My thoughts on Louis Vuitton discontinuing the Toiletry pouches

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Last week came the news that Louis Vuitton had suddenly discontinued all three sizes of their Toiletry pouches and they were no longer available to purchase on their website.

Discussions on all types of online forums immediately took off, people obviously being upset about this, as the Toiletry pouches are some of the most sold items by LV. WHY would the company do this?

A few years ago, Louis Vuitton announced that they were going to focus more on pushing their leather bags and not produce as much canvas pieces, as they wanted to be more exclusive and luxurious. Maybe they felt that the market was so saturated with canvas bags, they simply wanted to slow down production on those items.

Many people feel that this strategy by LV is nothing more than a way for the company to make more money. They obviously are not interested in attracting more customers by selling more canvas items, but rather the opposite. They want to keep their exclusivity by not attracting too many customers. And considering that Louis Vuitton is the big, well known brand that it is BECAUSE OF their world famous canvas… Well, it does not really make any sense.

So during the past few years, Louis Vuitton has been releasing a lot more leather bags. The Neverfull leather version is one example – that bag has been extremely popular. It seems that more and more classic bags are being introduced in leather.

At the same time, items are being discontinued. Like the Toiletry pouches, the other week. It is an obvious strategy from the company’s side. They know that people love these items, they know that by removing them from the market they will create hysteria. And sooner or later, a new version of the Toiletry pouches will be released. Maybe they will be leather, maybe they will come with a deteachable strap (as many are saying LV is discontinuing the Toiletry pouch because people are using them as handbags, instead of buying actual bags), maybe they will release them only in special collectors editions from now on… But one thing is certain, and that is that when they bring it back, it will come with a 200% higher price tag.

I was lucky enough to get a Toiletry 26 in store in Helsinki a year and a half ago. I have not used it a lot, not going to lie, and I was actually at one point contemplating selling it… But after hearing that it’s been discontinued, I will definitely keep it. And use it. Both as a toiletry bag, a clutch and a bag with an attached strap. Because in my opinion, a customer who has purchased an item themselves should be able to use it however they wish. That is none of the company’s business.

How to turn your Louis Vuitton Toiletry 26 into a crossbody bag.

Tip of the day!

I bought my Louis Vuitton Toiletry 26 in October 2019, with the intent to use it as a clutch. A year and a half later, I had still never used it. To some extent, I blame Covid, but it is also a fact that I rarely use clutches. Even less so during the past year…

So when I saw a picture of how someone had turned their Toiletry 26 into a crossbody bag, I thought I would give it a go, as it looked super cute!

I ordered a bag insert (that has rivets to which you can attach a strap) from AliExpress. I also ordered a decorative chain from there. Now, I have ordered lots of bag organizers and chain straps from AliExpress before, I think you can find some really nice accessories for your bags on there. (I am sure you can find similar things on Etsy and Ebay, too!)

You can get different coloured inserts, but I just went for the light beige.

I attached the chain and a strap from my Palm Springs Mini backpack, that I thought would look good.

I have to admit, I do wish I had ordered a slightly longer chain, but I still like the way it looks.

One thing to be aware if, though, is that since the Toiletry pouch has a leather tag on one end, it means that when you attach a strap to the pouch, the tag is going to be “pulled up” by the strap. I did not like the look of the tag flapping around, so I actually tucked the tag back into the side of the bag. However, it does mean that there will be a little “bulge” at the corner, where the tag is tucked in. This might bother some, it does not bother me. That tag flapping around was a lot more annoying to me…

I think that the PSM bagstrap looks really nice with this “bag.” I was actually THIS close to ordering the Monogram strap from the Louis Vuitton website a few days ago, but I really want to try out this strap first and see if I will actually use it, before I purchase another strap.

I really, really like it! I actually feel that it’s a similar look to the new Louis Vuitton Coussin bag… I am very much looking forward to getting use out of the Toiletry 26 now!

My 2021 wishlist

My wishlist, Uncategorized

I usually start each year off with making a luxury wishlist for the upcoming year. These are things I would like to add to my collection, but I am going to be honest with you and say that I am going to be really picky about what I buy this year…

2020 was not a good year to get the wear out of my luxury items, and so hopefully this year will be the year that I actually get to use all of my new and old items. So if I don’t get anything on my wishlist, I’ll be just fine.

Jaquemus Le Chiquito

The Jaquemus Le Chiquito bag has really become an iconic piece, and I am going to be honest : I might have watch too many videos by Cassie Thorpe, because I am now convinced that I need a baby blue Le Chiquito bag. If there will be a guaranteed bag purcgase this year, it will be this.

I know, I know… I might be crazy, but I really like it. Don’t judge, ok..?

A light coloured card holder

I have had this on my wishlist before, and I really don’t know why I still haven’t gotten a light coloured card holder… I keep buying black or dark colour ones, so I have banned myself from buying any more card holders unless it’s in a light colour. I would really like a Chanel 19 card holder, to be honest…

YSL Rive Gauche bag

I’ve had my eyes on this bag for a while and think it looks like an awesome summer tote. I also really like the Chanel Deauville, but I really am not ready to pay Chanel money for a canvas bag… The Rive Gauche, however, is fairly priced and in my opinion a very stylish and timeless tote.

Not sure if I would get it in the black or beige, though… I prefer the beige, but I know the black would be more practical.

Louis Vuitton Mini Boîte Chapeau in the reverse monogram

I really, really, really wish to add a reverse monogram piece this year and I am just head over heels in love with the Mini Boîte Chapeau. The necklace version is also soooo cute, but let’s be real – you can’t fit anything in that bag, so it’s purely decorative…

The mini version will at least fit your keys and a cardholder + a lipstick.

I would really like to add this to my collection, I am not going to lie. It is on top of my wishlist…

A vanity case/bag

Now, this one is a bit of a “maybe” on my wishlist, because I am still not sure what I feel about the trend of wearing a vanity case as a bag.

The issue for me is I think the vanity cases are SO beautiful, but I just don’t know how I feel about wearing them as bags… It just looks very “box:y” and unoractical, yet I still like the look. So confusing, I know!!

At the same time, I don’t know if I can justify buying a vanity case just to use it for storing makeup/travelling. I just don’t know it I feel it is worth the money (says the girl who wants to get the Jaquemus bag…)

I have thought about getting one of the vintage Chanel vanity cases and buy a separate strap for it, to get the best of both worlds, but I think the vanity case trend is just that – a trend. I don’t think it’s going to be a timeless piece, and I have decided lately that I really am going to focus more on timeless pieces in the future.

Kurt Geiger mini Kensington with chains

My handbags/reviews, Shopping/Hauls

Guys, it’s been a while! How are you all doing?

If you follow me on Instagram (@buythegoddamnbag) then you know that I went through major surgery on my foot 2 weeks ago. Not gonna lie, it’s been hell. And what do we do to cheer ourselves up when we are going through a rough time..? Yes, we buy bags.

Now, at the beginning of the year, I saw this bag on Shea Whitney’s Youtube channel and I instantly fell in love with it. I have previously been looking at Kurt Geiger bags and thought they were really cute, edgy and very much my style – but this bag just spoke to me on a different level!

Of course, it was sold out everywhere. I could not find it. I pretty much gave up on find it and thought that maybe they will add it to their permanent line on the future, and then I’ll be able to get it.

Then one morning, out of pure chance, I decided to check the asos website to see if they had gotten it back into stock and there it was! I can tell you, I have NEVER clicked “add to cart” faster in my life… A week later it arrived, and it is PERFECTION!

So it is called the Mini Kensington with chains and it has these removable(!) mixed metal chains on the front that gives it very much of a Chanel 19 vibe, in my opinion.

Now, I own a white Chanel 19 bag and even though I love it, I could not justify getting another 19 bag in black. I already own quite a few black bags and a girl cannot just drop money like that every month, okay… That’s why I thought this bag was an awesome alternative, with a sensible price tag. (Also, as this was my first ever purchase from asos, I got 20% off on this bag, so yes – it was an awesome deal!)

The eagle’s head is a signature Kurt Geiger detail.

I think that the quality of this bag is great, and I can’t wait to wear it as soon as I have recovered from my surgery. This literally is my “reward” for going through hell during the past two weeks (and still having at least 6 weeks left to go…)

Merry Christmas and happy holidays!

Bag of the day, Eyecandy, How to style...

I hope you have had a lovely Christmas. I have celebrated with family, on a small scale, but it has been lovely. Now, I still get to enjoy almost two weeks off work and I am going to really make sure I rest so I am ready for the new year.

Me and my boyfriend keep it really simple during Christmas, and we usually don’t buy each other gifts. This year, however, my boyfriend got me two pairs of shoes – something I really needed, since I am getting surgery done on my foot in January. My Chanel Maxi was my Christmas gift to myself, even though I opened it already at the beginning of December…

My Christmas Day outfit included my newest Chanel bag. I love the size of the Maxi, it’s so practical and the fact that it’s a single flap makes it so much easier to get into.

How I cleaned colour transfer off of my Chanel lambskin bag.

Buying pre-loved goods, My handbags/reviews, Pre-loved and vintage, Tip of the day!, Uncategorized

As alwas, I need to put out a disclaimer! I am not a proffessional handbag restorer, I just use my common sense, try to read and do my research before attempting anything and even though this worked for me, I cannot guarantee it will work for you.

With that said…

Here is how I got rid of colour transfer on my new, pre-loved Chanel lambskin bag.

I will start off by saying that due to the eternal darkness we have here in Finland between the months of October to February, the lighting in my pictures is aweful. I apologize for that. The thing is that if I use flash photograpghy to take pictures, then it washes out the colours and you won’t be able to see any details. So I have to rely on the small amount of natural lighting + the lighting in my bedroom, and that really isn’t enough to show all details, either. Anyway, I will try to provide as much detailed information as I can despite this issue and then maybe I can add some better pictures in the spring!

This is the “before” picture, taken by the previous owner. The colour transfer on the back of the bag wasn’t the worst I have seen, but it was noticable. The lower part of the back pocket and the very edge of the bag had the most colour transfer.
The strap also had colour transfer, some parts were quite dirty, too.

I wasn’t able to take good before-pictures myself, which is a shame, but you could definitely see darkness on the back of the bag when it arrived to me.

Now, when you google “how to get colour transfer off a Chanel bag” you will find that pretty much everyone tells you to send the bag off to a “bag spa” and to NOT try to remove the colour transfer yourself. However, I felt like it was worth a shot, doing it myself.

From my research, I found that in order to clean Chanel lambskin, you need to avoid all types of leather cleaners that contains oils, as they might stain the bag permanently. I looked high and low for a good quality water based leather cleaner, but with no luck. I have previously used a soap called “galltvål” to clean leather, as it is mild but effective on all types of stains.

So when I found a liquid, organic version, I decided to give it a go. I also bought microfiber cloths, soft and gentle enough not to damage the leathe, and I had babywipes from before, which I always use to clean my bags. They are non-alcoholic and scent-free.

I started off by cleaning the whole bag using baby wipes only, to make sure that any superficial dirt was removed. I then soaked the microfiber cloth in warm water, and added a drop of soap. I then proceeded to rub the cloth against a small area of the bag, to check how the leather reacted.

I don’t recommend doing this. As soon as the wet cloth hit the leather, the leather turned really dark, as the leather started to soak up the water. For a second I panicked, but I simply used a dry cloth to immediately try and dry up the small patch.

After that, I decided that it would be best to use the soap on a dry cloth. So I added a small amount of soap to my cloth, rubbed it into the cloth, and then gently started to rub the cloth against the leather. This worked a lot better, and I was able to remove a significant amount of dirt and colour transfer from the back of the bag and from the corners.

After rubbing the leather with my soapy cloth, I used baby wipes to remove any soap residue from the bag.

I then did the same thing when cleaning the strap – I added a small amount of soap to the cloth, worked the soap into the cloth with my fingers and then gently rubbed the cloth on the leather. Afterwards, I used babywipes to wipe the leather clean

Here you can see that there is a tiny bit of colour transfer left, but it is very faint, and not something that you notice immediately.
I got so much dirt off the chain, it looks so clean and nice now!
The corners were the trickiest, as they were already a bit dry, and I did not want to risk drying out the leather even more with the soap. I very gently cleaned them, but decided that the darkness doesn’t bother me so I’ll not risk the leather cracking!
The front of the bag had very little dirt on it, so I very lightly cleaned that, as well. The flap edges had the most dirt, and that came off very easily.

I have thought of maybe doing one more round ofcleaning the bag, but I want to let the leather dry properly inbetween. Also, the stains are so faint now, that I don’t know if it is even worth it…

I am very, very happy with how it turned out, but whenever you decide to restore or clean a bag yourself, it is always a risk! This worked for me and that’s why I wanted to share it.

I also have a blogpost on how I cleaned and restored my Damier Azur Neverfull MM. Check that out, too!