Pre-owned Chanel

Chanel is the Paris house founded by Gabrielle Chanel. Start with the Boy. It is a boxy flap with hard edges and a heavy chain, and you wear it across the body on an ordinary day as readily as on an evening. The body has hard corners, and the chain is heavy in the hand.

On a used Boy, look at the chain and the push-lock clasp before anything else. The plating rubs first at the edges of both. Then turn the bag over. Quilted leather flattens where it has rested against the body, and the corners and base show rubbed leather first. Open it and check the lining for ink marks, pen holes and a seam that has started to sag. Each Kove page describes this wear piece by piece, and where a laboratory document exists the page says so.

The other Chanel lines at Kove each do a different job. The Classic Flap is the quilted evening bag that stands for the name, and the 19 is its slouchy cousin, with a larger quilt and a softer look on the shoulder. The Gabrielle pairs a rigid base with a soft body and a double chain, so you can carry it on the shoulder, across the body or on the back. The Wallet on Chain is the small flap for cards, phone and keys, and the Coco Handle is the top-handle flap with a detachable chain, so you carry it by hand. The Vanity is the structured case that stands on its own, and the Deauville is the canvas tote for shopping and travel.

You buy a pre-owned Chanel bag on its condition, so read the wear notes on the Kove page before you read the price. Each piece at Kove carries its final published price.