Chanel Classic Flap Sizes Explained
The Chanel Classic Flap sizes confuse most first-time buyers, because Chanel never printed a tidy size chart. However, the differences are consistent once you know what to measure.…
Guides
The Journal
Notes on leather, value and provenance — how the pieces are made, how they wear, and what actually moves their worth.
Authentication
How to Spot a Fake Hermès Birkin
Spotting a fake Hermès Birkin is less about one giveaway and more about a stack of small things that must all agree. Because the counterfeit market has improved,…
Buying
Buying Hermès in the UK: VAT, duty and the true landed cost
A $28,500 bag does not cost a UK buyer $28,500. How import VAT and duty work, what DDP and DDU mean, and the questions to ask any overseas seller.
Buying
Kelly Sellier or Retourne: Which to Buy
Kelly Sellier or Retourne? One is stitched outside and holds its shape, the other is stitched inside and softens. Here is how each wears.
Buying
Cartier Tank or Santos: Which to Buy
Both watches were born early in the twentieth century, and both are still made today. However, choosing between a Cartier Tank or Santos is really a choice between…
Value
What actually moves the value of a Birkin
Size, colour, leather, condition, hardware — in order of how much each matters, and an honest note on what does not matter at all.
Guides
The Row Margaux Sizes: 10, 12, 15 or 17
The Margaux carries no logo, yet it is one of the most recognisable bags of the decade. Because it is sold in four numbered sizes and several constructions,…
Buying
Audemars Piguet Royal Oak Sizes, From 33mm to 41mm
Few watches are recognised from across a room the way the Royal Oak is. However, Royal Oak sizes change the watch more than most buyers expect: the octagonal…
Guides
Which size Birkin should you buy?
What the 25, 30, 35 and 40 actually hold, who each suits, and why the 30 is the clearest value in the market for anyone who intends to carry the bag.
Guides
Birkin or Kelly?
They cost similar money and are not remotely the same bag. How the two differ in use, capacity, formality and resale — and which suits which owner.