First Decade of BALENCIAGA Motorcycle Bag History

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

#77
HelleV2 said:
Thank you SO MUCH for this lovely trip down the road with old and rare bags :flowers::flowers::flowers:

I wonder something - I have two le dix FBF in caribou - one with strap and one without. I've been moaning over this, but from what I read it might never has had one, is that correct understood ??.
Click to expand...

I have a couple of the caribou bags too and have never seen one without the strap (unless it was lost). I assume if it wasn't "meant" to have the strap it wouldn't have the o-rings either. Is that the case on your bag without the strap?
 
#79
beauxgoris said:
I have a couple of the caribou bags too and have never seen one without the strap (unless it was lost). I assume if it wasn't "meant" to have the strap it wouldn't have the o-rings either. Is that the case on your bag without the strap?
Click to expand...

No, that's my thought as well - they wouldn't have the o-rings when no strap.
But I was curious what Corey ment by what she wrote :smile1:

Yes they both have o-rings.
 
#83
maxxout said:
Of course.....how could I overlook the handle. I let the leather influence me. Duh. Yes, it's 03.
But I have an observation about the no-fading issues of 01 and 02. Couldn't one attribute that designation incorrectly as most of the bags produced during those years were mainly black or shades of brown from chocolate to caramel which didn't fade in any subsequent years either? (with 09 being the exception) Or am I wrong about that? I know my 03 bags have no fading issues. We don't really have blues, greens, purples or really vivid colors from 01-02 to test the fading issue. Having said that, I bow to the superior knowledge and experience of our resident guru.
Click to expand...

I think you have a good point, Maxxout, the earliest bags didn't have sensitive colors, no baby blue, pale pink, white even. The first two seasons (F/W '01 & S/S '02) the leather was not "aniline" tanned (which is a semi-transparent color layer that allows all the natural marks to show), it's more of a pigment tanning that fully penetrates the hide and may be semi-aniline to give more protection while still showing off the top-grain character of the leather. The few bags made in "colors" those seasons include "Plum" and "Rouge" which are bright, but I don't think either fades or shifts over time. Those 2 seasons have very stable colors in leathers that are extra-buttery silky soft and just divine.

Then F/W '02 comes around with flat brass hardware bags having moto-tough leather that's highly distressed, probably aniline tanned, and so it does fade with sun exposure and use as well as patinas from touching. I think that's the season which starts the vintage-crafting of the leather hides. It's true the colors were mainly black, dark brown, caramel, and olive. The way the bags go from dark to lighter highlighting the points of flex and the places of handling make the bags look really loved and very cool in my opinion. Here's one of my favorites '02 F/W Olive Flat Brass First:
my_02_olive_fbf.jpg


HelleV2 said:
Sure, I'll take some pictures ;).

Ah OK thanks - so it might not have been "born" with a strap - I had no idea some didn't - thank you for the information as well :flowers:
Click to expand...

Love your pics, and yes some '01 "Le Dix" bags were sold without straps, I think it was the first batch or there was a rush or something. By S/S '02 nearly all of the bags had straps.
 
  • Like
Reactions: cakeymakeybakey
#84
RealDealCollection said:
I think you have a good point, Maxxout, the earliest bags didn't have sensitive colors, no baby blue, pale pink, white even. The first two seasons (F/W '01 & S/S '02) the leather was not "aniline" tanned (which is a semi-transparent color layer that allows all the natural marks to show), it's more of a pigment tanning that fully penetrates the hide and may be semi-aniline to give more protection while still showing off the top-grain character of the leather. The few bags made in "colors" those seasons include "Plum" and "Rouge" which are bright, but I don't think either fades or shifts over time. Those 2 seasons have very stable colors in leathers that are extra-buttery silky soft and just divine.

Then F/W '02 comes around with flat brass hardware bags having moto-tough leather that's highly distressed, probably aniline tanned, and so it does fade with sun exposure and use as well as patinas from touching. I think that's the season which starts the vintage-crafting of the leather hides. It's true the colors were mainly black, dark brown, caramel, and olive. The way the bags go from dark to lighter highlighting the points of flex and the places of handling make the bags look really loved and very cool in my opinion. Here's one of my favorites '02 F/W Olive Flat Brass First:
my_02_olive_fbf.jpg




Love your pics, and yes some '01 "Le Dix" bags were sold without straps, I think it was the first batch or there was a rush or something. By S/S '02 nearly all of the bags had straps.
Click to expand...

LOVE your 02 olive FBF! Thanks for sharing the picture:graucho:
 
#86
RealDealCollection said:
Check out my new Bag History page on my website: http://www.realdealcollection.com/history_of_bal_moto_bag.html

Here's the 1st page of Real Deal Collection's Balenciaga Bag History:

Are you ready for a trip down memory lane? It's the early 2000's when Nicolas Ghesquière was creative director of Balenciaga and designed the now-classic motorcycle bag. This lightweight handbag combined soft and slouchy leather with studs and zippers pulled by long lariat tassels. It became an "It Bag" after editor's and model's admiration and publicity.

For me it was love at first sight when I spotted Kate Moss holding this beautiful black Le Dix Balenciaga bag inside the pages of Harper's Bazaar magazine. My quest began to acquire one, and after many phone calls I got lucky at Barney's New York, which was the exclusive USA retailer before Balenciaga opened their NYC boutique in 2003. This was my first designer purse and the start of my handbag obsession.
realdealcollection.com/images/2001_fbf_editors_bag.jpg
A Close Call for BALENCIAGA's Motorcycle Bag

On August 15, 2011 WWD Accessory magazine featured an interview with Nicolas Ghesquiere talking about the 2001 Balenciaga runway show and how the Le Dix Motorcycle Lariat bag was close to never being made.

N.G.: And we did this prototype and nobody cared; we had a couple of prototypes for a year. Every girl who was walking [the show], including Kate [Moss] came in and was like, 'What is that? Is it vintage? Is it something that you found at the flea market?' I was like 'No, it's a handbag that we prototyped but just didn't produce.' We didn't produce it because I think when I showed the prototype to the people who asked me to do it, they weren't happy with it.

WWD: Too fashiony?
N.G.: Accessories [at the time] were rigid. Luxury leather, especially, was about rigidity. So they were not really happy, and they decided not to produce it. Then when it was in the studio and the models noticed it, I said, 'I think we should just do 25. Let me just give them to the girls because at least some people will be happy.' And that product started from a very, very fashion point of view [and extended] to a very, very large, global audience.

WWD: Why do you think it resonated so dramatically?
N.G.: No logo. Very light. Very effective. There is something familiar with the vintage side. Women and girls thought it was something they'd always have. It was a new fresh thing, but it looked like an old, good, friendly thing. And I think the brand also was becoming desirable. People had desire for my goods and [the bag] was the most accessible piece. You could be a Balenciaga girl with that bag.

The Balenciaga factor [WWD Accessory]

More information will be posted about Balenciaga motorcycle bags, so check out RealDealCollection.com & this thread often!

realdealcollection.com/images/Nicolas_Ghesquiere.jpg
Click to expand...

Great work done!
Thanks so much for sharing the info. It's indeed valuable ;)
 
#87
Found this beauty in an Antique.

Very good condition & clean overall except the handle is darken at the upper top. I do hope that can be cleaned

No shoulder strap & no mirror though :smile1:
 

Attachments

  • 1425795610378_resized.jpg
    1425795610378_resized.jpg
    111 KB · Views: 492
  • 1425795623771_resized.jpg
    1425795623771_resized.jpg
    142.9 KB · Views: 486
  • 1425795626811_resized.jpg
    1425795626811_resized.jpg
    116.9 KB · Views: 497
  • 1425795632911_resized.jpg
    1425795632911_resized.jpg
    115.6 KB · Views: 489
#88
peacebabe said:
Found this beauty in an Antique.

Very good condition & clean overall except the handle is darken at the upper top. I do hope that can be cleaned

No shoulder strap & no mirror though :smile1:
Click to expand...

Cool find! The leather is untreated cowhide or vachette (like on Louis Vuitton bags) I'm not sure if that leather can be cleaned but overtime it will all look really vintage and well loved.

Back then in Fall/Winter 2001 I think straps may not have always been included, but with the gold-stamp Le Dix tag inside there would be no mirror.

It's also very interesting to see the lining has Balenciaga written all over, similar to the Pierre Cardin linings that were randomly placed inside Spring/Summer 2002 bags.

Congrats!

P.S. I am nearly done with 2001-2002 Styles and will be adding more as soon as possible.
 
#90
Okay, finally I think I have the formatting down. Photoshop docs ready to be filled with more historical data. I love making the eye candy pieces...will be looking for more modeling shots with Flat Brass & Pewter Hardware bags.

Please check out the latest version, I've including all the styles, colors, leather types for the early prototype bags in 2001 and through 2002. Let me know what you all think, and feel free to post photos of your Le Dix & early Balenciaga's, we all love to see them!

Have you guys seen this bag before?

 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Top