Style Icon | Jane Birkin
Jane Birkin and her basket bag. She was photographed throughout the 60s and 70s carrying a simple woven basket which she carried everywhere from the market to black tie events. She also happens be the namesake of a very luxurious bag from Hermès because of this basket bag. As legend goes, in the early 80s, she met an Hermès executive on a Paris to London flight. Conversation was sparked and a design then sketched between the two of them after the contents of her basket bag had toppled out from the overhead compartment. Hermès would go on to design a bag stylish enough to hold all of her things, and name it after her. Ironically, Jane has been quoted as saying that the Hermès bag is ‘too heavy’ to carry, and she probably still favors her basket.
To me, Jane Birkin embodies the essence of “French girl” style, though she is not even French herself! To make a quotidian item like a basket into a chic, endlessly copied style choice speaks to her originality, a quality innate to Parisian dressing, I think. Looking at images of her from her heyday, her style is ever as relevant and fresh today. I found a maker on Etsy who creates bags pretty darn close to the original. I am very tempted to treat myself…
Jane Birkin Style Elements I Love
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Woven basket bag carried as a purse
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Jeans and tee shirt simplicity
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Oversized silhouettes and borrowed menswear
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Scarf tied as a bracelet
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Understated eveningwear
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Luxe materials paired with neutral basics
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Feminine ruffles and denim
