Which bag to choose?

As some of you might know already, one of my main shopping mantras is 'try before you buy'.

This concept it difficult, if not impossible, to keep up when deciding on an Hermès bag, as the selection in the boutiques is limited in terms of sizes, leathers and colors per bag type. Of course there are leather swatches and small leather goods available, so that one can see how certain colors come out in certain leathers, but it requires a real stretch of imagination to envisage the look of a medium to big sized bag just by staring at a coin purse. Photos can only help to a certain extent, they don't allow you to see how a size or shape suits your body, how the leather feels and smells, the harmony/disharmony of the shade reacting with your coloring, and if the bag feels right or not. The only thing I knew for certain, was that I wanted a Bolide. For almost a year, I've been trying to get the specifics right, and finally the last pieces of the puzzle came together when I went to FSH last Monday.

Unlike the last time (the fashion week must have depleted stock) there was a wonderful and varied selection of Bolides in stock. Here a list of the ones I tried on, and in bold print those, I took pics of

31 mou in Bougainvillia Clemence
31 mou in Bleu de Prusse Clemence
31 mou in Gris Tourterelle
31 rigide in Barenia/Toile
31 rigide in Bleu Abyss Epsom
31 rigide in Cognac Ostrich
37 rigide in Barenia/Toile
37 mou in Poussière Clemence
37 mou in Black Clemence
37 mou in Bougainvillia Clemence
37 mou in Brique Clemence
37 mou in Etoupe Clemence
37 mou in Orange Clemence

First one out, was the 37cm rigide. It was just too big on me. The same size in mou appeared a lot smaller, due to it's slouch.

Left, 31 rigide in Bleu Abyss Epsom, right 31 mou in Bleu de Prusse Clemence. Isn't it amazing how much smaller the mou version looks? Behind a Poussière Victoria for color reference

Next, a 35 mou Brique in Clemence. This is not my first attempt at this beautiful warm/browney-orangey shade, I have fallen in love with it when trying on a brique Togo Plume last year. However, I was not looking for a Plume at the time, but for a Birkin.. but in the end, the Birkin did not turn out in this color the way I had hoped for... However, the lighter and tapered shape of a Bolide suits this color beautifully. Also it comes out less brown and more orangey/red in Clemence, another plus. My outfit of the day is a bit unfair to this Bolide, it would have looked very different had I dressed in warm colors instead.

In contrast, the same size, shape and leather, only in a summery neutral, Poussière (french for 'dust'). It is a lighter color than Etoupe, with a slight touch of khaki. Again, the wrong outfit, this would be gorgeous with white jeans, and olive, sage or khaki colored tops and sandals.

Next, a 31 mou in Bleu de Prusse. Quite honestly, a blue bag has not been on top of my list, but this one is gorgeous. It has a little shade of purple in it, which makes in luminous and interesting. The 31 is considerably smaller than the 37, but amazingly, it holds about as much as a 32 Kelly.

Same size as above, only in the rigid shape (Epsom leather) and in a different shade of blue, called Bleu Abysse (the name of this color reminds me of the film 'Le Grand Bleu', a beautiful film about deep sea diving). The rigid shape truly brings out the fabulous shape of the Bolide, a great and timeless look (the design of the Bolide dates back to the 1920') The blue was beautiful too, and lighter than the Bleu de Prusse.


Would love to hear which one your favorite is!


Before leaving FSH, I snapped a picture of the horseman, the Cliquetis from a couple of weeks ago have been replaced by the Lilanga scarf.