The Birkin Bag - big, beautiful, perfect for travelling (first class!)

  Jane Birkin who died in July 2023 was known for her erotic song, Je T'aime. The man she sang with was a singer-songwriter and although they never married, they were close all the time they were together and after she married somebody else.

Wiki article on Jane Birkin

Jane with Serge.

She is also known for the Birkin bag by Hermes. She was sitting next to the VIP from Hermes on a plane when her basket fell down, scattering the contents! She apologized and said she could not find a suitable leather bag for her travels. 

He sketched out a possible design of a bag on the back of the airline sickness bag, with her imput. He produced it, and named it the Birkin bag.

The bag became sought after by celebrities. The price went up, so it was also bought as an investment.

Go to the Wikipedia entry and you will be astonished at the number of films, (movies), and TV shows which featured this bag. 

It is outside my price range, but I am interested to see what all the fuss is about. It can be ordered in an assortment of leather to suit the buyer, with gold plated locks and keys and trims, even diamond encrusted. And in varied colours.

Wiki article on Birkin bags

Wiki

From Wiki

Most of the bags you see are plain on the outside, without extra pockets. However, there are so many of them, that eventually you find one with pockets.

Style

Apart from the fact that it locks, and has a soft lining, I cannot make out what kind of pockets or interior finishes it has. 

I am wary of locks. Danger of losing the key. However, if you can afford a key, the keys are numbered, I am sure you have a personal assistant who can contact the company for another.

Jane herself apparently complained about the weight of the bag. I do find that leather bags are heavy, and big bags tempt you to cram a lot inside. You can order it in assorted sizes.

Colours

The colours are lovely, especially the red, green, and pink. More unusual is the one which is triple coloured.

If I can't have a Birkin, what are my favourite bags? Ones in multiple colours which go with everything. 

A reversible bag. 

A bag which has a lanyard with a convenient  key-ring attached to a long string so you cannot lose it and can retrieve it in a hurry. I now just add one to whatever bag I have.

A mini-bag, an organizer with multiple pockets, for your essentials, cosmetics and more, which you can move from one handbag to another. 

Useful Websites

https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Category:Birkin_Bags

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Birkin_bag

https://janefinds.com/collections/birkin?page=2

https://www.hermes.com/uk/en/content/106191-birkin/

Great pictures of celebrities with bags matching their outfits

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/femail/article-12304389/The-ultimate-Bag-chance-meeting-Jane-Birkin-plane-created-Hermes-legend.html

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Lost Keys - what to do - and where to look

Problems
These have all happened to me, a member of my family, or a colleague.
1 You go to the airport and forget your luggage key.
2 You have a suitcase key and lock but they don't meet the US regulations.
3 You have a combination key but forget the number to unlock it.
4 You lose your door key.
5 You lose the office key.
6 You lose the club door keys. You put them somewhere safe out of sight, now you cannot remember where.
7 You return from a friend's house and lose your door keys.
8 You lose your car keys.
9 You drop your flat keys down a drain.
10 You have a dozen keys and a whole group of people are held up whilst you try to work out which is the suitcase key.
11 You lose the postbox key.

Answers
1 List luggage key and lock on your packing list. Most suitcases come with a key. It is simpler to leave every key and lock with the luggage. If they are not already colour coded to match the suitcase, you can colour code with ribbons, nail varnish or paint or a shoe repair and key cutting shop will stock and sell your sets of colour caps to put on the keys and you can buy colour coded key tags to match to attach to either key or padlock.
2 Airports sell a variety of keys. Allow time to stop to buy. Keys with matching locks are often cheaper in supermarkets. 
f you don’t mind my asking, what were you doing on the sofa?
3 Tell the code to a member of your family. Or pick a house number or phone number from somebody known to all the family or a famous address or year of an event. For security, something which will not be known outside the family but will be known to you.
4 Have a spare. Leave the original or spare at home with somebody living or working nearby. make sure your flight arrives when they are around to give you the key if needed.
5 An office key or key common to all residents of a block of flats can mean you have to replace a lock and provide keys to everybody plus the spares. Keep the key in a box with a hook for it.
6 Same as 5. Get the staff of the office and the cleaners to check everywhere including behind drawers, move all furniture, check waste bins before emptying them (in case keys fell off desk into an open top bin). Check under cushions, behind cushions and under chairs and sofas. Move newspapers. If you were going to hide the keys for  safety, where would you put them?
7 Phone your friends. Ask them to look under chairs, desks, tables, sofas.
8 Check under car seats and behind the seat cushions.

9 Move the car and look under it. Ready into drain with magnetic device or hook. Look with torch. Find somebody strong with protective gloves against scratches and dirt to lift the drain cover. In a big building such as a condo, the caretaker will have keys for lifting drain covers and either a device for reaching down or protective gloves. 

Stories
In my condo in Singapore the chap had often done this, just lifted the cover and reached down. Problem solved in one minute. I heaved my flat keys wrapped in a towel when I went swimming. I lifted my towel and the keys rolled out and downhill into the nearest drain cover.

Stories

We had the same problem in London. Our teenage son lost his keys under the sofa at friend's house. (I think the boys were doing yoga or marital arts on the floor. As one does.) 

We went to change the locks. Removing the old lock was too difficult. So we added a new lock. 

Later the key was found. Then it was lost again. Again we did not remove the old lock but added another. That is why we carry 25 keys - and our front door has 25 locks. Only joking.)

Author
Angela Lansbury, travel writer and photographer, author and speaker. Please share links to your favourite posts.