Deconstruction is a wrap. Moving into production.
It’s a long-form post. The complete journey is split into:
Deconstruction → Production → Finished Product Showcase & Comparison
The deconstruction and analysis phase is officially complete, and production has begun. I want to emphasize that for all my projects, the goal is to 100% restore the ZP (Retail) construction process and use original materials wherever possible. If a specific component cannot be sourced from the original ZP (Retail) suppliers, I will be completely transparent about it during the production log.
Leather: ZP (Retail) Impala Small-Grain Caviar Calfskin
Leather Sample
Once the leather was secured, the reverse engineering officially started.
⚠️ The Tannery: The small-grain caviar calfskin used for this 25 Bag is produced by the Impala Tannery.
⚠️ Background: While Haas is the well-known Chanel supplier (acquired by Hermès), the prestigious Impala Tannery in Tuscany, Italy—with nearly a century of history—is also an exclusive Chanel supplier and was acquired by Chanel in recent years.
The caviar leather for the 25 Bag is produced specifically by Impala.
⚠️ To judge whether a product uses genuine ZP (Retail) leather, you must at least have a basic understanding of the top-tier tanneries. For these major houses, stable material supply is the foundation of production. This belongs to the realm of supply chain management—every major brand has its preferred, exclusive tanneries.
Hardware Components
Blocking Plate (Arch)
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Rough Blank: (Awaiting further processing)
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Material: Solid Copper
Main Label Heat Stamping
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Data Testing: Calibration on scrap leather.
Side Pocket Magnetic Snap (Male) - Support Plate
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Rough Blank: (Only one light grinding stage away from completion)
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Material: Aluminum
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⚠️ Function: These support plates are placed inside the "ears" of the pocket flaps to maintain their structured shape.
Locking Button Assembly
Male & Female Buttons (Rough Blanks)
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Material: Zinc Alloy
⚠️ Technical Detail: Pay close attention to the curvature and the trend of the grooves on the surface.
(Refer to comparison photos with common FK versions to see the difference in geometry)
Functional Demo:
Large Chain Eyelets (Grommets)
Structure/Assembly Demo
⚠️ The male and female components are combined via a screw-in threading system.
Rough Blank
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(Pre-engraving)
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Material: Solid Copper
The Handle Chain (Large Chain)
Rough Blank
⚠️ Material: Copper-Clad Aluminum
Position Reference:
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Total length: 50 links.
⚠️ About Copper-Clad Aluminum Chains:
The ZP (Retail) chain uses copper-clad aluminum for one reason: Weight Reduction. In every major luxury brand's catalog, all oversized/thick chains utilize this material to ensure the bag isn't excessively heavy.
⚠️ Rough Blank Precision: Same Link, Same Length
If you want to achieve 1:1 consistency, the chain is an incredibly difficult component. The difficulty lies in making every link result in the exact same total length.
The total length of a chain isn't determined by the outer length of a link, but by its inner diameter.
If each link's inner diameter differs by even 1mm, a 50-link chain will be 5cm off. To make the chain identical to ZP (Retail), the gauge and twist of the copper-clad aluminum wire must be 100% consistent. This requires extreme precision.
(Simply put: making a chain is easy; achieving this level of precision is extremely hard).
Weight Test:
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Measuring 10 links at a time.
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⚠️ Core Philosophy: Same Process, Same Material. My products focus on identical materials and construction—including mold design—not just "looking similar."
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This is why this chain is: Same Link, Same Length, Same Weight.
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Most other factory use substitute materials, leading to chains that are either the wrong length for the count or have significant weight discrepancies.
Drawstring Chain (Small Chain)
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Rough Blank
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Material: Solid Copper
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Link Count: 117 links.
Body Grommets (Rolling Eyelets)
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Rough Blank
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Material: Solid Copper
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Quantity: 16 pieces total.
Shown as the eyelet without the washer
Side Pocket Magnetic Snaps (Female)
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Component Structure: Demonstrating the assembly.
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Material: Solid Copper Shell (Rough Blank) and Backplate.
Plating & Distressing Tests
⚠️ Special Notes on Plating:
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Both large and small chains feature a distressed finish, reaching a "Worn Gold" (破金) state.
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After the worn-through distressing, the large chain surface is sealed with a transparent protective layer (Lacquer/Glaze) as shown in the photos.
Small chains
Large chains
Prototyping
First Round Prototype: Paper pattern and data testing. Some substitute materials were used here to verify dimensions.
Blocking Plate (The "Arch")
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Rough Blank vs. Polished Blank
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Material: Solid Copper
(Showing the precision after polishing)
Side Pocket Male Snap Component
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Pre-finish Rough Blank
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Material: Solid Copper
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Analysis: Multi-angle observation of the groove curvature and surface flow.
⚠️⚠️⚠️ The Internal Stabilizers (The Soul of the Bag)
I. The Philosophy
Leather is the face; the stabilizers (interfacing/reinforcements) are the soul. They are like the skeleton and muscles of a human—they are the core of a handbag. It is the stabilizers that determine a bag’s posture and "vibe."
II. The Complexity
The 25 Bag is the most complex Chanel bag I have ever deconstructed and developed.
⚠️ Without a full teardown, it is impossible to understand the original construction or restore the internal structure. While it looks simple on the outside, the interior contains 80 individual stabilizer pieces (excluding leather, lining, and hardware). The structure utilizes a "frame support" system, which proves Chanel’s exquisite craftsmanship and rigorous mechanical design.
If you don't have a concept of this: A pattern maker can mimic the exterior look easily. But without knowing the exact placement and material of these 80 pieces, the mechanical support will be different. This results in the bag feeling "off" or looking awkward—this is why most factory bags feel wrong.
Even if a factory does a teardown, they often "simplify" the structure by reducing the number of pieces to save labor and costs. They also swap premium materials for cheap substitutes.
⚠️ This is common market practice.
Bags made this way are usually very "stiff" and "rigid." Newbies might think it looks neat, but for ZP (Retail), that’s considered "dead." The ZP (Retail) should be "dynamic" and "alive."
III. The Timeline
Doing it right takes time. For the 25 Bag, the more components (80 stabilizers), the more steps in the process, and the longer the production time. This is why many of my bags take about a year to develop. Excellence requires patience.
⚠️ The following technical details are things most factories simply cannot do. I'll let you think about why.
⚠️ Classification 1: By Structure
The 80 individual pieces are categorized as follows:
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Side Gussets x2: (31 pieces per side = 62 pieces)
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Front/Back Panels x2: (6 pieces per side = 12 pieces)
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Bottom Panel x1: (4 pieces)
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Leather Tab x1: (2 pieces)
Total: 80 pieces.
Side Gusset Breakdown:
I’ve divided the side gussets into 6 sections for clarity:
1-Internal "Ear" reinforcement
2-Side edge binding
3-Side flap surface
4-Side flap buckle support
5-Side pocket (Internal/External) interfacing
6-Side external pocket support
Total per side: 31 pieces.
⚠️ Classification 2: By Material
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Italian TECNO GI "Talin": 33 pieces
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Italian LYLIANE Microfiber: 15 pieces
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Mesh-coated Silk Cotton: 10 pieces
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Italian Large Grain Fiber: 3 pieces
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Italian SALAMANDER Regenerated Leather: 9 pieces
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Italian Sponge/Foam: 4 pieces
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Italian Reinforcement: 4 pieces
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Italian Fiberboard: 2 pieces
Total: 80 pieces.
⚠️ PS: Within these categories, there are different thicknesses and specs. To keep it simple, I haven't listed every sub-specification, though they are all distinct based on their role in the bag.
Lining
The 25 Bag uses the same lining as the 22 Bag. Currently, we cannot order the ZP (Retail) rolls, so I have developed this material from scratch to match.
Side Pocket Magnetic Snap (Male)
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Rough Blank
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Material: Solid Copper
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Engraving: Laser engraved (Same as ZP (Retail))
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Plating Test: Verifying the aged/distressed gold finish.
Locking Button
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Plating Test
⚠️ Finishing: After plating, a protective anti-oxidation glaze (Lacquer/Anti-tarnish coating) is applied.
⚠️ The Locking Pin (Critical LC Point)
⚠️ This is a massive, core authentication detail.
⚠️ The Structure: The head of the pin features a "Stepped" (Staircase) structure, as shown in the photos.
⚠️ Effect: Because of this stepped structure, when the pin is installed, there is a recessed/void feature in the center.
⚠️ The Call-out: Most other factories use pins without this stepped structure, resulting in a "filled-in" look in the center.
FK Batch Comparison:
Production is moving forward. I will update you as soon as there is more progress.