MY GUILTY PLEASURE – VINTAGE LUXURY BAGS
If someone would have asked me years ago what my guilty pleasure was, I would have given them a list. A list that would contain everything but the one that actually is now on top of it: vintage luxury bags. It has been a while since I have written any article on this blog but I feel that now is just the right time. This personal blog was always about writing about my passion and my personal stories. And vintage luxury bags are a big part of it now. So I think instead of putting this domain to rest, we just have to switch up the topics a little bit.
BORN IN THE WRONG ERA
Funny thing is that I always had a thing for what some consider the old. My family would even make fun of me and describe me as someone who was born in the wrong era, someone who has an old soul or even call me “grandma” just because I have always loved my grandmas closet more than my own. I don’t know what it is but I always could identify with some of these items more than the ones that were actually trending.
Over the past years “vintage” has been a term or concept that has become a trend in interior, in clothing and also in luxury bags. There are three aspects that I have always love the most about vintage pieces: Their story, their uniqueness and their price.
I think I don’t have to mention that as I shopped in my grandmas closet, I have always had an eye on her bags. I remember always asking her for her Louis Vuitton Speedy that was and still is her absolute favorite – one of the items she wouldn’t let go of. She would hand down every single piece to me – every piece but this bag. I also knew that she had bought the exact same bag as a back-up just in case her favorite bag would have too many damages one day. But I also remember always wanting the old, and one that has been worn many many times. Maybe it was the used look that caught my eye, maybe it was the soft leather that had my attention or maybe just the thought that it had gone through so many different adventures, brunch dates of grandma and her friends or has caught so many looks already – more adventures than I have ever experienced.
I remember having these thoughts at a very young age – maybe I was about ten. None of my friends, classmates or me have even heard of “Louis Vuitton” or had any connection to any fashion houses. But I always loved telling my friends that I got certain items from my grandma, that it was handed down to me. I was able to tell them the story that my grandma told me – the story that came together with the item itself.
MY FIRST LUXURY BAG PURCHASE
Fast forward to a few years later: I still had a love for special items. I had an eye on beautiful bags. Beautiful luxury bags that I couldn’t afford and started to save up for. I started saving up for trips because the young me wanted to see the world but also treat herself with a cute bag. Somehow when I travelled to different cities I started buying bags as my “souvenir”. Please don’t ask me how I managed to save that amount of money at this young age. That is a question that I’m asking myself up until now. And it is kinda cliché but my first purchase was actually my first Louis Vuitton Bag during my trip to Paris on Champs-Elysées. I know, I am rolling my eyes right now too. But I remember leaving the store not knowing if I actually felt happy or wanted to cry. Prices back then were pretty okay in retrospective but in this very moment it didn’t feel right to spend that amount of money in one go. I remember feeling bad for a few days and I think that I even hid this purchase from my parents for such a long time.
Looking back I for sure am happy that I made this purchase because prices are continuously increasing but the fact that I was living a standard that I actually wasn’t able to afford, even if started working at a very young age and saved up for it – it’s just something that I wouldn’t recommend to any young girl or boy when I think of it now.
VINTAGE ONLY
Still having the same love for luxury bags now, I will say this: I don’t regret any of my purchases. I bought my bags while being on different trips, visiting different countries and behind every bag that I’ve purchased there is a story behind it that I can tell. The thought of me handing these bags down to my grandchildren telling them these stories makes me smile while writing this.
BUT. Yep, there’s a huge but: If I had embraced the concept of preloved vintage bags earlier, I wouldn’t have gone for any of these new bags. Prices for luxury bags in retail can be ridiculously high now. I have a full-time job and sometimes find it crazy expensive. Still I am not willing to take a pass on the joy that these beautiful items give me. So a few years ago I have done my research and I do it up until now. I have found my favorite resellers for preloved and vintage luxury bags, I see the red flags when it comes to counterfeits and I think that I can say for sure, that I am not planning on buying a brand new luxury bag in the future. By this time prices on preloved or vintage bags are off the roof and sometimes the money resellers ask for for a certain condition is just a joke. So starting from now “onefauxseven – fashion filling words” will also contain more articles about vintage luxury bags, preloved conditions, the quality of the old but golds, limited edition and much more.
Enjoy xx
Y
