Most of our bags aren't 100% leather, do we even care?

[purly]

I found this article on the difference between how chrome tanned and vegetable tanned leathers are made, which explains why some leathers have peculiar scents! I think I may be associating the vegetable tanned leather scent with the smell of "real leather."

Chrome Tanned Vs. Vegetable Tanned Leather, Explained

A deep dive into the differences between chrome and vegetable-tanned leather.

www.gentlemansgazette.com

 

[JVSXOXO]

I found this article on the difference between how chrome tanned and vegetable tanned leathers are made, which explains why some leathers have peculiar scents! I think I may be associating the vegetable tanned leather scent with the smell of "real leather."

Chrome Tanned Vs. Vegetable Tanned Leather, Explained

A deep dive into the differences between chrome and vegetable-tanned leather.

www.gentlemansgazette.com

Learning about petri dish leather kind of weirded me out, and I wasn’t prepared for the horse hide picture. But it was an interesting read.

 

[TraceySH]

Thank you TraceySH for bringing all of this to our attention. I have been feeling this for quite some time already—that the quality does not match up with the insane prices most luxury brands are charging. This is why I’ve turned my attention to fine jewelry. Designer bags are just not worth it anymore.

I think I am just saying what so many of us have been wanting to say, and I am so glad we are all talking about it! It makes ME feel better at least that I am in like company. And how funny you say jewelry, I am doing exactly the same! (and watches).

The handbag craze wasn't always a "thing". It's been going on for what, maybe a little over a decade? Before that, weren't we all just buying a bag or 2 and carrying them everyday for awhile? I wonder if the "craze" is dying down, or will, with the help of all the aforementioned issues, desensitization, and pure exhausting from the general public about it.

 

[purly]

The craze has been going on for longer than a decade. I remember looking in my grandmother's closet as a small child and seeing her collection of Chanel purses. I don't know if they were far less expensive back then, but I do know she stored them with her furs so she clearly valued them.

 

[TraceySH]

The craze has been going on for longer than a decade. I remember looking in my grandmother's closet as a small child and seeing her collection of Chanel purses. I don't know if they were far less expensive back then, but I do know she stored them with her furs so she clearly valued them.

SO I know the expensive handbag craze has gone on for many many decades, but I think I am sort of referring to the buying en masse...and cycling through purchases at a rapid pace, and the resale market etc. Resale, at this level, wasn't a thing until pretty recently, and maybe that allowed people to just buy buy buy?

 

[purly]

Maybe? I think different people have different standards for how many things they buy. I don't *usually* just buy buy buy. Lately I've been rethinking how I create outfits and planning for fall, so I've been shopping and I did in fact buy more bags than I normally would. (A polene Numero neuf, a Portland leather tote, a Tods D-Styling, and a Mulberry Oversize Alexa.) I just couldn't decide which one should be my fall bag.

I *usually* tend to buy around two bags a year, one for spring/summer and one for fall/winter.

With the exception of a few worn bags I can't bring myself to part with (for instance one Burberry calfhair bag that has worn down to the skin on the side of the bag that had contact with my body), most of my bags are ones I still use on rotation. I pick one mainstay bag, but then I switch out for others depending on the activity and the outfit. I even actively look to buy shoes to match them, so that I have easy sets.

I wore the same Chanel black executive tote bag almost every day for five years. I guess it was made during the time period they used a higher quality leather. I still use an old (15 years at this point) luggage bag made by Chloe which this thread has taught me to recognize as being a vegetable tanned full grain leather.

So I don't think I qualify as one of those people that are bag crazy, even if I do have more bags than the average person. I try to keep my bag collection at around 10 bags, but have definitely reached closer to 15 from time to time.

I think the main issue with buying too many bags is the sustainability of it, but I don't think it's as bad as you might think. I once saw a MJ bag I had given to Goodwill end up on Poshmark (I missed it so I googled to see if I could buy it again) and immediately recognized the makeup stain on the inner lining in the listing as being mine. So I don't think the bags I've gotten rid of over time have created excess waste because people out there have clearly been saving them from destruction and reselling them.

 

[rainbowneko]

Just wanted to share what I have found on xiaohongshu (china's instagram)... so this user posted a video showing the paint peeling on the leather situation :/ Trying my best to find out other chanel users facing the same quality issue on other platforms so that you guys know that you are not the only one that is experiencing the leather quality issue!!!

[additional translation on top - 1st line]
my vanity case (assuming the strap) is experiencing the same thing

 

[Swanky]

The craze has been going on for longer than a decade. I remember looking in my grandmother's closet as a small child and seeing her collection of Chanel purses. I don't know if they were far less expensive back then, but I do know she stored them with her furs so she clearly valued them.

Agree, much longer than a decade. I didn't collect when I was younger but always wanted a designer bag; starting with D&B then Coach, Kate Spade, LV then Chanel. For me I noticed a craze around 2000 or so, I started collecting around 2005, quite likely around the time when social media started, as we didn't have so much access or exposure to what others were doing before. But the craze was definitely there more than a decade ago, just not everyone knew imo.

I mean Purse Blog (and other bag blogs) started around 2005(?), clearly there was a craze already!

 

[purly]

Fashion magazines! You didn't need a grandmother with a closet full of Chanel purses prior to the existence of TPF. You just had to be the type that liked fashion magazines.

 

[Swanky]

Fashion magazines! You didn't need a grandmother with a closet full of Chanel purses prior to the existence of TPF. You just had to be the type that liked fashion magazines.

OMG I forgot how obsessed I was in high school! I tore out Chanel ads and put them on my wall! oy

 

[Emily1830]

Definitely YouTube, Instagram, and influencers have helped to create the furor that is a bag “collection.” Before, of course women bought bags, but when you throw the word “collection” in there, it makes women think they need many, many bags or somehow their closet is incomplete or lacking. Covid definitely exacerbated this too—the feeling that you must buy before the next price increase and that bags were “investments” and other such nonsense. I’ve been shopping luxury since the late 90s and I remember a Gucci Jackie bag was $600 and a LV Speedy was $300. Those were the days. Sigh.

 

[whateve]

SO I know the expensive handbag craze has gone on for many many decades, but I think I am sort of referring to the buying en masse...and cycling through purchases at a rapid pace, and the resale market etc. Resale, at this level, wasn't a thing until pretty recently, and maybe that allowed people to just buy buy buy?

The resale market is what did me in. I bought things, thinking I could always sell when I got tired of it or it didn't work out. On some things I even recouped close to my original investment, so it was like renting for free. If I didn't know I could resell, I wouldn't have bought so much.

On the other side of things, resale allowed me to buy brands I felt were too risky due to the high prices, kind of as a gateway drug. Then once I felt comfortable with the brand, I felt more comfortable shopping at the boutique.

Part of me enjoys shopping resale more than retail. I love the thrill of finding a bargain. And I like vintage, which you can only get resale.

 

[TraceySH]

Agree, much longer than a decade. I didn't collect when I was younger but always wanted a designer bag; starting with D&B then Coach, Kate Spade, LV then Chanel. For me I noticed a craze around 2000 or so, I started collecting around 2005, quite likely around the time when social media started, as we didn't have so much access or exposure to what others were doing before. But the craze was definitely there more than a decade ago, just not everyone knew imo.

I mean Purse Blog (and other bag blogs) started around 2005(?), clearly there was a craze already!

You know what, you're totally right. I was thinking back when I live in NYC in 1999 and already had a closet full of bags! I remember SATC & grabbing my first Fendi baguette. & then my first Prada nylon. & then my first D&G. Century 21 was a jackpot back then for designer bags. Anyone remember that?

 

[TraceySH]

The resale market is what did me in. I bought things, thinking I could always sell when I got tired of it or it didn't work out. On some things I even recouped close to my original investment, so it was like renting for free. If I didn't know I could resell, I wouldn't have bought so much.

On the other side of things, resale allowed me to buy brands I felt were too risky due to the high prices, kind of as a gateway drug. Then once I felt comfortable with the brand, I felt more comfortable shopping at the boutique.

Part of me enjoys shopping resale more than retail. I love the thrill of finding a bargain. And I like vintage, which you can only get resale.

Yes, resale meant either using for free or using for a fee but not actually "buying".

 

[TraceySH]

View attachment 5578295
Just wanted to share what I have found on xiaohongshu (china's instagram)... so this user posted a video showing the paint peeling on the leather situation :/ Trying my best to find out other chanel users facing the same quality issue on other platforms so that you guys know that you are not the only one that is experiencing the leather quality issue!!!

[additional translation on top - 1st line]
my vanity case (assuming the strap) is experiencing the same thing

What the HECK happened here??? oh my GOSH!