Louis Vuitton Sporran

[Tiny]

I'm sure many may be familear with some of the many reputable designers. Coach, Guci, Louis Vuitton to name a few I found a source for some fabric and was thinking of making a sporran with the front face covered in LV fabric, and possibly a leather LV ensignia on top of the fabric on the face stitched down.

Whats everyones thoughts on this? has any one done this before? would it be to women's purse not enough men's sporran?

If anyone was wondering i found the fabric at http://www.windycityfabrics.com/lvvinylold.htm

[Raphael]

Not crazy about your idea because it doesn't sound right.

[ChattanCat]

I saw one made by Coach:


If the image doesn't work: Coach sporran

[ronstew]

I guess you could make one, but why? A LV sporran would be designed by LV or one of his minions. All you would have is a sporran pretending to be something that it is not.

And if you tried to sell it online you could expect a letter from a very expensive lawyer.

I am with Raphael. It ain't right.

[Tiny]

Not crazy about your idea because it doesn't sound right.

Ok, but what part doesn't sound right? the whole idea of a LV Sporran or just the part about me making one? Also if I were to make one no it wouldn't be to sell. If I contacted the company and commisioned them to design a designer sporran would that make it ok in your book. If I designed it and then submited it to the company to produce would that make it ok or would it still not be ok becuase I don't work for the company?

On a side note LV doesn't make cars or car interiors yet many cars get reupholstered in LV fabric. LV fabric is more a mark of expense and quality then anything ellse.

[Bugbear]

Why not let the fabric stand on it's own.

I'm not sure what kind of fabric this is, but I have pondered fabric covered sporrans, including velvet.

[wildrover]

Nah...I don't think it would work at all, your gut feeling is correct...too "woman's purse." Something about it just seems completely wrong to me, and un-kilt-like.

I'd wear a sporran made of similar high quality leather as certain women's handbags, but I'd prefer if it also had horsehair, metal, and/or the snarling head of an animal attached, no offense.

*edit* I was writing while you guys were replying. I just asked a feminine opinion, here's a rough paraphrase. She said "that stuff is expensive, it shows a guy has good taste". When I protested and made mocking remarks about Eurometro whoopsies, her response was something to the effect that the stuff is refined and good quality. She was a little more hesitant when I mentioned it was vinyl (she thought it was leather), and also said that while a guy in a Versace suit would be hot, that a guy in a suit with designer logos all over it would be awful, regardless the label.

My own opinion is that you're going to collide head-on with some deep seated, primal, bull headed masculine identity that tells a man he should smell like leather and tank oil as opposed to a French cathouse, despite the apparently minor detail (to us) that our feminine company would likely prefer the refined scent of the latter. We stick a knife in one sock, whiskey in the other, hang a dead animal in front of our masculinity, and strut confidently in to the world knowing that we are, in fact, "men and a half" in our kilts. I can only imagine that seeing a designer-logo-emblazoned sporran would elicit an immediate demand for the wearer to surrender his Man Card.

So...for better or for worse...that is my opinion, and that is why I think a sporran made from any logo-bearing fabric--the intent of which is simply to show off the logo and suggest that the wearer has a lot of money, vs good taste which IMHO dictates the absence of a logo--is a bad idea.

Maybe the short version of that is "too blingy". But as much as I might opine that it's a bad idea, I'm not gonna try and stop anybody from doing it, either.

-Sean

[Tiny]

Why not let the fabric stand on it's own.

I'm not sure what kind of fabric this is, but I have pondered fabric covered sporrans, including velvet.

So long as I make no claim that its a LV sporran but simply a sporran made with LV fabric I can see no problem, unless I'm missing something.

[McMurdo]

While Louis Vuitton fabric, in this case vinyl may well be a mark of quality and expense, I would not pursue it for the following reasons. To my mind, a patterned sporran would not look right, I also do not think a vinyl sporran would be able to take the kind of wear a sporran should, I would think it would fall apart much faster than a leather sporran. However I am not a authority If you really want to do then go ahead, however I would not.

[MacLowlife]

I believe there are at least four competing schools of thought on Louis Vuitton:
1) Louis WHO?
2 )Any "signature" fabric is inherently in poor taste
3) If it doesn't come from the factory, it is a fake
4) Using it is OK, so long as you are poking fun at the idea of it

and, oh yeah,

5) It is inherently cool.

Without getting too philosophical here, the whole idea of LV stuff being cool was that it was very well made, expensive because of its quality, and therefore prestigious. If you skip any of those steps, i.e., make something with their fabric, but not their authorization or supervision, you are missing out on the important parts. A medical school diploma doesn't make you capable of practicing medicine- a medical school EDUCATION does.

However, for many people, the use of vast amounts of a trademark image, like as car upholstery, is just fun, regardless of how silly it is, or how far it departs from the original basis for the trademark. If you are going to make it for yourself and then wear it as a joke, it might be a lot of fun. If you are going to attempt to wear it "seriously", i.e., expecting it to confer prestige on you, you may as well give up. The people who will admire you for it will either be people who place value on the wrong things ( snob appeal of mass market status symbols), or people who can't tell a fake from the real thing.

LVMH ( Louis Vuitton Moet Hennesy) owns several whisky distilleries and you would think they might enjoy the cross-promotional benefits of making articles of highland dress, but I don't think they are doing that. If you were to make up a design and send it to them, they might consider it, but I doubt it.

But, to answer your question, LV and Prada started out as luggage makers, just as Gucci and Hermes were harness makers. There is nothing inherently feminine about their larger pieces, which include steamer trunks and large suitcases. I think they had an ad a couple of years ago featuring Mikhail Gorbachev with one of their ( non- "signature" fabric) briefcases. So, it is a piece of luggage, not a handbag.