The Chanel 2.55 Bag: The Envy of Every Woman

Marie Helene Arnaud with the infamous Chanel 2.55 bag 

Every week at Miss Polly's Vintage Style Blog, I aim to revisit an iconic fashion item or style and outline its history and personal meaning to me. This week, I am going to trace back the famous Chanel 2.55 bag, one of fashion's most iconic and recognisable items next to the Chanel Suit and the Little Black Dress. 

There's something magical about Chanel. Perhaps it is the classical style and substance of the clothing. Maybe it is the legacy behind the clothes, Mademoiselle Coco herself, and her rags to riches tale from the convent to the couture house. Personally, I feel it is the visual aesthetic of each design that oozes what a woman of substance desires: luxury, comfort, sophistication, control.


This is best represented in the famous Chanel 2.55 bag, one of Chanel's most brilliant creations. There have been many variations over the years of this coveted bag, but the classical features still remain: the stitched quilted herringbone patterned surface, the delicate plaited black and silver coloured chain strap, and the iconic interlocking CC on the clasp, a more recent addition. To this day, it remains one of the world's most sought after bag outside of Hermes' Birkin, and one can see why. The 2.55 is so glorious and delicious in its design and aesthetic, possessing smooth feminine contours, women the world over would stab each other with their stilettos to hold one, let alone own one. You can not know envy as a woman until another woman is holding a bag that you desire.


Chanel originally designed the bag in 1955 as a strappier purse, a move away from the traditional clutch which would easily get lost due to activities that needed more urgent attention such as eating canapes, drinking champagne and reading theatre programs (good save Coco, because everyone knows how tricky it is to hold a purse, eat a canape and look stylish all at once). The stitching on the bag giving its classic quilted look was inspired by the quilted coats worn by the boys at the race track, a hark back to her love of horse racing. 


And that's what I love about Chanel: she combined the loves of her life to reflect who she was, remaining true to her art and true to herself.


Check out some of the current 2.55 models:

Classic Black

Coffee with Embossed Logo feature

Patent Red

I think the woman herself said it best: 

“It is the unseen, unforgettable, ultimate accessory of fashion that heralds your arrival and prolongs your departure.”

Touche, Coco.

For more bags, visit Miss Polly's website www.pollyannaproductmall.com.