In general, the 2005 bags had great leather .. however, since you noted that it was 2005 F/W .. it could have actually been from a batch of leather from 2006 S/S (which was the horrible thin & papery leather). I have also seen where Balenciaga used the next season's tag when the batch was late in the prior season, so .. in this case, if this was the last batch of 2005 F/W bags, it is entirely possible that the change to the new leather manufacturer had occurred and hence the reason why your bag does not have the quintessential 2005 leather.
CeeJay's BAL-a-palooza!! [Balenciaga Collection over time]
- Thread starter CeeJay
- Start date
TPF may earn a commission from merchant affiliate
links, including eBay, Amazon, and others
In general, the 2005 bags had great leather .. however, since you noted that it was 2005 F/W .. it could have actually been from a batch of leather from 2006 S/S (which was the horrible thin & papery leather). I have also seen where Balenciaga used the next season's tag when the batch was late in the prior season, so .. in this case, if this was the last batch of 2005 F/W bags, it is entirely possible that the change to the new leather manufacturer had occurred and hence the reason why your bag does not have the quintessential 2005 leather.
Weirdly enough i am happy with the leather [emoji28]
Just imagine how happy id be with the quintessential 2005 leather. Need. One now [emoji24][emoji24][emoji24]
Thanks for the response. Still drooling over your many many collection. Still thinking if i should get a part time next.
It's a veritable temple of Balenciaga wonders! I don't have any Bals but this is the most awesome and beautiful collection ever.
Found another 'oldie' but goodie .. 2005 S/S Sky Blue City!!!
Amazing condition for a 10+ year old!
@CeeJay as a long-term (or life-time?) expert, can you tell me if there is any difference in height between the old Cities and the new ones?
Yours looks way higher... modern ones looks very East-West to me...
is that what comes with breaking in? or they just changed to sizes slightly? TIA!
The size of the City has remained consistent, what HAS changed is the strap. The older bags definitely had a longer shoulder strap, whereas .. the newer bags have a smaller shoulder strap. So, I wonder if that has you thinking that the size of the bag itself has changed?
Now .. the size of the First/Classic definitely changed. The early Flat Brass Firsts/Classic were bigger (and I definitely preferred that size). That was changed in 2003, where the 'new' Firsts were smaller. However, again .. the shoulder strap size was also different. Even in 2003, those bags had a much longer shoulder strap than the bags that came out later. Truly, I wish they had kept the straps the same!
Thank you, Dear!
Re First, i did have that feeling, but since i'm not a "First" gal, i didn't fix at that, but City (in partucularly your new baby) looks more square comparing to new rectangular shaped ones... probably with use and age they do break in and stretch North-south and become more balanced? (Coz i really do like the shape of yours more)
Yup .. found another color that I wanted back in the collection, but in a City size (had the RGGH Part-Time); the 2009 S/S Officier City!! Love this dark blue color!
CeeJay, where do you manage to find all these gorgeous oldies in chevre! I stalk ebay but they never seem to go on there! [emoji848][emoji38]
Alas, insomnia is my friend in this department! I also look beyond eBay as, sadly, there are a LOT of fakes on eBay now .. especially those that attempt to be the old Pewter HW ones (not even close)! Also, just call it "Bal Age" .. because I pretty much know exactly the year and color even before looking at the tag (just call that being with a brand for a VERY long time!). As a matter of fact, I have many times had to let folks on eBay know that what they think they have is, in fact .. not what they think they have .. and sometimes, I will also tell them when they have a rare bag. As there are not too many of us Bal enthusiasts like there used to be, bags will get sold by folks who really have no idea of the brand .. this can be a good thing (ka-ching $$$) or a bad thing!!!
Wishing you the best in your Bal hunts!!
.. after fixing her tassels, here's another pic of my '09 Officier City with a "companion" .. a Coquelicot Mini-Mini First handbag charm!!!
.. another recent find, and from a year that I was not particularly thrilled with the leather, but .. typical of Balenciaga, you really need to look / feel each bag .. as they may be very different! A 2006 S/S Camel City!
That leather looks gorgeous - looks almost like chevre, although it must be agneau?
Correct .. it is Agneau. Certain years, like 2010 for instance, had really great Agneau leather .. but I admit, I do prefer Chevre. Bottom line, with Balenciaga it's really important (if possible) to see the bags IRL because the leathers can be that different!