Already special as they come, Louis Vuitton bags take your bag experience further with their wide array of offerings to custom-make your piece with special exotic skins. Here comes the Louis Vuitton Exotic Skins caravan, a showcase bringing a unique experience and collection of high-end bags in precious skins exclusively for their local clients here in Manila. They have your familiar Louis Vuitton bag silhouettes but upgraded with finishes like crocodile and ostrich leather.

The Twist Mini in Black Crocodilian Leather

Crocodilian skins are exclusive and precious materials used with the finest Louis Vuitton’s craftsmanship. The process of creating a bag from which require specialised processes and care, giving careful attention at every stage. Crocodile skin can be sensitive so utmost handling is surely needed to craft them into bags.

The savoir-fare of a Petite Malle

Louis Vuitton selects only the finest skins as soon as they are tanned. The craftsmen who handle the pieces ensure that the beauty of the skin is highlighted and goes well with the chosen bag silhouette. But the journey of a bag in exotic skin isn’t as linear as that. Crafting such a bag is an adventure. The colors are meticulously adjusted until obtaining the right tone and deepness. Many of these distinctive and innovative bespoke finishes are unique to Louis Vuitton. A landmark treatment called Fusion that has already become a Louis Vuitton signature is the brushing in of lines of color to create a subtle lateral striped effect.

The Petite Malle in Bordeaux Crocodilian Leather

Coming up with such a prized selection of bags comes with certain responsibilities. The Abbaye Vendôme workshop, which mainly produce leather goods from precious leathers, are the most concrete expression of the high standards that the House applies in its supply chains. By the end of 2022, 100% of the crocodile leather used to manufacture Louis Vuitton bags will come from certified farms, in particular by the Crocodilian Standard. The House thus favors the most respectful supply chains for the maintenance of local biodiversity, while relying on the very strict regulations governing the marketing of these precious leathers, CITES (Convention on the international trade in species of fauna and wild flora threatened with extinction). Responsible and traceable fashion is truly part of the House’s principles.

The parts that make up a Petite Malle in Crocodilian Leather

The Philippines is lucky to be the second country in Southeast Asia, following Singapore, to bring this unique Exotic Caravan to the local clientele. Over 50 bags are on display at the Louis Vuitton Exotics pop-up in Ore Central Building, Bonifacio Global City, from June 23 to 29, 2022, where clients can book a private appointment to explore the exclusive collection. You can also choose from a variety of exotic skins and finishes to create a custom-made bag; another specialized service exclusively available at the event.

The Louis Vuitton Exotics Caravan here in Manila

Here are some of the new pieces available in this collection:

RAINBOW

Louis Vuitton offers this new finish, Rainbow, which refers to the multiple colors of the rainbow and to the natural precious gemstones of fine jewelry. The colors are precious, and their intensity varies with the light of the sun: a gradient appears from the soft and luminous orange in the center to a fuchsia pink, to beautiful shades of purple and to deep ocean blue on the sides.

PRESTIGE

Another new finish for exotic skins, the Prestige is characterized by the multiplicity of sophisticated colors displayed on the crocodilian skin. This finish revisits the famous Misty Purple (Fall 2021) with a new palette of seasonal colors while remaining faithful to the artistic technique of the latter.

The colors and the patterns are inspired by the famous Pointillism artistic movement: artists like Seurat, Signac and Van Gogh used to apply small strokes or dots of color to a surface so that, from a distance, the colors visually blended together. The mix of colors and the gold, cherished by the designer, are also inspired by the minerals and their changing colors depending on the reflect of the sun shining on them.

DENIM

Echoing the Cruise denim animation is the Denim finish. Each scale of the crocodilian skin is decorated with the different shades of the Denim blue. The finish draws its inspiration from the classic raw faded jeans fabric. Just like the jeweler who transforms natural raw gemstones and minerals into line jewelry, the designer has wanted to elevate the unrefined jeans to its finest form - Denim on crocodilian skin. This desirable mix of colors makes the finish both precious and elevated but also fresh and casual like Denim, perfect for Summer season.

AURORA

A new color animation of this eye-catching exceptional finish is offered on Crocodile skin: Pink Silver Aurora. Inspired by the breathtaking 'Aurora Borealis', the new pink Aurora finish celebrates a rare and exceptional phenomenon, often described as the dance of colors in the sky. The constant changing colors bring a magical effect on the crocodile skin. Depending on how you look at the skin, the colors will shine differently, and the changing effect will get lighter or stronger.

PINK RAYS

A new gradient exceptional finish is offered on Crocodile skin: Pinky Rays. Inspired by a candy sky emerging at dawn, the gradation evokes the enchanting moment when the first rays of light shily emerge through white sky, creating a contrasted mix of pink and while. The subtle color gradation, unique to each piece, creates a diffused glow while the high shiny finish beautifully reflects and captures the light on the leather that blends perfectly with the Crocodile skin.

The soft white color, represented in the center of the finish, gives away to luminous pink shades, which are present on the interscales and on the sides of the skin, thus creating this effect of gradation.

For the first lime, rose gold hardware is used to adorn this finish. Being a first for Louis Vuitton, it is relevantly introduced on the iconic Capucines model and on this pink-shaded finish for a harmonious mix.

Louis Vuitton in the Philippines is at Greenbelt 3 and Solaire Resorts and Casino. The Exotics Caravan runs from June 23 to 29 at Ore Central Building in Bonifacio Global City.

Art by Raff Colmenar

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