28 Vintage Purses Dealers Snap Up
Resale handbags are the rare corner of secondhand where a forty-year-old object routinely outsells its own original retail price. The reason is supply: the houses that made these things either stopped, changed the design, or raised prices so aggressively that the old version became the cheaper way in.
Authentication is the entire skill here, and it is not optional. Date codes, hardware weight, stitch counts, and lining materials are what dealers check, and a convincing counterfeit will fool anyone working from photographs alone.
Ranges below assume authenticated pieces in honest used condition with original hardware.
Hermès Birkin
The Birkin has been made since 1984 in a range of leathers and sizes, and the resale market has valued it above retail for most of that time. Standard leather examples bring $12,000 to $30,000, with exotic skins and rare colors going far beyond.
The blind stamp inside the strap records the year of manufacture and the workshop, and the hand-saddle stitching is the detail counterfeiters never fully replicate.
Hermès Kelly
Named after Grace Kelly in 1977 though produced since the 1930s, the Kelly comes in sellier and retourne constructions that behave differently on resale. Examples bring $10,000 to $25,000, with the structured sellier version and the smaller sizes leading.
The lock, keys, and clochette are part of the bag, and a Kelly missing them loses a meaningful amount.
Chanel Classic Flap
The quilted flap bag with the interlocking chain strap has been produced continuously since 1955, and Chanel’s repeated price increases have pulled the vintage market up behind it. Examples bring $3,000 to $9,000, with the earlier lambskin bags and the 24k gold-plated hardware ahead of current production.
The serial sticker inside dates the bag, and the format of that sticker changed several times in ways collectors track precisely.
Vintage Louis Vuitton Speedy
The Speedy in monogram canvas is the most counterfeited bag in existence, which paradoxically makes genuine vintage examples good value. Authentic pieces bring $500 to $1,500, with the older French-made bags and the larger sizes leading.
The date code stamped inside identifies country and month of production, and the vachetta leather trim should have darkened evenly with age.
Louis Vuitton Steamer Trunks and Travel Cases
Vuitton’s hard-sided luggage from the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries is bought as furniture and as objects, not for travel. Genuine period trunks bring $2,000 to $20,000 depending on size, canvas pattern, and interior fittings.
The lock number, the maker’s plaque, and the interior labels together establish age, and the earlier patterns predating the monogram canvas are the scarcest.
Gucci Bamboo-Handle Bags
Gucci began using bent bamboo for handles in 1947 as a response to postwar leather shortages, and the design has been revived repeatedly. Vintage examples bring $600 to $3,000, with the 1950s and 1960s production leading.
The bamboo darkens and develops surface cracking with age, which is expected rather than a defect, though a snapped handle costs most of the value.
Gucci Jackie Hobo
The crescent hobo with the piston closure was named for Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis and has been reissued in several eras. Vintage examples bring $500 to $2,000, with the 1960s and 1970s Italian production ahead of later versions.
The piston clasp mechanism should operate smoothly, and a worn one is expensive to repair correctly.
Christian Dior Saddle Bags
John Galliano’s Saddle bag from 1999 became the defining accessory of its moment, was abandoned, and then returned with force. Original-era examples bring $1,000 to $4,000, with the elaborate embroidered and logo-print versions leading.
The strap hardware and the interior stamp format distinguish original production from the 2018 revival.
Lady Dior Cannage Bags
Introduced in 1995 and associated with Diana, Princess of Wales, the quilted Lady Dior has stayed in continuous production and continuous demand. Vintage examples bring $1,500 to $4,000, with the lambskin versions and the scarce colors leading.
The four hanging charms spelling the house name should match in finish and show consistent wear.
Fendi Baguettes
Silvia Venturini Fendi’s 1997 design was produced in hundreds of limited variations, which is precisely why the collector market for it is so active. Rare variations bring $1,000 to $6,000, while common leather versions bring $400 to $900.
The beaded, sequined, and embroidered editions are the ones dealers actively hunt, and the interior serial confirms which run a bag came from.
Prada Vela Nylon Bags
Prada’s industrial nylon bags from the late 1980s and 1990s were dismissed as basic and are now among the most requested vintage items. Examples bring $300 to $1,200, with the backpacks and the earlier triangular logo plates leading.
The logo plate should be enameled metal rather than plastic, and the interior tag format dates the piece.
Bottega Veneta Intrecciato
The woven leather Intrecciato technique carries no visible logo, which is the entire point and also what makes authentication harder. Vintage examples bring $400 to $2,000, with the Tomas Maier era pieces and the larger Cabat styles leading.
The weave should be perfectly even with no visible adhesive, and genuine examples use leather strips of consistent width throughout.
Celine Box and Classic Bags
Phoebe Philo’s tenure at Celine produced bags with a following that has outlasted her departure, and the older pre-Philo Celine has its own separate market. Philo-era examples bring $1,000 to $3,000, while vintage 1970s and 1980s Celine brings $200 to $700.
The interior stamp and the hardware finish distinguish the eras clearly.
Vintage Yves Saint Laurent Bags
Bags from the house under Saint Laurent himself, and the Tom Ford period that followed, are collected separately from current Saint Laurent production. Vintage examples bring $400 to $2,500, with the Ford-era pieces and the 1970s Rive Gauche bags leading.
The interior label wording changed with each era and is the fastest way to place a bag.
Roberta di Camerino Velvet Bags
The Venetian house produced cut velvet bags with trompe l’oeil designs from the 1950s, worn by everyone from Grace Kelly to Elizabeth Taylor. Genuine examples bring $300 to $1,500, with the trompe l’oeil patterns and the earlier production leading.
The velvet is woven rather than printed, which is visible on close inspection and is the primary authentication check.
Judith Leiber Crystal Minaudières
Leiber’s crystal-covered metal evening bags in animal and object shapes were made by hand with individually applied stones. Authentic examples bring $600 to $4,000, with the figural and novelty shapes at the top.
Missing crystals are the standard problem, and the bags came with a matching coin purse and mirror that add value when present.
Whiting & Davis Mesh Bags
The Massachusetts firm has made metal mesh bags since 1876, and the enameled Art Deco pieces are the ones dealers pursue. Enameled examples bring $150 to $800, while plain mesh brings $60 to $200.
The frame carries the company mark, and missing or split mesh sections cannot be repaired invisibly.
Mandalian Enameled Mesh Bags
Mandalian Manufacturing competed directly with Whiting & Davis and used a finer mesh with more intricate enameled patterns. Genuine examples bring $200 to $1,200, with the elaborate geometric and pictorial designs leading.
Mandalian bags typically have a distinctive fringe of enameled drops along the base, which is where damage usually appears first.
Enid Collins Box Bags
The Texas designer produced wooden box bags decorated with jewels and painted motifs from the 1960s, each signed with her initials. Signed examples bring $80 to $400, with the more elaborate designs and the earlier wooden boxes leading.
Missing jewels are common and reduce the price sharply, since the original stones are difficult to match.
Wilardy Lucite Handbags
Will Hardy’s Lucite bags from the 1950s are the best-known of the plastic handbag boom and the most consistently valuable. Signed examples bring $200 to $1,200, with the elaborate carved and pearlized versions leading.
The signature is molded inside the lid, and the critical condition question is crazing, since deteriorating Lucite cannot be restored.
Llewellyn Lucite Handbags
Llewellyn produced Lucite bags in New York with distinctive architectural shapes and confetti-embedded plastics. Marked examples bring $200 to $900, with the more sculptural forms at the top.
As with all Lucite, a chemical smell when the bag is opened indicates the plastic has begun to break down and the piece has limited remaining life.
Charles S. Kahn Lucite Bags
Kahn’s Miami workshop produced Lucite bags with rhinestone decoration and unusual color combinations, often at the flashier end of the field. Marked examples bring $150 to $700, with the fully rhinestoned versions leading.
Kahn bags are marked inside the lid, and the hardware and hinges are a slightly different design from Wilardy’s.
Micro-Beaded Evening Bags
French and Czech workshops produced bags covered in beads small enough that a single evening bag could take weeks, often depicting scenes or floral compositions. Fine examples bring $200 to $1,500, with pictorial scenes and figural subjects at the top.
The threads holding the beads degrade over a century, and a bag with loose sections is a restoration project rather than an object.
Austrian Petit Point Bags
Petit point is needlepoint worked at extremely fine gauge, and Viennese workshops produced evening bags with hundreds of stitches per square inch. Genuine examples bring $200 to $1,200, with figural scenes and jeweled frames leading.
Stitch count is the price driver, and the finest work needs magnification to resolve individual stitches.
Victorian Silver Frame Bags
Nineteenth-century bags with hallmarked sterling frames, sometimes with chatelaine hooks, are priced on the frame quality and the hallmark. Hallmarked examples bring $150 to $900, with elaborate repoussé work and named makers at the top.
The fabric body is usually deteriorated, and the market accepts a replaced body if the frame is original and disclosed.
Nantucket Lightship Basket Purses
Woven rattan basket purses with turned wooden lids and carved ivory or bone decoration were made on Nantucket, with José Formoso Reyes the most collected maker. Signed examples bring $800 to $6,000, with Reyes pieces and elaborate scrimshaw decoration at the top.
The maker signs the base, and the weaving quality varies noticeably between makers.
Bonnie Cashin Era Coach Bags
Cashin designed for Coach from 1962 to 1974, introducing the brass turnlock and the heavy glove-tanned leather that defined the brand. Cashin-era bags bring $200 to $900, with the unusual shapes and the coin purse attachments leading.
The creed patch inside identifies the era, and pre-1990 bags carry a distinctly different serial format from later production.
Vintage Dooney & Bourke All-Weather Leather
The 1980s All-Weather Leather line with its brass duck fob has been rediscovered by a generation that was not alive when it was current. Examples in good condition bring $80 to $300, with the scarcer colors and the larger satchels leading.
The pieces made in the United States before production moved offshore are the ones the market prefers, and the interior tag confirms which is which.
What Survives in the Back of the Closet
Handbags are stored rather than discarded because they cost money and feel like objects rather than clothing. That instinct is why a 1955 flap bag and a 1997 Baguette are both still findable, sitting in dust bags behind coats that were thrown out decades ago.
The market rewards that hoarding unevenly. A bag holds value when the house that made it either stopped making it or priced the new version out of reach, and almost everything else in the closet is worth exactly what a used bag should be worth.
More from Home As We Make It
- 18 Affordable Places to Retire in the U.S.
- Antique Glassware That’s Worth Collecting
- Stay-At-Home Jobs That Actually Pay
- 18 Forgotten Snacks from the ’80s and ’90s
- 20 Things That Make a House Look Cleaner Than It Is
Like Home As We Make It‘s content? Follow us on MSN.
