More than four years ago, I did not care about bags. I used a Nike messenger bag and already thought that I was cool. Then everything changed when I saw this bag from a thrift store being sold for Php 500 (or only about US$ 12) on April 13, 2008, a day after my 23rd birthday.
Almost brand-new J.Peterman Counterfeit Mailbag
I almost did not get it because I was trying to haggle with the seller but she was adamant with the price. I even asked my mother to go back to the store to get it for me because I had earlier stormed out. =D It was no Louis Vuitton but I knew from that moment that it was something special. It was almost brand new and even had a small sticker in front with the price written on it. It was immaculate.
I immediately searched online and saw the product description for this Counterfeit Mailbag on the J. Peterman’s website (the page is no longer available, though). First, I was astounded to see that I got an extremely good deal! A brand-new bag cost US$ 329, about US$ 309 more than what I paid for. Though until now, I still don’t know the rationale behind the “Counterfeit” nomenclature.
(Photo from J. Peterman’s website)
It was interesting to read about the history of the bag, and how it was based on the original leather bags used by the US Postal Service in the 1960s (sauf the zipped pocket and the top handle).
(Photo from thestylecure.com)
Interestingly, the “How to take care of the Mailbag” portion of the website mentioned that the best way to handle it was not to take care of it at all. O_O It even went as far as suggesting to speed up the aging process such as spraying a mist of water and scratching it with fingernails.
(Photo from J. Peterman’s website)
Well, I can’t really forget that one bit about being “rained on“, so for four years, especially during the typhoon season, I use this bag to make it look more antique, distressed and worn. But still, it was not that aged as I hoped it to be. Nevertheless it was still marvelous looking after all these years. This almost indestructible thing was technically my first leather bag.
My J. Peterman Mailbag: four years after
With the extremely bad weather today, I took it out from its dust bag and braved the rain. My mother even quizzically asked me why I was using this bag in this weather. I just answered that it still needed more rain on it!
Black shirt with DIY studded collar, Lanvin belt, tailored skinny pants, 14-hole Doc Martens, J.Peterman Counterefit Mailbag
Yesterday was an almost (all-)Black Monday, but today, I decided to do it all the way as it was a gloomy Tuesday. And besides, the J. Peterman mailbag looked much better in an all-black outfit. These 14-hole Doc Martens worked really well in this rainy weather.
Black shirt with DIY studded collar
Black shirt with DIY studded collar
I have previously modified this black shirt by jazzing it up with some leftover studs from a DIY project I did last December. Just a pop of bling for this somber ensemble.
