Louis Vuitton Handbag Care

Womens Leather Handbags - How To Look After Louis Vuitton Leather Goods and Designer Bags

To preserve the beauty of your leather handbags, totes, purses and designer bags Louis Vuitton recommend the following care instructions

- avoid contact with abrasive surfaces and protect from shocks of any kind
- protect from moisture and avoid direct exposure to sunlight and heat
- to clean, wipe the leather with a soft dry cloth
- never use soap or solvent

in the event of an incident contact any Louis Vuitton store

How long does it take to repair Louis Vuitton designer bags ?

Instore service and repairs are generally completed within 3 days. Standard repairs may take one month. Exceptional repair to items may take up to 3 months

CAN LEATHER GOODS BE REPAIRED INDEFINITELY ?

Louis Vuitton will service or repair leather goods as long as spare parts are available. For discontinued items spare parts will remain available within the following time frames –
- hard sided luggage : no limit
- soft luggage and briefcases : 15 years
- small leather goods and bags : 10 years
- Louis Vuitton cup leather goods : 5 years
- seasonal bags : 3 years

WILL LOUIS VUITTON EVER BE UNABLE TO REPAIR LEATHER HANDBAGS ?

Louis Vuitton say that they cannot offer service or repair in the following cases :-

- the item was previously serviced or repaired by a non-Louis Vuitton agent
- spare parts are no longer available
- the customer requests a change of style that would alter the original design of the item
- the item is in poor condition, or repair is not expected to last more than one year

Click here for information on How To Spot a Fake Louis Vuitton Bag
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Kodak's New Fake Buster TRACELESS Technology

Womens Handbags - Kodak's New Fake Buster TRACELESS Technology

The business of fakes in general and fake designer handbags in particular is big business. It is estimated that 90% of all Louis Vuitton designer handbags sold, for example, are fakes. There is also the far more serious problem of fake medicines and toothpaste made in China which may contain the poisonous chemical diethylene glycol.

Now Kodak has come up with a way of beating the counterfeiters and manufacturers of fakes, that may put them out of business altogether. Their system is based on the premiss that counterfeiters can’t copy what they can’t find. The Kodak TRACELESS System is a "forensically invisible authentication technology" that uses a combination of proprietary markers and handheld readers to enable customers to easily check, in the field, to see if an item is authentic.

The System creates items that are equipped with unique material properties that can only be detected using Kodak’s reading technologies.

In case you were cynically thinking that this is all Kodak marketing hype then think again. The anticounterfeiting solution has just received the prestigious InterTech Technology Award from the PIA/GATF, the world’s largest graphic arts trade organization.

Jeffrey Hayzlett, Chief Marketing Officer, Kodak’s Graphic Communications Group said “Our customers and the InterTech judges recognize that the TRACELESS System is an easy to implement yet highly effective way to fight back against the threat of counterfeiting to brands and consumers.”

The marker materials used by the TRACELESS System can be mixed with inks, toners, varnishes, paper pulp, plastics, powders, pigments, liquids and textiles and other items for analog and KODAK digital printing applications. Users have secure control of the markers, the readers and associated software. Counterfeiters are therefore prevented from duplicating the products or their packaging.

Kodak’s technology can help reduce counterfeiting in virtually every industry sector from currency to product safety labels.

According to Steve Powell from Kodak. “The KODAK TRACELESS System is easy to implement, virtually impossible to reverse engineer, and affordable for mass implementation.”


KODAK Markers

Can be integrated into numerous host materials without impacting their material characteristics

Can only be detected using TRACELESS Readers — they are undetectable by standard optical, forensic, or chemical analysis

TRACELESS Readers are precision built and extremely reliable, durable, and accurate

The system makes reverse engineering virtually impossible

The same marker and reader offer multiple levels of security —basic pass/fail or additional levels (confidential disclosure only)

The system can be customized to meet individual requirements

The TRACELESS System is already being used by customers for a wide variety of applications including:

Fashion apparel and accessories

Pharmaceuticals

Premium wines and spirits

Cosmetics

Documents and identification

So there may finally be a solution on the horizon to the widespread problem of fakes in all areas. In the meantime, while we are waiting for the readers to become widely available you may wish to check out How To Spot Fake Louis Vuitton Bags
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Home : Designer Handbags

Coach - Affordable American Luxury Handbags

Women's Leather Handbags - Coach - Affordable American Luxury Handbags

Patricia's Legacy Bag $298

Coach Inc. is an American leather goods company, which started out as a family-owned business in a loft in Manhattan, New York in 1941. It is most well-known for its ladies' leather handbags, but it also produces other items for both men and women, such as luggage, briefcases, wallets, and accessories (belts, shoes, silk scarves, umbrellas, sunglasses, key chains, etc.), watches, shoes, and even office furniture


Coach designer bags and leather products are expensive, but extremely well-made, using a high-quality leather and sturdy metal rivets and hardware (often solid brass – solid gold would be nice (Ed.)).


Carly Leather Bag $498

The Coach website states “Our glove-tanned pieces are crafted from natural leather which burnishes over time, acquiring a rich, lustrous patina … each style features signature details such as distinctive hardware, double-needle stitching and bound edges. The shapes soften gradually to the touch, taking on the individual imprint of the wearer.

Coach leather goods will often last 15 years or more with proper care, and some of the original Coach bags from the 1970s are still intact and in regular use. One of the outstanding features of the Coach company is that they will repair any Coach product all you have to do is to ship it back to the home office for a nominal fee, with a letter describing the problem.


The original designer for Coach was the American designer, Bonnie Cashin. In 1960, Miles and Lillian Cahn, the owners of a wholesale handbag manufacturing business, decided to create a retail collection.

Chelsea Hair Calf Satchel $898


They invited Cashin to become their designer. She declined the project, as at the time she was too busy. In an unusual move the Cahns said they would not start the business without her. They ended up waiting two years for her to be free. In 1962, Cashin became the designer for their new label of leather accessories, Coach.

Cashin revolutionized the handbag industry. Her designs were more like modern sculpture and were dyed to match her favourite candy colours of pink, orange, yellow and green, and lined with exquisite Belgian linens, Mexican cottons, or tweeds from designer Dorothy Liebes. After many years of black and brown, clients were enthralled by the new variety of shapes, colours and textures available, all with convenient wide openings or exterior coin purses and pockets.

Cashin pioneered the use of hardware on her clothes and accessories, in particular the brass toggle that was to become the Coach hallmark.
Rambler Legacy Satchel $298

Coach has unusually long production runs for a luxury bag designer and is therefore able to take advantage of economies of scale which ensures higher profit margins. Coach also utilizes lower-cost production facilities in developing countries such as China and the Dominican Republic.

Coach is also successful due to the fact that it has a reputation for 'affordable luxury,' i.e. it is recognized as a luxury product yet is priced to be accessible to those for whom price is a consideration.
Overseas sales are strong, especially in Japan. Its main competition in Asia is Louis Vuitton, which remains the top seller of women's luxury handbags –see Louis Vuitton Bags and Gucci Designer Handbags.

In 1985 Coach was acquired by the Sara Lee Corporation. In October 2000, Coach became a public traded company listed on the NYSE. Since this purchase the company has expanded to include "fashion" items
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Where to Find Gucci Quality Designer Bags

Womens Handbags - Gucci - Luxury, Quality and Tradition

Aviatrix Medium Boston Bag - Retail Price $1990

Guccio Gucci (1881 – 1953) the son of an Italian merchant, started the House of Gucci in Florence in 1906 as a small, family-owned saddlery shop. Guccio was an exceptional craftsman and as a young man he quickly established a reputation for quality. In 1938, he opened a store in Rome. Guccio designed many of the company's most notable products himself, in 1947 Gucci introduced the iconic bamboo handle handbag, which is still one of the company’s most popular products.

After Guccio Gucci's death in 1953, his son Aldo Gucci helped to ensure that the company became a leading international brand. The first Gucci boutiques abroad were opened in London, Paris and New York. Gucci expanded into the Far East in the late 1960s, opening stores in Hong Kong, Tokyo and Korea. Gucci benefited from its association with stars such a Audrey Hepburn and Grace Kelly in the 1960s and it is also around this time that the company developed its famous GG logo, the Flora silk scarf and the Jackie O shoulder bag, made famous by Jackie Onassis.


Peggy Top Handle Bag - Retail Price $1655






In the late 1970s a series of disastrous business decisions and family quarrels almost bankrupted the company. In the 1980s Maurizio Gucci was left in complete control of the company, it was the first time in years that only one person had been in charge.

Indy Large Top Handle Bag - $3890


In the 1990’s, Tom Ford restored Gucci's reputation for chic, making it once again one of the most prestigious and easily recognizable fashion brands in the world. Current Gucci CEO Mark Lee, in an interview with Women's Wear Daily in 2006 said that the company “had the best year in the history of the company, so we are quite proud and happy about that”.

Britt Medium Boston Bag $1150

In 2006 Gucci generated over US$7 billion in revenue and was ranked 46th in the Business Week annual "Top 100 Brands". Gucci is the second biggest selling fashion brand after LVMH (Louis Vuitton Moet Hennessy). Gucci is, however, the biggest selling Italian brand in the world. The House of Gucci belongs to a French conglomerate Pinault-Printemps-Redoute (PPR). It operates 425 stores worldwide and distributes its products wholesale through franchisees and upscale department stores.


Gucci Group is now one of the world’s leading multi-brand luxury goods companies, with a wide range of products and an extensive geographical presence.

Royal Large Tote Retail Price $1990

Its brands include Gucci, Bottega, Veneta, Yves Saint Laurent, Balenciaga, Stella McCartney, Alexander McQueen and Sergio Rossi. The group sells high-quality luxury goods, including handbags, luggage, shoes, timepieces, jewellery, perfumes and cosmetics, belt clasps (the one with the Guccio Gucci initials, was introduced in 1964), and eyeglasses.

The group currently has 454 stores worldwide and also wholesales products through franchisees, duty-free stores and leading departments stores.

Gucci manufactures all its products in Italy and has 219 directly operated stores.

Blason Evening Bag - Retail Price $1190

There are two main websites guccigroup.com and gucci.com and they are both considerably better than Louis Vuitton’s website, even though they still tend to be rather slow due to the excessive graphics! At gucci.com you can shop online for a wide range of products. They even have a form where you can ‘consult a personal shopper’ although I didn’t try it to see how fast the consultation was.
You can also rotate the bags displayed through 360° so you can see them from all angles! But not inside unfortunately.

The only thing lacking is a search bar. For info. on how to spot a fake Louis Vuitton bag see here How to Spot a Fake Louis Vuitton
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NET-A-PORTER THE WORLD'S PREMIER LUXURY E-TAILER

DESIGNER HANDBAGS - NET-A-PORTER LUXURY E-TAILER

If you are looking for womens handbags designer handbags, designer purses, luxury bags, shoes, accessories or clothing then you may be tempted to visit the NET-A-PORTER website. Net-a-Porter describes itself as "the world’s premier luxury fashion e-tailer" and certainly first impressions of the site are excellent.

Their site is easy to use, fast, interesting and effective, by which I mean you can find what you are looking for with a minimum of effort ! A blessing in this day and age where some web designers seem to believe that making things more complicated actually makes people stay at their website, it doesn't ! On the contrary it drives them away.

The Net-a-porter website is refreshingly simple to use. Just click on 'Bags' type Chloe Edith or Louis Vuitton in the search box and in less than a second you have a range of Edith bags to choose from, some of them at a discount of 30% ! What more could you want ? For more detailed information just click on the pictures.

In their own words NET-A-PORTER, is "presented in the style of a fashion magazine, and offers you unprecedented access to the world’s cutting edge fashion designers."

The site was launched in June 2000 to sell authentic current season clothing, shoes, and accessories, selected by their editors for fashion consumers worldwide.

They offer the latest collections from Miu Miu, Chloé, Jimmy Choo, Bottega Veneta, Fendi, Mulberry, Alexander McQueen and Marc Jacobs. All of which are available for purchase on the site.

NET-A-PORTER prides itself on offering you a "superior level of service and customer care. .....and is the "first and only luxury fashion website to target a global market. "

Deliveries are made with taxes and duties pre-paid, so no matter where you live in the world, NET-A-PORTER can claim to be your local fashion shop, as well as the world’s most successful luxury global boutique and e-commerce destination.

In addition to being an online store, NET-A-PORTER also has a magazine and what's new section, as well as an interesting 'Explore' section where if you are not sure what you are looking for you can easily discover new things by browsing everything that's on offer.
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Franck Muller - Master of Complications - Extreme Quality Watches

Mens Watches - Franck Muller Master of Complications

Franck Muller Timepieces and Watches.

In his excellent book Richistan Robert Frank describes how the super-rich, who reside in a sort of parallel universe, don't buy Mercedes or Rolex, they are more selective and go for Maybachs and Franck Muller Watches.





Maybach Zeppelin DS 8 - as driven by the Invisible Man


A Brief History of Timepieces

Franck Muller was born in La Chaux-de-Fonds in Switzerland in July 1958 to a Swiss father and an Italian mother, he is renowned for creating complicated, unique and revolutionary timepieces., some of which are very expensive ($600,000 if Robert Frank is to be believed). He revels in the title of "Master of Complications".

His obsessively complicated watches, which are greatly appreciated by watch connoisseurs and even other manufacturers are the preferred timepiece of a number of celebrities, including Demi Moore, Robin Williams and Elton John.

Franck Muller watches are famous for their fusion of understated style and traditional Swiss watch manufacturing excellence. The president of the company designs the mechanism of every watch personally.


Long Island Crazy Hours (list price $20,600)
Early in his career Franck Muller restored mechanical timepieces for collectors, museums and auction houses and quickly gained a reputation as a master restorer of antique timepieces. With his growing expertise he began to create his own designs.

By 1992, he had amassed four patents and twenty-one world premieres. He is renowned for his unique combinations of highly sophisticated features and the outstanding accuracy of his functions. Today he continues to challenge and expand the definitions of what a watch can be, creating ever more revolutionary and unique timepieces.

The House of Franck Muller was established in 1992 and his extremely complicated timepieces achieved an instant reputation throughout Europe and the United States. Today Franck Muller produces a limited number of watches for private clients, his collections include timepieces of various designs and different price ranges.

Aware that the design of a watch is the first thing to catch the eye he created a well-known Curvex Tonneau case, which is instantly recognizable on any wrist. Current collections include: Chronograph, Color Dreams, Tourbillon and Conquistador.

Conquistador 8002 CC (list price $17,800)


Franck Muller is also known for "World Premiers". Each year he launches at least one new line of timepieces containing something exclusive, an innovation in the watchmaking industry.

Notable timepieces include Revolution2, Revolution3, the Endurance, and the Curvex Minute Repeater Tourbillon, whose production is limited to 25 pieces.





Prices range from several thousand dollars to $600,000, which means that if you own one of these and you look at the time 40 times a day (why wouldn't you?) (inc. bank holidays and weekends) and you own the watch for 40 years, each time you look at the time it costs you $1 !

1999 Vegas 5850 (list price $23,000)




Happy hunting.

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Home : Designer Handbags

A RARE PICTURE OF THE FIRST GENUINE LOUIS VUITTON

Womens Handbags - Picture of the First Louis Vuitton

Louis Vuitton Biography

I suspect that few people know what the first genuine Louis Vuitton looked like so here he is. Rather striking !

He was born in Anchay in France on August 4th 1821 and died in Paris on February 27th 1892.

He left his home town and his parents, who were millers, at the age of 14, to go to Paris where he worked for a trunk maker and also as an apprentice luggage packer, to the prominent households of Paris. Louis Vuitton's reputation grew such that he was appointed by the Emperor of France, Napoleon III, as official luggage packer to his wife, the Empress Eugenie.

.................................. Monogram Canvas Neverfull ($665.00)
Vuitton thus acquired expert knowledge of the requirements of a good travelling case and started to design his own luggage. He opened his workshops in 1854 in order to provide luggage suitable for the new age in which travel was becoming more commonplace.

He created his own brand in 1854 in order to make innovative and high quality lugggage. He had three watchwords - luxury, functionality, innovation. The first shop was opened that same year in Paris. The business developed rapidly and soon acquired an international reputation and in 1885 a shop was opened in London's Oxford Street. Over years the Louis Vuitton line gained international recognition, due in part to the bronze medal it obtained at the 1867 World's Fair and the gold medal at the 1889 World's Fair in Paris. The first stores opened in the U.S. in 1897.

Louis Vuitton's designs have always been highly fashionable and the famous LV monogram was created in 1896 in response to the widespread copying of its products! (For information on fake Louis Vuitton bags click here : How To Spot a Fake Louis Vuitton Bag )After Louis Vuitton's death in 1892 his son Georges took control of the business and made the Louis Vuitton brand into what it is today. The company developed what is recognized as the first "designer label" for its products.

Epi Leather Eugenie ($680.00)

Georges Vuitton is also said to have developed Vuitton's unique 5-combination lock. He died in 1936 and his son Gaston-Louis, took control of the company. In 1987 the company merged with Moet-Hennessy to become LVMH. Megastores were opened in 1998 in Paris, London and New York, a second flagship store was opened in Hong Kong in 2000.

In the 21st century there are around 200 Louis Vuitton stores in all the major cities of Europe, the U.S., and the Far East selling prestigious leather handbags, purses and luggage and elegant accessories to its distinguished clientéle. Due to the problems of counterfeiting Louis Vuitton now only sells its handbags and other products through its own stores or via its official website.

Monogram Dentelle Speedy 30 ($1420.00)
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HOW TO SPOT A FAKE LOUIS VUITTON BAG

Womens Handbags - HOW TO SPOT A FAKE LOUIS VUITTON BAG

A genuine Monogram MiniLin Pochette (current retail price $165.00)


Given that Louis Vuitton designer handbags can cost several hundred or several thousand dollars it would be nice to know how to avoid buying a fake or replica designer bag. But, as I said in my previous post, it is estimated that 99% of Louis Vuitton goods bought are fakes! Quite an estimate.

So how do you know if a Louis Vuitton is genuine and how can you spot a fake LV bag ? Well, to be quite brutally honest, you can't! If you read other websites or blogs they will tell you there are certain telltale signs to look for and this is undoubtedly true, but you, as a non-expert, will find it very difficult to distinguish between the genuine designer handbag and a very good imitation.

When looking for genuine Louis Vuitton leather handbags there are some indications that you might like to bear in mind however : -

• The seller has a lot of stock - purchases are in fact limited by Louis Vuitton to avoid re-selling, so avoid anyone with large stocks of designer bags
• Study the Louis Vuitton website and get to know the genuine bags - apparently some so-called Vuitton bags such as the Cherry Blossom Speedy or a Murakami Visor were never made by Vuitton
Suhali L'Epanoui PM (current retail price $2,650.00)

• Louis Vuitton do not wrap their bags in plastic or bubble wrap!
• If the price seems too good to be true then it is - genuine Vuitton bags are expensive
• Poor quality craftsmanship - Vuitton bags are "works of art" and should look like them - no wrinkles, creases, asymmetrical logos, poor quality seams etc...
• Attention to detail in all areas
• Certificate of Authenticity - these can of course be fakes too - but if there isn't one then at least that's a definite sign to steer clear
• Cheap looking tags made from a circular piece of plastic
• Most genuine dust bags just have the LV or Louis Vuitton logo
• Cheap plastic, cheap tan or cheap suede interiors
• The patterns on Vuitton designer handbags are always lined up correctly (not like some people's wallpaper)

These are some of the signs, but even so you would be hard pushed to differentiate between the genuine womens handbags and the good fakes without a lot of practice (which rather defeats the purpose - unless you intend joining the bag police).




Monogram Satin Aumoniere (current retail price $1,630.00)



So what's a girl (or guy) to do? As I said above, unless you are an expert, in my opinion the only way you can be absolutely sure of getting a genuine Louis Vuitton designer handbag is to buy it from a Louis Vuitton store or from their authorized websites. If you are willing to take the risk of being one of the 99% then, if you do your homework (by studying the upmarket magazines and above all the awful Louis Vuitton website - awful because it is so slow and clunky and difficult to navigate), you might be able to find yourself a bargain, but as they always say 'buyer beware' you are unlikely to get a refund if you discover your bag is a fake. Bear in mind too that not all fakes are cheap. What better way to convince you that a bag is genuine than by charging almost the full price? One woman stated that she paid $600 for a bag in the belief that it was genuine designer handbag, whereas in fact it was a fake that she could have got elsewhere for $50 .




On the Louis Vuitton website they state that Louis Vuitton products are only available at Louis Vuitton stores - or from their offical websites.

Monogram MiniLin Pochette Cancun (current retail price $315.00)



Louis Vuitton leather goods are made in France, Spain or the United States., where experienced craftsmen pay extreme attention to detail using only the finest materials.










Suhali LeFabuleux (current retail price $3,700.00)

For futher information see Fake Louis Vuitton Designer Handbags
For a video of how to spot fake Louis Vuitton bags see - Fake Louis Vuitton Bags
Home : Designer Handbags
Other designer handbag brands : Radley Handbags - B. Makowsky

Louis Vuitton Bags - Part I

Womens Handbags - Louis Vuitton Designer Bags

Louis Vuitton Moet Hennessy LVMH.PA more often called Louis Vuitton, is a French company headquartered in Paris which creates luxury fashion and leather goods, notably designer handbags. Astonishingly just over 1% of the goods bearing the famous trademark monogram are authentic, i.e. 99% are fakes! The ones below are all genuine.

Sellier Dragonne (current retail price $1260.00)

Lambskin Rivets Bag (current retail price $3,300.00)

The company is named after its founder Louis Vuitton (1821 – 1892) who was a ‘malletier; who designed and manufactured luggage. He was born in the Jura, France but moved to Paris, on foot, in 1835. In 1854 he founded the company, which is now owned by LVMH.

Louis Vuitton signature leather goods are now considered a status symbol around the world.

The iconic Monogram Canvas design was the first designer label in contemporary history and was created in 1896 by Vuitton's son Georges for the express purpose of preventing counterfeiting. Louis Vuitton is however the most counterfeited brand in fashion history!

The Louis Vuitton company has made expert use of celebrities in its marketing campaigns, most recently Uma Thurman and Scarlett Johansson but also Jennifer Lopez, Chloe Sevigny, Christina Ricci, Gisele Bundchen, Kate Moss, and Naomi Campbell. Hayden Christensen has also appeared as model for the company's luggage and prêt-à-porter lines.

Neverfull GM (current retail price $665.00)

Vuitton bags and purses are often carried by a whole host of other celebrities such as Madonna, Beyonce Knowles, Lindsay Lohan, Kimora Lee Simmons, Ayumi Hamasaki, Jessica Simpson, Ashley Tisdale, Paris Hilton, Nicole Richie, Angelina Jolie, Anna Kournikova, Pamela Anderson, Katharine McPhee, Carmen Electra, Mariah Carey, and Victoria Beckham.

Vuitton has created a cult-like following among consumers and owners often refer to their bags and accessories as my “Louis.”

In an attempt to prevent counterfeiting, the company has changed its policy regarding the distribution of its products. Vuitton products used to be widely sold in department stores, such as Neiman Marcus and Saks Fifth Avenue. But since the 1980s, they are available at specialized Louis Vuitton boutiques, with only a small number of exceptions. These boutiques are usually located in upmarket shopping districts.

Louis Vuitton's biggest stores are in New York, Beverly Hills, Waikiki, Guam, Hong Kong, Tokyo, Boston, San Francisco, Chicago, London, Kuala Lumpur, their flagship store is in Paris.

Louis Vuitton’s leather goods and women's handbags are of the highest quality, but its website is actually the worst website I have ever seen! It is a nightmare to navigate around and extremely irritating! Fortunately they don’t sell websites, they sell luxury handbags and other designer accessories.

Honfleur (current retail price $575.00)

For information on Gucci handbags see :
Gucci Bags

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Other brands : Radley Handbags