I’ve been asked “What color Hermes Birkin should I buy?” too many times so here comes the answer. My first thought was, that’s like asking me to tell you what your favorite color is. Although I can’t pick a color that will simply be the best for everyone, I can however show you how to find the right color. Please remember that color options vary by budget, so if have unlimited cash then 5 or 6 colors should make a great collection. But if you’re simply looking to buy only 1 then we need to look at your closet. As you search through your closet look for common color patterns; if the bulk of your closet is Black, White, and Grey then a neutral colored Birkin should work i.e. Parchment, Etoupe, Blue Ciel, Gold.

Hermes Birkin Color Chart

If you mostly wear bright colors then maybe try darker colored Birkins i.e Vert Fonce, Raisin, Blue Marin, Bleu Marin. The only time I would recommend brighter colors such as Lagoon, Blue Jean, Orange, Rouge Vif, Vert Anis, Jaune is if you plan on creating a collection around it, or live somewhere considered to have a spring/summer feel year round. The last thing you want to be is the girl who has 1 yellow Birkin and wears it during Spring/Summer and Fall/Winter. As for me a Black 40 cm Togo Birkin would be ideal but I’ve come to grow fond of Etoupe, Blue Brighton, and Graphite as they would all play well in my closet. Hope that helps, If not just go with your favorite color and hope for the best.

At the Artcurial auction house’s sale of vintage Hermès this week, an assistant balanced a chocolate-brown crocodile Birkin bag on his white-gloved fingertips as he paraded it around the room.

Bidding opened at €15,000 (about $22,500), and two clients calling in by phone furiously one-upped each other. Within less than a minute the price of the few-years-old bag had jumped to €25,000, shooting €5,000 past the high estimate and far more than the bag’s retail price.

The appetite for Hermès, vintage or new, has strongly resisted the slump in luxury….Continue Reading

Vintage Tri-Color Hermes Kelly 32 in Croc

To help raise money for the White Ribbon Alliance For Safe Motherhood, Naomi Campbell has donated her Vert Alligator Hermes Birkin. The White Ribbon Alliance for Safe Motherhood is an international coalition of individuals and organizations formed to promote increased public awareness of the need to make pregnancy and childbirth safe for all women and newborns in the developing, as well as, developed countries. It’s the preferred charity for France’s first lady Carla Bruni, ELLE UK’s Editor-In-Chief Lorraine Candy and Jane Birkin. Naomi’s Birkin as well as other Hermes Vintage pieces will be auctioned on November 10th.

Model and Philanthropist Naomi Campbell

The Birkin Bag:

The Birkin bag came about when Jean Louis Dumas (Chairman and former CEO of Hermes SA) caught the actress Jane Birkin fighting with her straw bag as she was trying to store it in an overhead compartment on a plane. At that point he decided she needed a better bag and he was going to design her one. The idea of the Birkin bag came from the Hermes Haut-Au-Courrois, meaning high belt. The HAC as it is referred to today was used in the late 1800’s to carry riding gear i.e. saddle, riding boots etc. The measurements for the HAC are quite large so Jean Louis Dumas tweaked them to make the bag more versatile as well as easier to carry and modern. The Birkin bag is produced entirely by one person called a craftsman from beginning to end. The average production time for a bag ranges from 18 hours for a 25cm to up 30 hours for a 40cm.

Black Matte Croc and Diamond Hermes Birkin

Click Here to Continue Reading | The Hermes Birkin Bag Buying Guide

EXOTICS

Porosus crocodile from Australia: Most commonly found on Northern shores of Australia, New Guinea and Indonesia. Hermes does not glaze the Porosus croc skins so they will never peel. This skin is polished with an agate stone and the skin has to lay flat under the machine so once it is made into a bag, you will never be able to polish it again.

Niloticus crocodile from Africa: the ever popular matte croc is rich and sumptuous. (All crocs have to be at least 10 years old to meet Hermes standards)

Black Matte Croc and Diamond Hermes Birkin

There’s always something special about a collaboration because it brings about the best of both collaborators. In some instances the collaboration is to target a new customer in others it is to bring a new take to a product. Whether you favor them or not collaborations are big for both parties involved as well as the end user. For the artist(s) their work gets presented to a whole new audience and for the consumer they are seeing something new and fresh that is sometimes more affordable. In the past few years’ collaborations have gained momentum and has introduced a wide variety of artist, designers, and stores to a broader audience.

Some of my favorite collaborations

Takashi Murakami for Louis Vuitton: Monogramouflage

…Click to continue reading | Collaborations: from Louis Vuitton to H & M

To celebrate the 10 year anniversary of the Smart Car Hermes has lend its design aesthetic to car manufacturer the Como Group. The Fortytwo Edition Toile cars are available in 10 Hermes friendly colors including Hermes orange, gold and even lime green. Each car is complete with leather covered steering wheel and gear stick. The regular smart car retail’s for $12,000 USD while the Hermes version starts at $48,000. The launch event was held at the Grand Palais in Paris, a venue that has been used by Karl Lagerfeld for many Chanel showings

…Click to continue reading | Get in my Hermes!

I’m in late bloomer in the Jewelry sense because only recently( I mean less than 3 months ago) did I start wearing even a watch. I for the life of me hate things that are too heavy or I constantly feel which is why I wasn’t a fan. But after trying on some light pieces I now have have a thing for bracelets and Cuffs. Most recently I purchased a Tory Burch Resin cuff and I can almost sleep with that thing on.Which brings me to my next obsession the Hermes Collier de Chien Bracelet. I had the pleasure of trying on this bracelet at the Hermes Boutique in Bal Harbour and I’ve been lusting over it ever since. The Bracelet retails for $1,000 USD, it’s available in Black and Gold or Black and silver. It can be purchased at Hermes online or Hermes Boutiques worldwide.

Hermes Collier de Chien Barelet $1000 USD

…Click to continue reading | Daily Lust: Hermes Collier de Chien Bracelet

The Birkin Bag:

The Birkin bag came about when Jean Louis Dumas (Chairman and former CEO of Hermes SA) caught the actress Jane Birkin fighting with her straw bag as she was trying to store it in an overhead compartment on a plane. At that point he decided she needed a better bag and he was going to design her one. The idea of the Birkin bag came from the Hermes Haut-Au-Courrois, meaning high belt. The HAC as it is referred to today was used in the late 1800’s to carry riding gear i.e. saddle, riding boots etc. The measurements for the HAC are quite large so Jean Louis Dumas tweaked them to make the bag more versatile as well as easier to carry and modern. The Birkin bag is produced entirely by one person called a craftsman from beginning to end. The average production time for a bag ranges from 18 hours for a 25cm to up 30 hours for a 40cm.

Pharrell Williams picking up his purple Hermes croc HAC

The Birkin bag comes in four different sizes. The size of the Birkin depends on the width of the bag. A 40cm Birkin, simply means that the bag is 40 centimeters wide or 15inches. The standard sizes are 25cm, 30cm, 35cm, and 40cm.

Hermes Birkin Bag Size Chart

Every season Hermes releases a list of colors that the Birkin will be available in. The selection of colors is also related to the skins available. The colors are divided into Blues, Greens, Pinks, Reds, Black and Greys, Purples, Yellows and Beige, Oranges, and Browns. Please note that not all skins are available in every color.

Blue Jean- a very popular color at Hermes its an amazing Sky Blue.

Vert Amande- a grassy green color.

Rouge Vif- a very bright red, sort of a lipstick shade.

Skins:

Hermes uses a mixture of exotic skins; Crocodile, Lizard (available in a 25cm or smaller), Mississippi Alligator, and Ostrich as well as a variety of leathers; Calf, Goatskin, Bull Leather etc. Click here to read | The Hermes Birkin Skin Guide.

The Niloticus Crocodile from Africa- A very popular choice at Hermes this croc is mate and very rich.

Veau Togo- The most common leather at Hermes is from a female calf and has a grainy feel.

Chevre Mysore – An amazing goatskin that is very rare due to the difficulty of finding it at Hermes quality.

Black Croc and Diamond Hermes Birkin

The Birkin Spa:

As part of the cost of the Hermes Birkin bag, once a year you may choose to have your bag freshened up at Hermes. In the US it is done in New York and LA where they have master craftsmen.

Shooting Star Birkins:

A shooting star Birkin is a Birkin bag that a craftsman makes for his wife. The bag is marked with a shooting star blind stamp and does not qualify for Birkin Spa treatments.

Chocolate Croc Hermes Birkin Bag

Blind Stamp:

Every Hermes Birkin bag comes with a set of blind stamps, a letter and a number. The letter refers to the year of production. J was 2006, K 2007 and now L for 2008. The number stamp is the craftsman ID number.

Pricing:

The starting cost of an Hermes Birkin Bag is roughly $6,000 for a 25cm in leather and can go as high as $120,000 for a 40cm Croc with the palladium hardware emblazoned in diamonds.

Acquisition:

Victoria Beckham and her insane collection of Hermes Birkins

Victoria Beckham with a Raisin Hermes birkin

Victoria Beckham with her Fuschia Ostrich Hermes Birkin Bag

Victoria Beckham with a white Veau Togo Hermes Birkin Bag

Victoria Beckham with a 40cm Rouge Vif Hermes Birkin bag

Remember Joey Potter/Katie Holmes from her Dawson’s Creek days? You know she played a tomboy, always sneaking into Dawson’s window; she had that super tough exterior. Well if you don’t remember her that’s a good thing, and if you do aren’t you so proud of her. Katie Holmes is the perfect example of it doesn’t matter how you start but how you finish. Early on in her career she was cute and always put together but never had an OMG did you see what Katie Holmes wore moment. That all changed in 2005 when she started dating Tom Cruise. Now I used to have a big crush on Tom Cruise before the whole Scientology thing. And I was shocked when he started dating Katie Holmes because I for sure thought he was going to turn her into a crazy Scientologist, boy was I wrong. …Click to continue reading | Katie Holmes: From the Creek to Hermes