I was told when I had purchased my bag that they don't clean or service the inside of the bag....so not sure if they would even replace it.
oh thats so sad for vintage bags that need care - thankyou Lovebrandname
TPF may earn a commission from merchant affiliate
links, including eBay, Amazon, and others
I was told when I had purchased my bag that they don't clean or service the inside of the bag....so not sure if they would even replace it.
I wasn't asking for authentication. The sales associate brought it up. I just wanted to purchase spa services for my authentic bag.
The SA told me that they were "cracking down" on accepting Birkins without paperwork. I asked what paperwork she was talking about and she said, "your authentication paperwork." I was puzzled because I didn't understand what she was asking for -- then she said that I either needed to be the original purchaser or have the receipt for them to even consider my bag for services. I told her that my aunt was dead, and this piece was part of her estate. I didn't know how I would come up with any sort of authentication paperwork, and she said - we cannot accept your bag. That's harsh.
Hermes won't accept the bag for repair if work like dying or stitching or hardware replacement/repair has been done elsewhere. As to it affecting authenticity, if your repair person removes, changes or obscures details that are used to assess authenticity, then yes, potentially. Extensive repairs generally affect resale value, no matter what you are selling, unless the item is so rare or in demand that a potential buyer might not care as much. Evelynes are plentiful so I doubt someone would pay market resale rates for a heavily restored/repaired item.
I'm sorry to say this (and to go OT), but this damage can't be repaired without replacing the entire piece of leather - cracks are permanent (scratches are normal on box) and there seems to be dryness also. The repair will be high. I would never buy a bag with cracks unless it were literally at a flea market price. There are SO many beautiful black box K28s with GHW at resale. Can you return this?I just received my black box Kelly 28 and the seller did not disclose cracks and scratches. After talking to the seller, he/she agreed to pay me $50 compensation for the undisclosed damage. Honestly I don't think this is fair considering the repair price from H, but I'm also curious to know if this can be fixed on my own... please let me know you thoughts. View attachment 3645909View attachment 3645911View attachment 3645912View attachment 3645913View attachment 3645914
Hi again - a belated update on my preloved Birkin 40 that was sent off to spa:Good point! Thanks for sharing your experiences, this is really great to knowBlack is quite forgiving anyway, and if it is only about the appearance of the handles, I don’t have much a problem with them (at least yet). I feel I can’t make an informed decision on the basis of what Hermès have given me so far, so if there is no way of getting through to them, I might as well skip the handles this time around.
No, they seem quite reluctant to touch the lining. They restitched a pocket a bit for me, and replaced the leather tab on the zipper pull, but that was that. Whether they would replace a lining completely I could not say, but like lovebrandname I doubt it.oh thats so sad for vintage bags that need care - thankyou Lovebrandname
I think I will return this, thank you so much for your input!I'm sorry to say this (and to go OT), but this damage can't be repaired without replacing the entire piece of leather - cracks are permanent (scratches are normal on box) and there seems to be dryness also. The repair will be high. I would never buy a bag with cracks unless it were literally at a flea market price. There are SO many beautiful black box K28s with GHW at resale. Can you return this?
Oh wow that was pretty quick! I dropped my Kelly off in London in November and I can't wait to get her back so fingers crossed I'll get a call soonHi again - a belated update on my preloved Birkin 40 that was sent off to spa:
The SA was actually able to get back to the H workshop about why the handles needed replacing. I was told there were cracks in the leather after all, so took the decision to let them go ahead.
Not entirely sure I shouldn’t have gone with QuelleFromages suggestion to leave them be anyway, especially since the artisan seems to have made an effort to find equally smooth, worn-looking leather, while there is really nothing wrong with the grain on the rest of the bag - that really had me laughing. And with scuffed corners e.g., there is of course only so much you can do.
With an extra investment of this magnitude, I certainly could have gone for a bag in better condition from the start. But hey, water under the bridge, and I did get everything else right - size, colour, leather and HW. I really like my bag, and at least I am safe in the knowledge that I have done everything there is to be done, and that it now is as structurally sound as possible.
Frankly, there is not that much of a visible difference, so maybe not much point in before-and-after pics. But perhaps this helps:
Cost?
Approximately €935 for new handles (Clémence).
Time?
3 months all in all. About 1 month to get an estimate, then another 2 months until the bag returned from Paris.
Here is what else they did:
I could easily post the exact charges for all the items in the list, but would just like to know if that would be ok before doing so.
- Clean + make up + finish
- Reglue + finish side straps
- Stitch + top gussets
- Stitch top front panel
- Redo 3 stop stitches (inside pockets)
- Replace inside leather tab
Oh yes, and as most of you will already know, the original dustbag was replaced with a new one.
Now I have just sent off my Kelly Sellier 32 in Box Noisette for a clean (= item 1 in the list above). It has some water stains from a light shower and I already know that those will unfortunately not come out, but then they are not that bad. Funny though how such a sturdy little thing can also be so delicate.
No receipt required in either case btw.
Not in the uk from my experience (although my Kelly is around 50 years old so a receipt would be tricky!).Do you need to have a recipt in order to have your bag sent to the spa?
The leather here looks far too dry to bring back to life. Hope you can get a refund.I just received my black box Kelly 28 and the seller did not disclose cracks and scratches. After talking to the seller, he/she agreed to pay me $50 compensation for the undisclosed damage. Honestly I don't think this is fair considering the repair price from H, but I'm also curious to know if this can be fixed on my own... please let me know you thoughts. View attachment 3645909View attachment 3645911View attachment 3645912View attachment 3645913View attachment 3645914