I was in Paris last month and managed to squeeze in a visit to the Polene store, so thought I'd share some pics!
The storefront is located along a little cobbled street -- it's an interesting and quiet location, though I'm not sure how much foot traffic they receive there! I was there in the early evening on a weekday, though, not long before they closed, so perhaps the little street has a bit more foot traffic earlier in the day or during weekends...
I was pretty impressed by the quality of the bags that I saw -- the grained leathers on the Numero Un do feel quite nice to the touch, fairly buttery, though I think because the bags are so structured (likely with some additional backing to the leather?), the leather therefore doesn't feel as buttery-soft as some leathers on higher-end luxury brand bags.
What did surprise me slightly about seeing the bags in person, though, was that they were smaller than I thought they'd be, judging from the pictures on Polene's website or instagram! I was using an MZ Wallace Paige crossbody when I visited, which is one of their smaller sized bags (about 12" across, though in the pics below, I did have mine stuffed with things, including a foldable umbrella and a Kleen Kanteen 16oz water bottle). To my surprise, the Numero Un is pretty much exactly the same length across, when I thought that it might be at least a clear inch wider. It should still work for most people as a handbag that can fit daily essentials, though -- I'm just a bit too much of a pack rat with my handbag on a daily basis
The other bag I had my eye on was the Numero Deux, but again, it wound up being smaller in person than I had thought. With the two-compartment construction, it probably also wouldn't fit my things even after I scale down what I carry (I use a full length continental wallet on a daily basis, and don't usually change out of it even for weekends), but it probably would work better if you use smaller wallets/SLGs than me. Again, it's a gorgeous design, though, and I like that the shoulder strap converts pretty easily between double-strapped as a shoulder bag, and single-strapped which works as a crossbody on me.
I didn't end up getting any bags from the store, unfortunately, though I did pick up one of their SLGs (the larger sized pouch) in a "Trio" combination of smooth burgundy leather, burgundy velvet leather, and a rose gold metallic leather, which I haven't seen on their website before! I don't have a pic of this one handy, unfortunately, but can try to snap a pic when I have good daylight... Of the two pouch sizes they have, the larger one definitely seems more practical, as the smaller one looks like it could barely fit business or credit cards in there (mainly because the zipper opening is slightly shorter than the length of the SLG itself)...
Overall, I was pretty impressed by the quality of what I saw -- I wasn't convinced that the current styles/sizes would fit into my own lifestyle and bag needs at this point, but if there was a gap in my bag collection that one of these styles could fill, I would definitely go for it. Hope this helps anyone considering one of their bags!
The storefront is located along a little cobbled street -- it's an interesting and quiet location, though I'm not sure how much foot traffic they receive there! I was there in the early evening on a weekday, though, not long before they closed, so perhaps the little street has a bit more foot traffic earlier in the day or during weekends...
I was pretty impressed by the quality of the bags that I saw -- the grained leathers on the Numero Un do feel quite nice to the touch, fairly buttery, though I think because the bags are so structured (likely with some additional backing to the leather?), the leather therefore doesn't feel as buttery-soft as some leathers on higher-end luxury brand bags.
What did surprise me slightly about seeing the bags in person, though, was that they were smaller than I thought they'd be, judging from the pictures on Polene's website or instagram! I was using an MZ Wallace Paige crossbody when I visited, which is one of their smaller sized bags (about 12" across, though in the pics below, I did have mine stuffed with things, including a foldable umbrella and a Kleen Kanteen 16oz water bottle). To my surprise, the Numero Un is pretty much exactly the same length across, when I thought that it might be at least a clear inch wider. It should still work for most people as a handbag that can fit daily essentials, though -- I'm just a bit too much of a pack rat with my handbag on a daily basis
The other bag I had my eye on was the Numero Deux, but again, it wound up being smaller in person than I had thought. With the two-compartment construction, it probably also wouldn't fit my things even after I scale down what I carry (I use a full length continental wallet on a daily basis, and don't usually change out of it even for weekends), but it probably would work better if you use smaller wallets/SLGs than me. Again, it's a gorgeous design, though, and I like that the shoulder strap converts pretty easily between double-strapped as a shoulder bag, and single-strapped which works as a crossbody on me.
I didn't end up getting any bags from the store, unfortunately, though I did pick up one of their SLGs (the larger sized pouch) in a "Trio" combination of smooth burgundy leather, burgundy velvet leather, and a rose gold metallic leather, which I haven't seen on their website before! I don't have a pic of this one handy, unfortunately, but can try to snap a pic when I have good daylight... Of the two pouch sizes they have, the larger one definitely seems more practical, as the smaller one looks like it could barely fit business or credit cards in there (mainly because the zipper opening is slightly shorter than the length of the SLG itself)...
Overall, I was pretty impressed by the quality of what I saw -- I wasn't convinced that the current styles/sizes would fit into my own lifestyle and bag needs at this point, but if there was a gap in my bag collection that one of these styles could fill, I would definitely go for it. Hope this helps anyone considering one of their bags!
