North Carolina woman sells 1920s Cartier purse for $7,500 after picking it up for a DOLLAR from online auction site, then discovering its clasp was made with real diamonds
- Chandler West, 29, of Charlotte, bought an antique 1920s Cartier Art Deco evening bag for a $1 in November 2021 in an online estate sale
- When she bought the bag, she had no idea what it was worth or that it held 12 precious stones and it sat in a pile of clothing for more than a year
- A year after buying the item, she discovered it was an antique bag and auctioned it off in February for $7,500
A North Carolina woman had an antique goldmine sitting in a pile of vintage clothing for more than a year before selling it for a whopping $7,500.
Vintage clothing seller Chandler West, 29, of Charlotte, bought an antique 1920s Cartier Art Deco evening bag for a $1 in November 2021.
When she bought the bag, she had no idea what it was worth or that it had 12 precious stones including diamonds and lapis lazuli set into its clasp – with the brand’s iconic name hidden beneath.
‘I just thought it looked old,’ West said in a TikTok video. ‘I was like I don’t know when that’s from, but it looks old, like older than just vintage, like antique level old. So I know it’s worth more than one dollar. And it’s pretty and I liked it so I bought it.’
When she bought it in an online estate auction, no one else had bid on it and the bad image quality of the product didn’t help, but West took a chance, bidding a single $1.
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Chandler West, 29, of Charlotte, bought an antique 1920s Cartier Art Deco evening bag for a $1 in November 2021
She threw the bag (pictured) in a pile of other vintage items for a year before having a chance to research it the old looking item
Without any visible labels, she wasn’t hopeful the bag was worth much of anything, even if she did think the blue stones were real. After consulting a vintage clothing Facebook group, she learned that the French jewelry brand made similar bags in the 1920s and she was advised to check the clasp. Much to her surprise, the brand’s name was engraved underneath the blue stones
‘I remember there was just one picture of it,’ she said. ‘And there weren’t any bids on it, so I was able to get it for $1,’ Chandler said.
‘It sat in a pile of things I just needed to research that I hadn’t gotten around to yet until this year [2022]. Like okay, I’m going to research [the purse] and I’m going to figure out when you’re from and what your deal is,’ she said in a December video.
She first started to research whether the blue stones and diamonds set into the bag’s clasp were real and how much they could be worth.
Although she had her doubts about the diamonds, she did believe the blue stones, lapis lazuli, were the real deal, so she set off to inquire with a vintage collectors Facebook group to see if they could help her identify the bag.
One member told her that the ‘silk jacquard fabric of the bag is inspired by 17th-century Safavid textiles’ and the bag was ‘very popular for evening bags in France in the 1920s.’
The user also told her that French luxury brand Cartier – which is represented by the likes of actors Timothée Chalamet and Lily Collins today – made similar bags in the 1920s and to check the clasp for the brand’s name.
Despite all that, West was still doubtful her $1 purchase, which was missing any kind of label on the inside, could be from the luxury jewelry brand, but she decided to check anyway.
My most 💰💰antique find to date. #antiques #1920sfashion #antiqueclothing #finejewelry
She took the bag to a jeweler to figure out if the stones were real – all 12 were – and was hoping to get an estimate on the bag’s price. She was advised to have an auctioneer estimate the value, which came out to between $3,000 to $4,000
In February, West sold the bag for $7,500 and after paying commission fees, she took home $6,600. ‘Of course, I was over the moon,’ West said. ‘I got that thing for $1!’
Replying to @Kat the rest of the story of my most 💰💰 antique find
To her surprise, engraved on the underside of the clasp just under the blue stones was the name: Cartier.
‘I don’t know why I hadn’t checked the clasp before but I’m not really a jewelry person, I’m a clothes person so looking for a signature on metal hadn’t crossed my mind,’ she said in a follow-up video.
‘After a lot of squinting and flashlight shining, I knew that I had a real Cartier 1920s evening bag on my hands.’
Now that the Etsy seller knew she had her hands on a goldmine, she began researching what other antique Cartier evening bags were selling for, which ranged from $2,000 to $55,000.
In order to fully estimate how much her bag was worth, she took it to a jeweler who determined all 12 of the stones – including the diamonds – were real.
But they were unable to give her an estimate on the bag’s worth as the well-known brand and age of the items were major factors.
While researching other Cartier vintage bags (pictured), she learned they were selling for $2,000 to $55,000
‘[The jeweler] recommended I reach out to auction houses,’ she said in the video. An auctioneer estimated the item was worth $3,000 to $4,000 at auction.
‘Of course, I was over the moon,’ West said. ‘I got that thing for $1!’
She was originally going to sell it on her Etsy shop, but decided against it after she realized she could make a lot more money at an auction.
‘I do sometimes keep vintage pieces that I originally source as inventory if I really fall in love with them. In this case, though, I was not really tempted to do that because as beautiful as the bag is, I knew the large amount of money I would get for selling it would bring me a lot more joy than keeping it would,’ she said.
In February, West sold the bag at Rago Auctions for $7,500. With the buyer’s 26 percent buyer’s premium, the new owner paid nearly $9,500.
After West paid her 12 percent commission fee, she took home a whopping $6,600 – and a good story.
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