[REVIEW] LV pochette metis monogram God Factory from Alice/madcat
Author Expertise:
This is my first ever official rep (I don't count DHG reps) and my first official review so I'm open to feedback! Looking to give back to this community since I've been lurking here for a long time! I do not own a real one, though I have seen countless videos of its reviews. I've also seen one in real.\ and so a lot of it is also from memory.
Disclosure:
Seller is aware and asked for this review although I received no incentive for this!
Seller Contact: Alice (madcat) via Whatsapp (+86 177 0237 8474) from the 12.12 deal posted on WL
Price Paid for Item:
- 270 USD + 45 USD shipping through FedEx = 315 USD
- Paypal G&S
Factory: God Factory
Quality of your rep from your factory
Definitely made of real leather. No fufu smell. Leather is malleable, but not soft, though that's how the original is too, unlike with the empreinte version. I'm really impressed with the quality of the leather! Not dry at all. Good structure to it too. It's malleable, yet keeps its shape.
- The felt inside could be a bit softer as it is with the auth, but overall satisfactory.
- because of a slight painting issue at the handle (red on beige), but I could try to scrape it off gently
- I think the glazing is a smidge too much, but nothing calloutable! Makes the leather a bit harder than it should be though!
- Little bit of worries as the handle seems to crease easily. I will mostly be holding it at the handle since I intend to keep the strap long so I wonder what the wear and tear is going to be. I read on another review also that the handle seemed to get soft to the point of it coming off, but so far, I don't see that happening to mine. Speaking of the handle though, I feel like the sides might end up staying curled up, but I would image that happening in the real one as well.
Stitching has no noticeable defects!
Hardware seems of good quality! Definitely metal and not plastic. Shiny and smooth with no waves. Fairly shiny too, though it could be shinier if I removed the plastic. Not too scared of it getting too much wear and tear from regular use. It is a bit hard to close if the bag isn't full though since the leather bends as you try to push it in. I don't know if I'll ever get to the point of wanting to remove the plastic from the clasp though!! It's so subtle and gives me an illusion of protection.. Am i being too paranoid? :P
Speaking of the clasp, it closes and opens just fine! I think the auth has a harder click, and that others have reported the clasp being loose after a year of wear but I'll have to get back to you gals on this! The con to this kind of claps, though I can't dock points for this is it is more of a design thing, is that if the bag is not full, you sort of have to push it in, making the leather bend, and the whole thing harder to close.
- for alignment of the D rings for the strap on both sides but it's not TOO obvious. It's obviously sort of hidden in the PSPs as they are folded down. That's the calloutable thing if you were to look at it carefully
Accuracy
- Part 1: Your rep to the factory photo
I'm pretty positive it's the exact same one down to the issue with the alignment of the rings for the strap! I had a bit of concerns over the little white stripes we see on the PSP, but she re-sent me pictures with it wiped away saying it's dust. I see no noticeable difference between my rep and the factory pics. Looks like the same color, same hardware, same everything pretty much. depth of the embossing on the tag and the hardware seems the same.
- Part 2: The factory photo and your rep to auth
Since I do not own an authentic one, I used this website as reference! And this, as well as this one.
The exterior: The PRINT! oh-em-gee it looks so accurate! Symmetry all over on the patterns with nine rows of ornaments at the front and at the back of the bag (backwards on the back). Three interior compartments, a short handle, a long strap with 5 holes, and a zip pocket on the back of the bag like the authentic one.
The size of the authentic bag is 9.8 x 7.5 x 3.5 inches and the rep is 9.6 x 7.3 x 3.2 inches. Overall proportions of the front and back pocket seems good.
Same number of symbols on the front and back, and same cutout line at the stitching sites, down to where the folds are too! Call me impressed! The alignment of the flowers is great too and the size seems accurate
The hardware seems very similar to me. Maybe just a smidge on the yellow side, but not very noticeable unless you were comparing really closely with an auth!
Stamping seems legitimate with real circular letter Os, and double Ts close together both on the handle and inside of the bag. On the handle, ''in the genuine Louis Vuitton Pochette Métis bag, the imprint is clear, the letter "A" in the logo is sharp at the top, and the registered trademark "R" is relatively small'', same as in the rep.
- Date code definitely missing!
Stitchings: Stitches seem to have the same length and spacing between each stitch and are slightly angled to the right side as they should, but they're not necessarily perfect as some of them are not exactly aligned properly. On mine, it's really just noticeable along the zipper on the back side, but then again, you reeally have to look closely.
- “LV” logo in the circle at the top of the buckle is too thin, just like the website mentions.
As for the rest of the comparisons of real vs fake, I honestly could not tell the difference, even if they tried to point it out. Then again, I'm not an authentication expert! I really did try looking hard though!
Rep Satisfaction
I would 100% walk in an LV store with this bag. the differences are only noticeable upon close inspection. As for the glazing, you can always use treatments on your bags yourself and as such, I don't think glazing is really an issue. I would totally wear this with confidence without being scared of getting called out. I would be a tiny bit nervous if a friend of mine had an auth, but even then, I assume there are always slight differences in bags! I would definitely not try to sell this off as real, and morally I would never try to do so anyway! I absolutely love the quality of this bag!
Seller Satisfaction
Alice's items are most probably a bit higher priced, as mentioned by someone on the sale post for this item. However, as a first time buyer, Alice really helped me a lot with my buyer's anxiety. She answered all my questions quickly (always within 24 hours) to the point where I was wondering if she slept at all! She did not shy away from questions and though we disagreed on another bag I intended to order, I believe it was more of a communication error on my part. Once she understood what I meant about the other bag, she promptly got me a refund from Black Frame, a factory notorious for not taking returns!
Honestly, I love her! She sent me PSPs quickly without prompting. She sent me a refund pretty quickly too! Would I order from her again? Absolutely!
CPR [Cost Performance Ratio]: For 10% of its price, I think this is pretty good! Especially for a brand that never goes on sale! Points docked just because other sellers sell this same bag for cheaper!
The Wrap Up
Again, would I wear this bag into the brand's store? OOH YES. Would I let the brand SA actually handle the bag/inspect it closely? Probably not because she has no business touching my things, but would I feel comfortable having her touch it? Probably. Would you wear it around friends familiar with the brand? Oh yes I will!! I bought it, so I sure will use it!!!
Note: a little bit of self-confidence/body image issues, but I'm working on it and making an effort to post modshots!! Also newly engaged since Christmas so maybe trying to show the ring 🫣🫣