Box Calf / Veau Box through the years #boxcalfnerds

TPF may earn a commission from merchant affiliate
links, including eBay, Amazon, and others

ForeverInPink.....Congratulations! The BJ Box is such a rare beauty. Love it!

A rare bird, Blue Jean box calf! Congratulations, it is stunning. What year? Leather comments! Mod shots :heart:

Thank you dears, I still can't believe she's all mine!!! [emoji170][emoji170][emoji170]

QF, it's 1998 and in PRISTINE condition except for 2 tiny pinprick holes near one corner (perhaps the handywork of a naughty lil kitten? :D )

I'll see what I can do re mod shots, my whole family is laid up with the flu right now so perhaps in a few days.... [emoji40]
 
Value of vintage / older Box Calf bags and Willingness to Pay.

Recently I came across 2 Royal Blue Box Kellys about a decade apart in age. A 1990 Kelly 28 and a 1999 Kelly 32. Both with GHW. The K28 was freshly spa'ed and the K32 was beautiful but less well-conditioned than the K28. The price difference was about USD1000. I have only seen photos of the bags.

Ladies ... What are your thoughts on purchasing a higher priced older bag when opportunity presents a lower priced newer option at the same time? I understand that the condition and the production year are also influencing factors of box calf.

Thanks in advance.
 
Last edited:
View attachment 3477318

The new format of H Baume. The rénovant was already discontinued. They said it's the same. Anybody tried this for their boxcalf? I'm really not keen!
I would'nt use the Hermès baume on boxcalf, I only use it on my Barenia bags. This is for naked leathers like Barenia, Vache Naturelle and saddle leathers in general. It's to greasy and waxy for Box. I use the Medaille d'Or Saphir Renovateur on my Box bags.

I'm sure other Box nerds can also chime in!
 
  • Like
Reactions: footlocker
I would'nt use the Hermès baume on boxcalf, I only use it on my Barenia bags. This is for naked leathers like Barenia, Vache Naturelle and saddle leathers in general. It's to greasy and waxy for Box. I use the Medaille d'Or Saphir Renovateur on my Box bags.

I'm sure other Box nerds can also chime in!

I'm also a barenia nerd! Thanks for letting me know that it works for barenia too!
 
Value of vintage / older Box Calf bags and Willingness to Pay.

Recently I came across 2 Royal Blue Box Kellys about a decade apart in age. A 1990 Kelly 28 and a 1999 Kelly 32. Both with GHW. The K28 was freshly spa'ed and the K32 was beautiful but less well-conditioned than the K28. The price difference was about USD1000. I have only seen photos of the bags.

Ladies ... What are your thoughts on purchasing a higher priced older bag when opportunity presents a lower priced newer option at the same time? I understand that the condition and the production year are also influencing factors of box calf.

Thanks in advance.
I do tend to like a newer bag, but it's SO relative. One of the reasons for starting this thread was that many aficionados believe a particular decade (often the early 90s) was best for box calf. I've never had a 90s bag so could not say, but I have had a few from 2000-2002 that were lovely quality leather, especially my 2000 BBK (in the first posts of the thread). However my 1980 Kelly is also gorgeous, and is in just as good condition.
In general I will go with condition over year in a heartbeat unless the disparity is decades - and you will see that reseller pricing reflects this. The only exception is VERY new box bags (say, last 4-5 years), which are rare. These will get priced higher the newer they are. There is much debate over the quality of new box leather and whether it pales in comparison to vintage; again I can't really answer this as my only new box calf item is a CDC I bought last week :p I haven't really examined the leather as yet, and it's not a full bag of course.
The price difference you're looking at specifically here also reflects that 28s are a bit harder to find.
 
  • Like
Reactions: Sus
QuelleFromage... Thanks for your feedback. Yes, your Kelly's are amazing. I highly appreciate how the 1980 Kelly holds its unique beauty, perhaps more so than when it was first born, after more than 3 decades. The beauty of box is that it ages well like wine.

I have a 2015 box bag. Must compare it with the older box and share some notes here. My first impression was that it was very smooth and thinner than my 1980s box bag. Perhaps the bag sizes and colours influence the differences as well.

Agree that the higher price reflects the rarity of the K28 Royal Blue Box. If it was a K25, price would be astronomical.
 
QuelleFromage... Thanks for your feedback. Yes, your Kelly's are amazing. I highly appreciate how the 1980 Kelly holds its unique beauty, perhaps more so than when it was first born, after more than 3 decades. The beauty of box is that it ages well like wine.

I have a 2015 box bag. Must compare it with the older box and share some notes here. My first impression was that it was very smooth and thinner than my 1980s box bag. Perhaps the bag sizes and colours influence the differences as well.

Agree that the higher price reflects the rarity of the K28 Royal Blue Box. If it was a K25, price would be astronomical.
Would be amazing to see new box calf close up!
 
  • Like
Reactions: Greengoddess8
Top