Chanel Lambskin & Goatskin: Which one is right for you?

Dear me, 

I remember the beautiful, naive way you dreamt about your very first Chanel. That excitement was palpable, but you navigated that choice all alone, with no older sister or friend to guide you toward the piece that would truly feel like your own. Now, as your future self, I’d like to share a guide to the modern classics. Take the Chanel 19 bag, one of Karl Lagerfeld’s awe-inspiring final creations. It’s an “It” bag staple, but the heart of the decision comes down to the leather: Lambskin or Goatskin.

The best one for you simply comes down to how you plan to live with it. 

Chanel Lambskin is the tenderness you once thought was naïve

Lambskin is soft. Feather-light. Luxurious in the kind of way that hugs you gently.
Buttery, feather-light, and smooth in a way that almost feels unreal.
Its surface is delicate, plush, cloud-like. 

It’s for the days when you want to feel fragile, not as a weakness, but as a quiet kind of grace.
Days when you’re discovering yourself, still raw, still hopeful.

It has a natural sheen, a refined glow that whispers luxury rather than flaunts it.
Its structure is flexible, unpretentious, unarmoured, just like you once were.

Lambskin ages gently, but it requires care.
It will show scratches.
It will ask for attention.
It will need you to treat it with the same patience you’re learning to give yourself.

And that is exactly what it will teach you:
That softness does not mean weakness.
That vulnerability can still be valuable.
That beginnings, gentle, fragile, hopeful, are worth honouring. 

Holding lambskin is like holding the earlier you: smooth, hopeful, unarmoured, and still so full of heart.
And one day you’ll see that fragility is not a flaw.
It’s the start of every story worth telling.

Chanel Goatskin is the strength you didn’t know you needed

Gentler than harshness, but tougher than innocence. That’s goatskin.
Its texture is pebbled, slightly grainy, and more structured than lambskin.
It holds its shape. It stands firm. It’s not precious, but purposeful.

Goatskin ages beautifully.
It resists scratches.
It survives the weather.
It adapts to daily life without losing dignity.

This leather reflects the version of you that learns to endure.
The one who grows thicker skin without losing her heart.
The one who realises beauty isn’t only in shine, sometimes it’s in survival.

Goatskin is the leather of someone who’s lived a little.
Who’s been tested, doubted, underestimated, and still shows up everyday with quiet dignity.

It ages with you, gaining depth, confidence, and character.

Carrying a Goatskin Chanel is like carrying your resilience on your shoulder.

But what I want you to remember is that,

You don’t have to always be soft.
You don’t have to always be strong.
You don’t have to choose one version of yourself forever.

Some days you’ll need the tenderness of Lambskin.
Some days you’ll lean on the resilience of Goatskin.

Because life, like leather, comes in textures.
In layers and in stories.

And then, one day you’ll look back and see: you needed the smoothness of Lambskin and the toughness of Goatskin.
You needed hope.
You needed grit.
You needed softness.
You needed strength.

So hold on to the Lambskin days when you must.
Lean on the Goatskin days when you must.

And always remember: both you and your leather age with stories worth carrying.
Back then, you didn’t have an older sister to help you choose your first Chanel.
But now, you’re never really choosing alone.

On SWRL, you have a whole circle of besties, women sharing not just their wardrobes, their stories, experiences, advice, and so much more.
So you can try, feel, borrow, and learn before you take the leap.

Because the pieces you love, and the people you share them with, will always shape the stories you tell.

With love,
Shrishti 💗