How to keep the shape of your Birkin

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#181
QuelleFromage said:
Thanks! Good to know, but this "good whack" did not work for me. I've also been advised by my craftsman to keep my bag closed while storing it, and I definitely can't close it with the pillow inside. The pillow also makes strange creases in the bag.
You can see how wide the pillow is at bottom and also what the bag looks like with pillow inside - strange unevenness.



View attachment 4657916 View attachment 4657917 View attachment 4657918
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It's so hard to know what to do. Years ago a Paris craftsman told me to leave the bags open and lightly stuffed, sangles pointing up, handle supported and laid on their backs in their dust covers. So I've done that for years and my Bs look brand new. I just got a new one so I'm going to try storing it closed and see if there's any difference. Mine stay put for long periods of time because I have way too many of them. The Kelly's I do keep closed and they look new too. You can drive yourself nuts with this stuff!
 
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#182
You're right, it can not close with the pillow inside, by design. This is of course completely individual. Your feedback is appreciated. No matter what you use, please reconsider keeping it closed. We have heard some real horror stories with hardware getting marked up from being closed for a prolonged time.

Enjoy your Birkin! Thank you for sharing.
 
#183
BagLady164 said:
It's so hard to know what to do. Years ago a Paris craftsman told me to leave the bags open and lightly stuffed, sangles pointing up, handle supported and laid on their backs in their dust covers. So I've done that for years and my Bs look brand new. I just got a new one so I'm going to try storing it closed and see if there's any difference. Mine stay put for long periods of time because I have way too many of them. The Kelly's I do keep closed and they look new too. You can drive yourself nuts with this stuff!
Click to expand...

I agree with the Paris craftsman, they are after all the "original" craftsmen ;-) That is what were recommend as well and have seen fantastic results.
 
#184
QuelleFromage said:
Thanks! Good to know, but this "good whack" did not work for me. I've also been advised by my craftsman to keep my bag closed while storing it, and I definitely can't close it with the pillow inside. The pillow also makes strange creases in the bag.
You can see how wide the pillow is at bottom and also what the bag looks like with pillow inside - strange unevenness.



You're right, it can not close with the pillow inside, by design. This is of course completely individual. Your feedback is appreciated. No matter what you use, please reconsider keeping it closed. We have heard some real horror stories with hardware getting marked up from being closed for a prolonged time.

Enjoy your Birkin! Thank you for sharing.
Click to expand...
 
#185
I think it's clear that the Bag-a-Vie pillow is too large for this bag, even if I were to store it wide open - I would not be able to pull the sides in and that IS necessary to maintain the shape of the sides.
I'm happy with what my craftsman told me to do and all my Birkins are in great shape. FWIW, they are ALL trained in Paris and have worked in Paris, so, no one is an "original" craftsman.
Edited to add: when I say I store my bags closed, I mean the bag is "closed" at the top as opposed to being wide open. I do not close the flap and lock the sangles over it. The flap is tucked in, the sides of the bag are pulled into the original folds, and the sangles lie on the felt which covers the hardware.
 
#186
QuelleFromage said:
I think it's clear that the Bag-a-Vie pillow is too large for this bag, even if I were to store it wide open - I would not be able to pull the sides in and that IS necessary to maintain the shape of the sides.
I'm happy with what my craftsman told me to do and all my Birkins are in great shape. FWIW, they are ALL trained in Paris and have worked in Paris, so, no one is an "original" craftsman.
Edited to add: when I say I store my bags closed, I mean the bag is "closed" at the top as opposed to being wide open. I do not close the flap and lock the sangles over it. The flap is tucked in, the sides of the bag are pulled into the original folds, and the sangles lie on the felt which covers the hardware.
Click to expand...

Thank you for all your feedback and the pix. We definitely take all suggestions into account and tweak as needed. Much appreciated. I've included some pix to show what I mean as to placement. This is a Bikin 30. Thank you so much for your time.IMG_8527.jpg IMG_8528.jpg IMG_8529.jpg IMG_8530.jpg
 
#187
Hi! Read through this but wasn't sure if the consensus is for the sangles to be left closed or open when storing the bags. I've been keeping my bags closed with the felt layer, but am wondering if this will stretch out the sangles. I did recently buy a preloved Birkin, where the sangles are quite stretched out... does anyone else have this problem or know how to avoid?

Thanks!
 
#188
Yikes Ive been storing mine like Jwcy22 as well. After all...that's how Hermes store them brand new when the blessed SA presents a new B to me. All these other ways of storing sound amazing though and want to try for sure. Need to research bag inserts and felt to support underneath now. Not going anywhere anytime soon so...

Hope everyone is safe and peaceful.
 
#189
TeeCee77 said:
Hello! Ask and you shall receive. I fear, however, that this post may reveal that I am NUTS when it comes to my Bs. But hey, arent’t we all a little cray cray?? Anywhoo, here is a step-by-step of what I do. Yes, I know this is cray, but ya. Here you go - sorry for the long post.
Step 1: Materials Needed (Birkin, felt, dust bag, pillow insert, towel, airbag - or 2 airbags and skip the towel). View attachment 4138293
Step 2: insert bag pillow View attachment 4138294
Step 3: dress with felt protector (you can omit this step - I actually have no idea why I do it now that I think about it) View attachment 4138297
Step 4: put in dust bag View attachment 4138301
Step 5: lay on back and insert rolled towel or air pillow to support top of bag and handles.
At this point I generally pull the shangles so my bag doesnt have bat wings, but leave them loose across the front View attachment 4138298
Step 6: add air bag at end of handles for support (may or may not need this depending on whether your handles are elevated above surface or not) View attachment 4138300
The gray pillow you saw in my first post is a memory foam pillow that I bought on amazon. It fit perfectly in my cabinet that I use for my B30. My B35s now live in a closet. I ordered a piece of memory foam for the size of the shelf and they sleep on that. View attachment 4138304View attachment 4138305
Good luck!
Click to expand...
I LOVE THIS!! Can you attach a link for those amazing felt squares? It's like they're made for your shelves!
 
#191
Tonimichelle said:
View attachment 4080185 View attachment 4080186 I’m not sure if I am allowed to post this but as this is just a prototype and not available just yet hopefully it’s ok.
If not Mods please remove.
I wanted a natural breathable pillow for my Kelly (avoiding plastic and I’m fed up with so much tissue paper!) so this is made of unbleached cotton and filled with pure natural wool and what I’m using currently.
Click to expand...
These are wonderful! Please add me to your list! :)
 
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#194
bababebi said:
Even more than the filling, it is important to lay your bags down to sleep, that is, on their sides, they do not like to go to sleep upright. If you do that every time you will extend the life of your bag tremendously. I do not recommend stuffed and standing upright.
Click to expand...

hello! Do you recommend laying them down inside the dust bag in the box? I stored my chèvre birkin 30 and Togo birkin 25 inside the dustbag laying down in my closet (not inside the box) and have noticed that back was starting to show an indentation mark from the inner pocket. Thank you!
 
#195
TeeCee77 said:
Hello! Ask and you shall receive. I fear, however, that this post may reveal that I am NUTS when it comes to my Bs. But hey, arent’t we all a little cray cray?? Anywhoo, here is a step-by-step of what I do. Yes, I know this is cray, but ya. Here you go - sorry for the long post.
Step 1: Materials Needed (Birkin, felt, dust bag, pillow insert, towel, airbag - or 2 airbags and skip the towel). View attachment 4138293
Step 2: insert bag pillow View attachment 4138294
Step 3: dress with felt protector (you can omit this step - I actually have no idea why I do it now that I think about it) View attachment 4138297
Step 4: put in dust bag View attachment 4138301
Step 5: lay on back and insert rolled towel or air pillow to support top of bag and handles.
At this point I generally pull the shangles so my bag doesnt have bat wings, but leave them loose across the front View attachment 4138298
Step 6: add air bag at end of handles for support (may or may not need this depending on whether your handles are elevated above surface or not) View attachment 4138300
The gray pillow you saw in my first post is a memory foam pillow that I bought on amazon. It fit perfectly in my cabinet that I use for my B30. My B35s now live in a closet. I ordered a piece of memory foam for the size of the shelf and they sleep on that. View attachment 4138304View attachment 4138305
Good luck!
Click to expand...

Thank you so much for sharing!! I will do this now! How are the backs of your Bs? I store mine on its back with pillows inside but I’m starting to see some indentation on the back from the pocket and zipper! I will try it with the memory foam and air pillow in between the handles!
 
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