The Chanel 2.55 Reissue is Karl Lagerfeld's faithful re-edition, launched in 2005 for the fiftieth anniversary of the original 2.55, which Gabrielle Chanel created in February 1955 and which gave the line its name. It restores the bag's earliest details: the rectangular Mademoiselle turn-lock rather than the CC clasp, the all-metal woven chain without leather laced through it, and the diamond-quilted flap. The burgundy interior and back slip pocket nod to Coco's own history. It is prized by collectors as the closest thing to the 1955 original.
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You're on the 2.55 Reissue line. Chanel makes four flap lines that look alike but close differently, and the closure moves the price more than the color.
Coco Chanel named it after its own birthday, and gave women back their hands.
Origin
Named for the month it was born
Chanel released the bag in February 1955 and called it the 2.55 after that date. Its real innovation was the shoulder strap. In her words, she was tired of carrying bags by hand and losing them, so she slipped a strap over her shoulder and freed her hands.
The burgundy lining echoes the uniforms of the Aubazine convent where Chanel was raised. The diamond quilting borrows from the jackets worn by racetrack jockeys. The rectangular clasp, known as the Mademoiselle lock, nods to the fact that she never married.
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Medians are our read of recorded resale, not an appraisal. The closure and structure move the price more than the look. The full flap decoder →
Bag
Chanel 2.55 Reissue
Status
DiscontinuediNot currently listed in production in our records — a best read, not the maker's word. Know otherwise? Suggest an edit below.Not currently listed in production in our records — a best read, not the maker's word. Know otherwise? Suggest an edit below.
When Karl Lagerfeld took over Chanel in 1983 he reworked the bag with the now-famous interlocking double-C turn-lock and a chain laced with leather. That version is the Classic Flap. The original clasp lives on in the bag Chanel still sells as the 2.55 Reissue.
Does it collapse and mould to you, or stand on its own?
Slouches
Holds its shape
How it holds up
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Do you have to be careful with it, or can you stop thinking about it?
Baby it
Live in it
Dress code
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Where does it feel right, errands or evening?
Casual
Dressy
Worth it where
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Would you pay boutique price, or only buy this one secondhand?
Only preloved
Worth full retail
Traditional or inventive
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Does the design follow the classic template, or break it?
Traditional
Inventive
How well it holds up
Here, higher is better.
Getting in
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How easily do you get at your things? How secure it is comes from the closure, not this.
FussyEasy in and out
Price value
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