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Overall, look for symmetry.
Luxury brands take the time to lay out their pieces. For example, the quilting should be centered on a Chanel bag. Look at the back pocket. The quilting should align with the bag it’s sewn to.
Then look at the front flap — the quilting should align on the front. If it is, that’s a good indicator that it’s authentic.
Gucci, for instance, takes the time to align its patterns, which are usually centered. The same is true of Louis Vuitton.
So, look for that alignment. If it’s off-center, don’t even bother.
Hardware
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I know this is a weird thing, but this is something I do to authenticate a piece.
I smell the bag.
Does it smell like leather? In certain cases, you’ll know whether it’s leather when you smell it.
However, if it smells too much like leather, it may also not be authentic.
It depends on the brand. Take, for example, the Hermes Birkin. The way the brand treats the leather gives it an almost perfumed smell — like the luxurious interior of a really expensive car.
But if you smell a bag and it smells like you’re in a boot shop — that’s not good.
For example, for Louis Vuitton vintage pieces, if it smells like Crayola crayons — and I’m not joking here — it is most likely authentic. There’s something about older Louis Vuitton where when it ages, it smells like a Crayola box.
Finishing
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And finally, the screws are one of the biggest giveaways for high-end bags like those from Louis Vuitton, Chanel, Hermes, Fendi, or Gucci.
Usually, they’re flatheads, so that’s what you need to be looking out for. That’s a telltale giveaway you can spot that a mile away.
If you ever see a Phillips-head screw anywhere on a bag, just say, “Nope. No, thank you. I’m done. Goodbye.”