First off, you got the classics. The 2.55, which is like, *the* Chanel bag, right? Then there’s the Boy Bag, the Classic Flap… all these iconic pieces. You read some stuff online, you see everyone saying they’re “handmade.” And yeah, there’s *some* truth to that, but not the whole story.
See, it’s not like some little old lady in France is sitting there stitching the *entire* bag by hand, thread by thread. That’s just… not realistic. They say “Made in France,” which is cool, and highlights their “Savoir-Faire” (fancy word, right?), but that doesn’t mean *everything* is hand-stitched.
I read somewhere that authentic Chanel bags aren’t *fully* stitched by hand. Some parts, like the assembly and attaching the metal bits, that *is* manual labor. So, you get some human touch, which is nice, right? But it ain’t *all* handmade.
Then you see other places saying, “Most iconic bags *are* handmade.” Which is super confusing, right? Like, which is it? My take? It’s probably somewhere in the middle. I think limited edition bags and the super-specialty ones probably get more actual hand-work. Makes sense, right? They’re more exclusive, they gotta be, like, *extra*.
And then there’s the 11.12 – which, apparently, is a reimagining of the 2.55. Lagerfeld really put his stamp on that one. That’s a whole other story about how Chanel keeps reinventing themselves and staying relevant, even though the original was all about functionality designed by Coco herself.
Honestly, all this stuff makes me wanna just go buy a cute mini bag. Or maybe one of those hobo bags. They got new collections coming out for Spring-Summer 2025, apparently. (And, side note, you gotta watch out for fakes, right? There’s a whole guide out there with 10 steps to authenticate a Chanel bag. Super important before you drop, like, a car payment on a purse!)
So, yeah, “handmade Chanel bag” is kinda a myth. It’s *partially* handmade, in the sense that skilled craftspeople are involved, doing some of the work manually. But it’s not like every stitch is lovingly placed by hand. It’s more… a blend of machine and manual labor, with the emphasis probably shifting depending on the bag.
