Because so many celebrities are now embracing the look of wearing vintage clothing and vintage handbags, many every day people from society are doing the same.  We often pattern our actions of what celebrities and other popular people do, and owning vintage pieces is no exception.  When you are looking to buy a vintage handbag, there are some things you should look out for to ensure you are getting what you are paying for.

First of all, you need to look at the handles and make sure that where the rivets are secured does not show any signs of unraveling or tearing of the fabric.  You should also look at the corners of the bags where tearing is common to make sure the sellers have not disguised the damage with shoe polish.  That, by the way, is a popular tactic used by scam artists trying to get rid of damaged vintage leather handbags.

You should also check the detailing to make sure you are getting a true vintage handbag as opposed to something somebody just made and is trying to pass off as vintage.  The detailing of a vintage handbag definitely stands out because of how much emphasis was put on quality back in the day.  The type of buttons, hand finishing, how the lace was applied, the type of embroidery and beading will all help to show you whether or not you are buying a true vintage.

More than likely, a true vintage handbag will have leather lining.  That was the popular type of lining used several decades ago and it should be stitched in as opposed to being loose.  The quality of the leather, stitching and also the type of hardware used are also triggers to help you determine if you are getting a vintage handbag.

And of course, unless you are buying from a credible seller, you should be very wary of knock off vintage handbags because those are heavily sold on the market today.  Now, if you are really not sure about whether or not you are buying a true vintage handbag, try to visit Portero.com, which is a site that auctions vintage pieces, including handbags.  With Portero.com, you can guarantee that all the vintage bags will have a serial number and the features will match those of a vintage piece from the designer.

It is a very tricky market out there when it comes to sourcing vintage pieces, but if you can source them from a credible seller or if you are very good at identifying knockoffs, then you should be okay.

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