The Hermes Temptation

March 22, 2012

What a rare way to spend Thursday night (that feels like a Friday night). I am now sitting in the corner of Starbucks Senayan City, sipping its signature hot chocolate drink while reading The Hermes Temptation book (obviously I'm taking a break from the book for a few minutes to write this post). I had dinner with Oki at Brew House. It was a pizza, onion rings, philly cheese steak and coke kind of dinner. Very healthy. Now he has a meeting and I'm here waiting.



I am more than half way into the book. It's intriguing to learn about how Indonesian socialites go above and beyond for this bag. It's understandable, though. It's Hermes Birkin. But what I don't understand is the Indonesian way of carrying the bag. Maybe it's not just happen in here but since I live here and I witness the phenomenon in every fashion show I've been to and in every magazines party pages I've flipped, I can only speak from my experience here. The socialites here like to match their Birkins with Louboutin pumps and Herve Leger dress. Or their colorful kaftans. Fully done makeup, salon blowdry hair and all. And crazy amount of stacked jewelries. When everyone and their aunts dress like that, you'll get tired of seeing the same thing over and over again. And somehow, it makesthe Birkin loses its charm. There's no such thing as personal style.

The other thing that I don't understand, at least from what I read in the book is that some people treat the bag like a fragile baby. They only take it out for special occassion, afraid it'll get dirty. They demand for their bag to get its own chair, cover it with umbrella when it rains and let themselves got wet instead and other silly *at least I think it is* things. One of our justification to buy expensive bags is for their quality, right? So why do we have doubts on its superbs craftmanship by babying the bag while that's exactly why we buy it in the first place?

One fine day, when I finally have a chance to own this bag, I will use it everyday. I will wear it with jeans and tee and overstuff it like I always do to my other bags. I will put my whole life in it. I will let the kids put their toys in there. Including their wattle bottle and unfinished Auntie Anne's pretzel. I will be okay with putting it on the floor. I will let it get splashed in the rain. I will have faith that the beautiful bag will stand the test of time and won't dissapoint me. Yes, she will look like she has been everywhere. And that's what make her even more interesting. Because she has a lot of stories to tell. She is a reflection of my soul, a symbol of my milestone and a witness of what I've been through. She will have a few wrinkles and scratches but she will never lose her shine. In fact, she will look even more beautiful as she gets older.

One fine day.

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13 comments

  1. yes, true appreciation of the said bag is to use it to its fullest, and not just having it for show.

    as the saying goes: everything should age gracefully. and i love this post for noting down exactly that :)

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  2. iya gue juga herman bin hersan. paling herman liat orang bawa birkin ke black tie event. di malam hari. pake kebaya. i never see this anywhere, only in indonesia. oh wait, jakarta.

    anyway, one fine day, one fine bag, right there with you under a light drizzle nibbling on churros con chocolate. :D

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  3. Workhorse bag, baby! Birkins with wrinkles = characters!

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  4. Oh my! This was truly an eye-opening post to read *for me, hehe. I never knew that it was such an ill-trend back home.

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  5. Gw merinding loh bacanya.
    Nice one, gw juga heran itu tas di sayang-sayang. Kalo gampang rusak = jelek donk? Kenapa mau beli mahal2

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  6. Iya len, menurut gue juga kebaya + Birkin ga cocok deh. It's too big dan terlalu berkompetisi dgn si kebaya in making a statement ya. They don't complement each other.

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  7. It is Rish, paling males liat yg arisan dan janjian pake Birkin semua :D

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  8. Asal asli aja tuh birkin2 yg di tenteng... Malesh aja kalo pada menjamur birkin2 tapi knock off... -_-

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    Replies
    1. Sayangnya emang banyak juga yang palsu sih :(

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  9. baru baca....
    gue jadi inget waktu gue jalan di manhattan... disekitar lexington ave, 60th something st. Gue liat bule org bawa birkin dengan dandan santai...sambil nunggu lampu merah dia mau benerin tali sepatunya... dengan enaknya tasnya di taro aja di trotoar.. cool... padalah yah tau sendiri NY.. khan nggak bersih2 amat jalannya... hehehe... yah mungkin emang bener... tasnya tahan banting so... dah beli mahal... puas2in dong makenya

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