Received my Birkin .... but not sure about choice made!

HKB,
Congrats on the birkin. Black is a classic color, size 35 is perfect for you. You are worried about the slouch and the grain and the hardware. All these are really your preference.

Grainy and Matte.
Clemence and Togo both have the matte look, if you want it to be shiny, it's either box calf or cherve.
Clemence, Togo and Cherve are grained.. Box is smooth..
Grain is less scratch proof.. box on the other hand is totally different story (until the patina blends it in)

Slouch:
Do you like structured look or slouchy look?
Structure: Boxcalf, epsom and some other leathes might be better.

I also seen some ladies use the bagmate for organising their Birkin and that does help abit with the structure of their clemence bag.

But you also state you want 1 bag for life:-
I saw some of the ladies' bags here, Clemence and Togo are pretty good wearing and Togo is such a good workhorse. But I understand it is heavier than Clemence.
Boxcalf if taken care well, can last for generations.

GH or PH:
I wear mainly silver or white gold stuff, but I love love gold on black or any dark toned colors, it's a personal preference. PH may have a younger feel to it. :shrugs:

What's wrong with this bag? What is not making it tick for you? If you don't feel it, just pass it on. or another question, if you can SO again - what would you get?
HTH :flowers:
 
I agree with what's been said.. and you know, coz it's Paris, if you ordered another it wouldn't take very long and you'd prolly have the new Birkin even before most other ppl (who didn't order in France).

I've seen black in clemence and to me it's quite black.. Not sure if it will be "blacker" in togo or not. What about fjord? Anyone knows how dark black fjord is? That might be one to consider. Gorgeous grained leather, and not as slouchy as clemence.
 
...I've seen black in clemence and to me it's quite black.. Not sure if it will be "blacker" in togo or not. What about fjord? Anyone knows how dark black fjord is? That might be one to consider. Gorgeous grained leather, and not as slouchy as clemence.

Mmmm, lovely & stiff but fjord is NOT very black, I'm afraid. I think it's too matte. Actually , now that I think about it I also think black clemence is quite black so HKB's task may prove a little difficult. :Push:
 
HKB, I had bought and returned a Black Togo Kelly for the same reason you had stated about the black clemence leather. It was not black enough, almost like a dark gray color. The leather looked dark enough under artificial lighting but certainly not under sunlight.

Clemence will slouch over time, especially for a 35. But I think for a birkin to be a bit slouchy is not necessarily bad. However, I wouldn’t like that in a Kelly.

As far as hardware goes, I personally like PH as I don’t like anything gold. But it really depends on what you like. If you wear any jewelry, do you prefer to match that with the hardware on your bag?

If you don’t love it, definitely return it and get something you love. The bag is too expensive to settle for anything less.

Good luck with whatever you choose to do!
 
Thank you again everyone for your ongoing responses - I am getting a great education and am learning more and more as I explore this fabulous site!

Will definitely try and get to a store to see some bags in person.

In the interim, a question for Hermes Princess: which leather did you end up choosing? As I read more I think I am getting comfortable with the idea of having a Birkin that slouches a bit and also with PH - although I think the 'dark-grey' nature of the clemence leather is something that I will never get comfortable with.

If I can get one in boxcalf instead, will that just be too high maintenance? Would epsom or swift work in a 35cm Birkin?

Thanks for your ongoing assistance!
 
I have a swift 30 cm in black (see below) and you can see that it's not really jet black. I think perhaps Black box is probably is the closest you get to a jet black.

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I totally agree that if you don't like the bag, you should get another one in a stiffer leather. Togo or chevre would be wonderful.

Only issue is, how are you going to return it to Paris, if it was an SO and they had shipped it to you? When I was there, they were quite particular about returns. They would do an exchange if the bag was bought within days before, and they can confirm that it has never been carried. But if you're in HK... Would be good to hear if you manage to have it shipped back so the rest of us with SOs can learn from your experience.
 
I love clemence but it really boils down to personal taste. The leather can be heavy on a 35 and the slouch is definitely more apparent if compared to leathers like Epsom or Chevre.

A Birkin in box is rather difficult to get. Box is stunning once it has built up patina over time but may not be the one for you if you're concerned about scratches.

BTW, you've mentioned this will be THE only Birkin. *ahem* I'm sure many ladies here will agree with me that once you've been bitten by the orange bug, there's just no going back. You'll want another, and another and another....
 
I received the bag yesterday by post (I live in HK) and whilst the size is perfect (I was concerned about not getting this right) unfortunately I am not so sure about the leather. The clemence appears much more textured than what I am used to in other bags, and it is not a very darky 'inky black' (which I like) - rather it almost seems to look dark grey-ish and is very matte (maybe too matt?).
When it comes in Taurillon Clemence, Black is not the jet-ink black but more like a Graphite-Black instead.
It is textured and extremely soft which it gives the wear and tear look even when you carry it the very first time!
(I personally love it so much that I have bought thge exact combo in a Kelly 40)

I have since discovered this Purse Forum and have read that clemence is long-wearing (a positive) but very soft and hence the bag can become slouchy (is this a positive or negative?).
I think this is simply the leather's characteristic.

Can other readers please provide their views? I am not sure if togo would have been better (do they really look that different and behave differently?) or even swift? Or any others? (like the look of box but don't want something so 'high maintenance')
I own a Birkin 40 in Black Togo (the very first Birkin which I bought 10 years ago) and though I use it very often but I think it is a little too rigid for my style (but of course that's my opinion).

I am not someone that will own more than one Birkin so I want to make sure that I have as classic and versatile bag as possible. If need be, I will happily return this one to the Paris store and re-order and wait for a more suitable one. Also now wondering, did I make the right choice ordering the silver, rather than gold, hardware?
Honesly, I think you have a great combo, it's young, trendy and very Parisien!!!
T Clemence is being one of the most popular leather type with their production lately, and this relects simply with the widest color swatches in their leather book.