the leather's super soft & smells good, hardware's up to par -- you wouldn't think that this was fake).
I could even believe that the petal looks the way that it does from being carried & worn -- what troubles me most is the even & consistent pattern of the wrinkling on the bag. I've looked at pics of other wrinkled leather bags from Lanvin and none of them are wrinkled in a pattern - they're all pretty random. The pattern of the wrinkles matches the ones on iOffer exactly.
I spoke to ebay to give them a heads up because she's already hinted that she'd be happy to take it back because there was interest in the bag after it was sold -- if I return the bag, I'm doing it because it's fake, not because I changed my mind or don't want it. I don't want her reselling a fake bag to some unsuspecting buyer who may not catch on to the subtle inconsistencies. Ebay says they will flag it & to be sure to file a claim before sending it back so that they can monitor her sales & make sure she doesn't try to sell it (at least on ebay) w/o providing proof of authenticity.
If anyone has this bag or knows anything about it, I'd really appreciate your help!! Thank you in advance!!! I'm hoping for some good news, but am not holding my breath!
I can't really speak to the authenticity (although it does look really good, is all the zipper hardware the same?) but I will tell you that I tried to sell a Chloe Marcie bag on ebay and my picture was stolen and used on iOffer. I have complained multiple times, but MY picture of my authentic bag is still used quite a lot on iOffer by fakers. So seeing a pic on iOffer might not mean the worst.
Does the SA think it's authentic? It sounds like you've really got your head spinning on this one, do you think you will ever feel comfortable with the bag? I know that for me, once I get worried about these things I can't let it go. But if it looks and feels authentic and Lanvin thinks it is too, I think you shouldn't worry. I think with Lanvin, the feel (the softness of the leather, the weight) of the bag says a lot. How is the weight of the hardware? Fakes aren't THAT good of these, are they? My wrinkled Lanvin bag is so soft it almost feels like suede.
Does the SA think it's authentic? It sounds like you've really got your head spinning on this one, do you think you will ever feel comfortable with the bag? I know that for me, once I get worried about these things I can't let it go. But if it looks and feels authentic and Lanvin thinks it is too, I think you shouldn't worry. I think with Lanvin, the feel (the softness of the leather, the weight) of the bag says a lot. How is the weight of the hardware? Fakes aren't THAT good of these, are they? My wrinkled Lanvin bag is so soft it almost feels like suede.
iluvmybags--sorry to hear you're in this dilemma! I don't own this bag so I can't comment on the authenticity of it. I went through your pictures over and over again, the only thing that sticks out to me is the bag charm. It looks different--how does it feel? Heavy/solid? I hope the bag turns out to be authentic, please do share with us what else, if anything, your SA finds out!
the zippers are the same (both are riri) -- the pic on iOffer isn't of THIS bag -- what I meant was that all of the grey wrinkled leather bags like this on iOffer LOOK exactly the same as this one, with the same pattern of wrinkles & the same smashed and messy ribbon. Is your wrinkled Lanvin wrinkled in a consistent pattern? Or are the wrinkles just random all over the bag? I think that's the biggest thing that concerns me about this bag -- if you look at the wrinkles they look exactly the same within every single quilted diamond, but in the pics of that Taupe one, the wrinkles are pretty random.
The leather is very soft, but doesn't feel like suede -- one thing I noticed immediately when I pulled this bag out of the box was how lightweight it was (altho I had been told beforehand that this style was a little heavier).
To be honest, I HAVE seen mirror-image fakes where only one very small detail is off -- I think my knowledge about fakes is a curse sometimes, as I tend to examine and re-examine every inch of a bag before I can feel confident that it's real. I'm waiting for the SA from Lanvin to call me back, but my SA in LV says that she doesn't remember selling this bag in grey
I haven't heard back from Lanvin altho I've called twice and both times she wasn't available. BTW, here are the pics from iOffer -- do you see what I mean about these bags looks exactly the same as mine? I thought the wrinkling should be random, but it looks consistently the same in all of these pics (which matches the pattern on my bag)
then again, I haven't owned nor ever seen one of these in person before -- I'm basing my thoughts on other pics I've seen. I thought the wrinkles should be pretty random - larger here, smaller there, etc - but maybe I'm wrong
then again, I haven't owned nor ever seen one of these in person before -- I'm basing my thoughts on other pics I've seen. I thought the wrinkles should be pretty random - larger here, smaller there, etc - but maybe I'm wrong
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the texture of the leather on mine appears to be a little different, more like the texture in the picture in the blog you linked. Sort of more "porous" - but it looks like the texture of the bag in question seems similar to your Happy (smoother), so I don't know??....
have you seen the Lanvin alphabet bags? are they authentic? because they also have their own pattern of wrinkling that's a little different than mine.
Also, note that the hardware on my bag does have flathead screws. That's a good sign!
have you seen the Lanvin alphabet bags? are they authentic? because they also have their own pattern of wrinkling that's a little different than mine.
Also, note that the hardware on my bag does have flathead screws. That's a good sign!
Comparison of the Lanvin coins (grey bag on the left, Happy on the right)
I'm not a Lanvin expert but did you notice that the bottom of the coin is different than the taupe one. There is a thick solid bar at the bottom of the taupe one and the other samples provided by other OPs. The grey one has a thin bar??? That would make me wonder..
thank you all very much for sharing your thoughts and addtl pics!! I can't tell you how much I appreciate it!
alison -- the leather of the grey bag is porous in spots & is very different from my Happy (my Happy is soft, yet feels like it has some type of protection -- someone once described the leather as having a "waxy" finish & I think I know what they mean). The leather on the grey bag is very matte & soft & there are areas where it looks just like yours (to be honest, the leather actually looks, feels & smells like a high quality leather!!)
the screws on your bag actually look more like the screws on my Happy which are Phillips, not flatheads (flat head screws have one line across, whereas Phillips have 4 points, like a cross) & I can definitely see the variances in the wrinkling of your Amalia. I really think that's how all of these bags are supposed to look. I'm guessing no 2 bags should looks the alike, whereas ALL of the bags on iOffer look the same (exactly like the grey one).
You know, I saw the Alphabet bag on iOffer as well & had seen it on ebay before, but I don't know that I've ever seen one at Lanvin. Of course, that doesn't mean anything, but I guess it would make me wonder & be extra careful buying that style second-hand.
KCF -- while I had noticed very subtle differences between the coin on the grey bag & the one on my Happy, that's not one of the things I detected, but nNow that you mention it, I can see it -- I'm at work right now, but will definitely check that out as soon as I get home! I do think the coin that alison posted pics of matches my Happy exactly, which makes me believe that there's not much of a difference in the Lanvin coins
I didn't hear back from Lanvin today, so I'm going to call tomorrow morning, but after seeing all of these pics, I really do believe I recd a fake Lanvin. It's such a shame cuz the bag is gorgeous & I never in a million years thought I'd have to worry about fakes of this particular style, but I guess I was wrong -- the scariest part is how close to real this bag looks. I mean, if I wasn't a member of tPF & didn't know much about handbag authentications, I'd never guess or have reason to believe that this was anything but authentic. The fact that Lanvin repaired it themselves is pretty scary!! This bag even had them fooled! I do intend to make them aware of it tho, so that in the future they can pay closer attention to the bags they receive for repairs -- the other thing that amazes me, is the fact that this seller had the nerve to send a fake bag to Lanvin to repair in the first place!! If you ask me, that takes a lot of 8alls!!!
alison -- the leather of the grey bag is porous in spots & is very different from my Happy (my Happy is soft, yet feels like it has some type of protection -- someone once described the leather as having a "waxy" finish & I think I know what they mean). The leather on the grey bag is very matte & soft & there are areas where it looks just like yours (to be honest, the leather actually looks, feels & smells like a high quality leather!!)
the screws on your bag actually look more like the screws on my Happy which are Phillips, not flatheads (flat head screws have one line across, whereas Phillips have 4 points, like a cross) & I can definitely see the variances in the wrinkling of your Amalia. I really think that's how all of these bags are supposed to look. I'm guessing no 2 bags should looks the alike, whereas ALL of the bags on iOffer look the same (exactly like the grey one
).You know, I saw the Alphabet bag on iOffer as well & had seen it on ebay before, but I don't know that I've ever seen one at Lanvin. Of course, that doesn't mean anything, but I guess it would make me wonder & be extra careful buying that style second-hand.
KCF -- while I had noticed very subtle differences between the coin on the grey bag & the one on my Happy, that's not one of the things I detected, but nNow that you mention it, I can see it -- I'm at work right now, but will definitely check that out as soon as I get home! I do think the coin that alison posted pics of matches my Happy exactly, which makes me believe that there's not much of a difference in the Lanvin coins
I didn't hear back from Lanvin today, so I'm going to call tomorrow morning, but after seeing all of these pics, I really do believe I recd a fake Lanvin. It's such a shame cuz the bag is gorgeous & I never in a million years thought I'd have to worry about fakes of this particular style, but I guess I was wrong -- the scariest part is how close to real this bag looks. I mean, if I wasn't a member of tPF & didn't know much about handbag authentications, I'd never guess or have reason to believe that this was anything but authentic. The fact that Lanvin repaired it themselves is pretty scary!! This bag even had them fooled! I do intend to make them aware of it tho, so that in the future they can pay closer attention to the bags they receive for repairs -- the other thing that amazes me, is the fact that this seller had the nerve to send a fake bag to Lanvin to repair in the first place!! If you ask me, that takes a lot of 8alls!!!
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