Le Tanneur is a French heritage brand making beautiful, handcrafted bags. They’re built to last — and they better, at these price points: not designer level but not a whimsical buy for most people, either.
Here’s five things you need to know before shopping the brand, and which bags offer the best return on investment.
1. The Emilie Is the Brand Winner….
The Émilie (with double flap, obviously, the best $30 you’ll spend on the entire website) is perfection: structured, elegant, and witty. The tan brown color, with contrast stitching, reminds me so much of my first-ever high-end bag purchase: a Mulberry Bayswater.
There is a style of jetsetter traveling without luggage (the ultimate luxury lol) and with a single handbag, with many pockets, and in each of those pockets is something magical: a passport, a painting, a sewing kit, a perfect small bag of Sour Patch Kids. A bag should help us have an incredible day (which is why Faraway Places shall forevermore remain a bucket bag-free zone.) The Émilie helps me have a better life, by keeping me organized and by being a beautiful little object, right there on my shoulder. It elevates as it goes and makes jeans and a tee ten times more stylish than they’d otherwise be.
Fast facts: The Émilie comes in two sizes: medium and small (I love a small bag — see my Milo mini — but prefer the medium here.) My choice for color is the aforementioned tan brown. The medium comes in six additional colors, including a natural canvas and smooth leather that’s so pretty I literally said “oohh” the first time I saw it. The small comes in two more colors, including aloe green and burnt orange, and most alluringly, a gorgeous raffia and black leather. It’s the sleekest use of raffia I’ve ever seen in a French handbag line. (It’s also the Sézane-iest bag in the bunch — better than their raffia collection, but certainly in a league with their more whimsical choices, like the Vintage Milo.)
2. But It’s Not the Only Great Bag
The small Juliette hobo feels like a leather bracelet (derogatory). The Elena looks like a Nordstrom Rack bag with top-quality materials, and the Louise doesn’t feel special enough to me to justify the cost.
But the Emie? The Emie is gorgeous. The Emie is what the coolest character on Industry should be wearing. The Emie is supple and soft and quite large: 15.7″ X 11.8″ X 5.5″, which means you can get a hardcover of War and Peace in there along with a couple Ouai body mists (you never know). It is, most crucially, a stylish work bag that would transition with ease into less corporate spaces: a classroom, a restaurant, a date.
It is more feminine than it needs to be, and the leather’s so soft you just want to press your cheek against it. For this one, I want the maxi size — going big or going home — in ebony brown, with leather metal.
3. Let’s Talk About One More Great Bag: The Pia
The Pia reminds me of a cross between a Chloe saddle bag and Sézane’s Victor, in all possible ways.
4. You Can Make An Appointment in Paris For a Personalized Bag
Head to their “Sans Couture” studio in the 9th for a custom-ish bag (€550) or wallet (€150), with your choice of colors and other personalization elements. Available in French or English! I tried to make an appointment from the US but on clicking on the link to book a time slot was rerouted to the homepage — not sure what the problem is there. By selecting the French site, I was able to access the booking calendar, which had times available Tuesday through Saturday as early as the following week. Quite cool! They also have leather crafts workshops there: “Guided by our leatherworker, you’ll discover the traditional techniques of the craft and leave with a piece made by your own hands.” These are currently offering a mini-class in the idiom “victime de son succès” — a victim of its own success, or currently sold out.
5. Rankings! Le Tanneur versus….
Le Tanneur vs Sézane
Points to Le Tanneur for materials and craftsmanship, but ultimately Sézane bags win for personality ‘n’ pizzazz. Le Tanneur is sleeker, Sézane is cooler. Sézane is cheaper. Edge to Sézane, but the Émilie and Emie are up there with Sézane’s best, and the Émilie with raffia is better than the whole of the Sézane raffia experience.
Le Tanneur vs Fleuron
Fleuron is more feminine, at least with pieces like the Hortensia. Pricing is extremely equivalent. The best Le Tanneur bags are more distinctive than the best Fleuron bags. Edge to Le Tanneur.
Le Tanneur vs Strathberry
These are…very equivalent bags! Even if Strathberry is Scottish, not French. Strathberry’s Mosaic bag (specifically: tan with vanilla stitch) is f-ing beautiful — as beautiful as the Émilie. This is a toss-up dependent totally on aesthetic preference. Tiniest edge to Le Tanneur as their Emilie with raffia touches is superior to the Mosaic Nano with same.
Le Tanneur vs Polène
Polène a touch cheaper, and with more oddball designs (non-derogatory) (I want the Tonka). Materials quality and craftsmanship feel higher with Le Tanneur. Bag-for-bag I’d stay with Le Tanneur, but Polène is quite strong.
Le Tanneur vs DeMellier
I read recently that Kate Middleton loves her DeMellier Hudson bag (size small), and it all makes sense: DeMellier is English, French seeming, trendy adjacent but ultimately pretty classic. Less emphasis on craft, more on fashion. Edge to Le Tanneur!
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