Louis Vuitton Luggage: The Only Way to Truly Travel in Style

Perhaps I should have entitled this article "Leave it to Louis", a broad and somewhat unkind reference to the French design house Louis Vuitton. Very recently, they presented their newest line of travel accessories, "Le Voyage". The line includes full-sized trunks, carry-on bags, a sizeable number of suitcases in a variety of shapes, sizes and fabric, wardrobes, golf bags, duffle bags, and even toiletries and cosmetic bags. The catalog itself comes pretty close to what might be considered a work of art: matte finished and beautifully rendered photographs in shades of dark brown, dusk and even midnight blue hues, with over a dozen professional models, all of whom appear to be suffering either from intestinal discomfort or delayed airline flights (possibly both). They are uniformly young and gorgeous, the women with cheekbones so high and so sharp that you could slice paper on them, the men with the most well-defined chins in the industry, appearing to be darkly brooding behind their (LV) sunglasses. Interestingly enough, most of the new pieces in the "Le Voyage" line are photographed individually on each page. Occasionally, the line itself takes over: on the third or fourth page, there are nine separate pieces of luggage sitting by an empty runway (airplane, not catwalk). At first glance, my thought was "Wow! That must be over $50,000 worth of luggage right there in that picture!" Actually, with the price for the custom-made wardrobe alone at $32,200, I was somewhat underestimating their total price. All together, those nine pieces of LV luggage added up to $66,600 (plus tax). It was somewhat gratifying to learn that the $32,200 wardrobe (their largest trunk) was individually 'custom made' for customers. Good to know that it wasn't a 'stock piece'!)

What is it about our fascination and desire for anything and everything Louis Vuitton? They are purveyors not only of luggage, of course; their gorgeous leather handbags have been coveted by women of high taste and high incomes for many years. But a handbag alone does not a well-dressed male or female traveler make. LV has branched out these days. They now offer sunglasses (the Tonga, in acetate and aluminum) for $525, a cotton trench coat for $2,290, cotton pants and cotton shirts for $430 and $445 respectively. There's also a somewhat smallish wool monogram rug available for $900. Wool pants can start in price at $1,150, a cashmere wrap dress sells for $2,020. (A cashmere/wool blend is priced at a more reasonable $1,890.) A LV watch can range in price from the Tambour Automatic, with an alligator band, for $2,920 to the Speedy Automatic Chronograph at $5,500, up to the Tambour Automatic Diving Watch, with a rubber strap (the horror!) and an 18K pink gold casing, a lofty $18,000. (For much of America, the price of that watch could very well be the amount of down payment required on their next home.)

Looking for an original Louis but not necessarily leather? There's a yellow gold charm bracelet on the table at $7,850 (it's quite pretty). There's also the Aeroplane charm for fans of flight, with both yellow and white gold plus diamonds, priced at $3,150. (Bear in mind that this is not a bracelet, it is a charm.) There's also a cute envelope charm in solid yellow gold priced at $3,250, as well as a trunk charm for those high-flying, well-traveled and well-heeled folks that's $4,000. A small Claus ring will run you a cool $2,370. And like every other house of high fashion, don't forget LV's place in the world of first-rate footwear. Men's loafers in calf leather cost $495, and don't forget: there's also a shoe care kit, in monogrammed canvas, that you should also buy for $630. Women's Beatrix pumps go for $585, but don't overlook the Krista t-strap pumps in velvet, fashioned from glazed calf and lizard leather, that will set you back $1,330.

I honestly have no idea how my name ended up on Louis Vuitton's mailing list for catalogues. I have never owned an authentic LV. (I have, however, seen more than my share of knock-offs, especially handbags, totes and wallets. Just walk down the side streets of Manhattan for a day. Unusually jittery men will tap you on the arm or should to mumble "Louis Vuitton? Louis Vuitton?" to you, and unwrap a table full of imported LV fake bags, scarves, and heaven knows what else.) It is illegal to sell a designer knockoff in my home state, as well as in New York state. Apparently having not much else to do, the federal government is cracking down on the (mostly Chinese imported) designer 'replicas' or 'replikas' that flood the larger cities. Some of these replicas look amazingly real, but don't be fooled. You get what you pay for. If an original LV carry-on bag sells for $3,000, what do you think you're getting if you pay $50 for one? There are actual web sites that help you discriminate against buyers who are selling items that they claim to be LV. Ebay has a very knowledgeable one posted to the left side of the screen when you search for "Louis Vuitton" on their web site; it's worth the read. These days, I'm at the point where I'm suspicious of most "Louis Vuitton" bags that I see women carry. If the woman ahead of me at the grocery store is toting her "Louis Vuitton" shoulder bag, but also sporting Keds, an inexpensive cotton top, poorly fitting polyester slacks, and is badly in need of having her roots touched up, I am more than somewhat suspicious about her bag's origins.

To be blunt, I think that the house of Louis Vuitton makes absolutely stunningly beautiful leather goods. Continuing to be honest, I can think of several dozen other ways to spend $3,250 rather than on a solid gold charm for a bracelet. Am I the only one out there who feels that if you can't afford the 'real deal', it's best not to 'replicate' it? The media shouldn't make us feel less than adequate or successful based upon what logos we sport...