

It’s hard to imagine a handbag market in which most Chanel flap bags aren’t festooned with interlocking CC locks, but until Lagerfeld added them to the bags and spun off the Classic Flap in the 1980s, Chanel’s flap bags bore the logo-free Mademoiselle Lock the 2.55 Flap Bags hold today. The Signature Double CC Lock Didn’t Debut Until the 80s For the first time, it was acceptable for women of considerable social status to carry a bag on their shoulders.

In February 1955 (thus the 2.55 moniker), she debuted the shoulder-carried version and changed handbag history. The 2.55 is the Original Chanel Shoulder BagĬoco Chanel designed her first bag in 1929, but like all the others available to upper-class women during the era, it was hand-carried and cumbersome. There’s also a lot of confusion and misinformation about the bags, as well as their details, differences and origins, though, so we set out to debunk or confirm what we could.īelow, we’ve created a primer, including a handy guide to the differences between the 2.55 and Classic Flap, what makes a bag a “Reissue” and where Coco Chanel got her inspiration for several of the designs’ most iconic details. The Chanel Classic Flap Bag is undisputedly one of the most important accessories in the history of fashion, and its creation, along with those of its 2.55 Flap Bag predecessor and Boy Bag descendent, are filled with historical fashion lore.
