Vintage Hermes Wool Jacket

[Helen Siwak]

Hi Everyone,

Tonight at Salvation Army they had a cherry red wool double breasted jacket with flat gold button with script H on them. The label is Hermes and it matches the 1980/90's label in the label directory. It is priced $199. I am going to go back tomorrow and look at it closer. What should I be looking for to authenticate this jacket? I looked on eBay and other sites but did not find anything close to this jacket nor any with the same buttons.

Any advice?

Thanks, Helen

 

[Circa Vintage Clothing]

Hi Helen,

I would be cautious: it needs to be appraised by an expert. If I were you, I'd ask at the Salvo's if they have any information about the provenance, just in case they know where it came from. Not that a reputable source is a guarantee against a designer fake but it might help you feel more confident.

You could look for couture finishing and quality fabric, but some fakes are very good quality. There are no guarantees, I'm afraid.

 

[Helen Siwak]

I went back that evening and the coat was gone. Someone had bought it. The woman behind me in line was also asking about it. Word had really gotten around. I remembered that the jacket had no lining, that it was red wool on the inside with these 'floating' pockets with two rows of white stitching around the pocket and a strap holding them in place. Strange. Oh well I guess I will never know unless it pops up again - 7 day return policy - and if it does I know it is not real!

Thank you, Helen