Bag Review: Givenchy Antigona Medium Metal Edge in Hazel + Spot A Fake Givenchy Antigona


Call me biased, but the best whatever-special-occasion gift for me is a luxury handbag. Because it's so precious, from the feel down to the scent (especially if it's pure leather) and it's so fine, from the design down to the details. Luxury bags ain't called such for nothin'!

If you're going to celebrate a milestone or any special occasion in your life this month or in the next few months and you are considering purchasing a luxury bag, specifically Givenchy Antigona, then you're in for a treat. I am going to review mine today. :)

Antigona is one of the brand's most famous handbag styles along with Pandora and Nightingale. It was first seen on A-lister celebrities and supermodels, particularly Miranda Kerr, thus it earned the title "Supermodel Bag". Since then, Antigona's rise to stardom became unstoppable-everyone wanted one and it is always flying off the shelves even until now-I asked a friend to buy me one in Paris last November of 2014, but it was always sold out and the new stocks were already reserved even before they arrived in the stores. :p

I digress. Antigona is a modern twist to the doctor's bag: It's sharp, stylish, and unique, yet it remains minimalist and sophisticated. It's a corporate woman's handbag in my opinion because it screams "I mean business", don't you think? :)

The standard style for Givenchy Antigona are the block colors and they come in different textures such as pebbled, glossy, matte, smooth, patent, and lately, rubberized. Sometimes, it comes in limited edition styles such as graphic and animal prints (e.g. 3D Geometric, Snakeskin, and Croc Skin), exotic leather (e.g. Bull), tri-color styles, and leather with metal details like what I have: Givenchy Antigona Metal Edge in Hazel, Medium Size. I got it from a Givenchy store in Dubai via a friend and it retailed at SR 8,200 or around P105,000.00+. Locally, Givenchy Antigona Medium starts at P119,000.00.

Disclaimer: This authentication post is only intended for the featured bag.

More details about this bag, plus find out how to catch a fake one!

This particular style was released in the pre-Fall/Winter 2014 collection as Limited Edition and it only came in two colors: Hazel and Black. Hazel is made from Soft Calfskin and the latter is made from the same material, but has a glossy (but not quite patent) finish, if I am not mistaken.

Here are the dimensions of a medium- sized Givenchy Antigona (taken from bergdorfgoodman.com):

  • 11"H x 12 1/2"W x 8"D; 8"D; weighs approx. 3lbs. 3oz. 
  • Tote handles, 3 1/2" drop; flat, cross body strap; 10" drop
This bag has a very structured and very solid design, and it can definitely stand on its own-it's also stiff and it will bounce back to its original shape just by tapping on its inner walls if flattened. It doesn't get deformed quite easily too, unless you use it every single day and you're quite careless with it.

If your Antigona or the one you're eyeing does not fall under these measurements, it gets deformed easily, and it doesn't spring back into shape, BEWARE! And btw, Metal Edge came in TWO COLORS ONLY: Hazel and Black.

It has a semi- diamond- shaped leather patch sewn right in between the handles and a floating metal brand tag is placed right in the middle of it-I don't really know how they attached the metal tag right in there as I see no stitches, screws, or anything so let's just call it craftsmanship. :D Notice that the pointy portion of the patch falls right in the middle of the handle bases.

The handle base features clean, uniform, tone-on-tone stitching and two leather patches: The bigger leather patch that serves as the base for the handle and a smaller leather patch. The bases have four corners at the bottom parts.

Check out the leather: Soft Calfskin exhibits a semi- veiny and pebbled appearance-these features are all intrinsic to this kind of leather and in no way intended by the manufacturer. As for the feel, it is supple and soft with a semi-matte finish. This leather has a sharp yet lovely smell-this is how my Givenchy Pandora smells like too so I guess it's the brand's signature leather scent! :)

If your Antigona or the one you're eyeing has messy, crooked stitching, stitch is not uniform with the color of the bag, metal tag is crooked, bent, and off- center, and the handle bases' shape doesn't look anything like the one in the photo, BEWARE!

The recent Givenchy Antigona pieces now come with two leather tabs at the base of the bag to protect this area. If your Antigona or the one you're eyeing has these tabs, but they are not identical to these, BEWARE!

I liked this bag because of these metal bumpers-they offered great protection for a structured bag that is very scuff- prone. However, these bumpers added more weight to the bag, around 0.5 or 1 lb., collectively :p 

The Antigona Metal Edge Black, I believe, was launched way before Metal Edge Hazel because it used to have V-shaped bumpers, but Givenchy changed those to this same bumper when they relaunched it together with Hazel last year.


Givenchy had added this nice stitch pattern on the sides of the bag, possibly to break its monotonous look. If your Antigona or the one you're eyeing does not have this stitch pattern or if it has, but the pattern is different than this, BEWARE!

The handles of an Antigona are cable- like as they're stiff, kinda' thick, and hard-they are flexible, but do not fall to the sides or onto each other. They have this solid, clean U-shape as well. 

If your Antigona or the one you're eyeing has flimsy handles, shape is a wobbly U, and they feel slim, BEWARE!

Antigona comes with a shoulder strap, but it is not detachable. Shoulder strap has medium thickness-it's the perfect strap shape in my opinion because it does not slice through my shoulder blades unlike slim straps and it does not slide off unlike thick straps. The shoulder strap of an Antigona is just plain and simple.

If your Antigona or the one you're eyeing either has a slim or thick strap, stitching is crooked, and strap is detachable, BEWARE!

Oh, here are some of the finer details of the Antigona. The strap has two jagged metal buckles on both ends and they are immovable-they're just there for design purposes.

The strap is attached to two bales: A square bale and a U-shaped bale. Both bales are attached to a U-shaped ring.

By the way, Antigona comes in Silver hardware only. I read somewhere that there were limited edition Antigonas in Gold hardware released sometime last year or two years ago, but this information, I have yet to verify. For future reference, Silver is the standard hardware color for Antigona.

If your Antigona or the one you're eyeing has two U-shaped bales or two square bales, ring is square, metal buckles are flat or rounded and they slide up and down the strap, and hardware color is not Silver, BEWARE! BEWARE! BEWARE!

The Antigona has a huge zipper lining with chunky teeth and yet the zipper pull slides on it breezily.

If your Antigona or the one you're eyeing has a zipper lining that does not look like this, BEWARE!

The main zipper pull is a thick leather patch with a hump on the topmost portion. The zipper pull is attached to the zipper base by a U-shaped ring.

If your Antigona or the one you're eyeing has a flat, flimsy zipper pull and the ring is not U-shaped, BEWARE!

Let's go to the inner part of the bag. The lining of the Antigona comes in Black only and material is thick fabric.

If your Antigona or the one you're eyeing does not have a thick, black- colored fabric lining, BEWARE!

ADDENDUM: Some readers mentioned that not all authentic Givenchy Antigona bags have a Black lining. I am not knowledgeable anymore on the new changes and styles of this particular bag so please just check with an authorized retailer about your future concerns. Thank you to all those who notified me about this fact. 
P.S. To those who did so in a rude way, please know that it is possible to correct people without having to be rude. ;)

This bag comes with three compartments: A zippered compartment and two open ones. At the zippered compartment, there is a leather flap sewn at the center with the words GIVENCHY MADE IN ITALY heat- stamped on it. The zipper lining on this compartment is like a smaller version of the main zipper lining and it features a semi- long, flat leather zipper pull attached to a U-shaped ring.

If your Antigona or the one you're eyeing does not have a zippered compartment or if it has, but the zipper pull is too short and not attached to a U-shaped ring, leather flap is off center and has frills on the edges or worse, it's a metal plate instead of leather, and zipper lining does not look anything like the one in the photo, BEWARE!

Here are the two open compartments: The bigger one has a smooth tip while the smaller one has a gartered tip.

If your Antigona or the one you're eyeing does not have two open compartments or if it has, but the compartments don't look anything like these, BEWARE!

Almost through! We're now down to the leather swatch and care booklet. The leather swatch does not come housed in any pouch and the care card is a booklet that is written vertically.

If your Antigona or the one you're eyeing does not come with a leather swatch or care booklet, BEWARE! If it comes with the two, but you got a care card instead of a booklet, BEWARE, TOO!

The dust bag is similar to my Givenchy Pandora's, but the strings on this one are thinner now, possibly a new tweak in Givenchy's accessories.

For reference, here's a Givenchy Antigona replica.

I lack structured bags for work, thus I purchased the Antigona. It's really a gorgeous bag and I believe it will never ever go out of style, but I realized that medium is too huge and bulky. I love luxury handbags, but I'm not obsessed enough to baby them or treat them like human beings, and this bag requires some form of special treatment due to its boxy and stiff structure: I can't commute nor look for a cab in peace when I'm bringing it, it's heavy on its own and gets heavier when you finally put stuff in it, it can't fit in gym lockers, and it eats up too much table space-I should mind it all the time!

Still, the Antigona is a beautiful bag-that, I will not take back. I now realized that the real problem is I chose the wrong size-I should've gone for Small, the perfect size for most people, but this size goes out of stock too quickly. The time I purchased this bag, Small was OOS and I thought that the size difference between that and Medium was not at all significant, but I was wrong. Oh well! That's one lesson learned this time and I learned it very well. :D

Is Givenchy Antigona for me?

Givenchy Antigona is a great corporate bag with lots of space and a trendy spin on the style-I could imagine Prada lovers falling in love with it, especially if they're looking for a bag that looks classy and has edgy twist.

If you are going to purchase Antigona in the near future, heed this advice: Go for Small! :)

Check out my other bag reviews:



Any Givenchy Antigona users here? Share with me your thoughts on this bag on the comments section below this post. :)

Post a Comment

24 Comments

  1. wow! this bag is so beautiful and so sosyal! love it😃💓💓

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  2. I love this bag! x

    x Francesca of http://primpandpaper.com/

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  3. yay another bag review here ms m! investment talaga to ms m =) i just wish i could afford one =)

    i love how detailed your review about this (even the other bags you'd featured here) nakakatakot nga lang yung mga nagbebenta ng fake/imitations online =(

    to be honest okay na po sa akin ang mga tote style na bag (cloth bags) which i can use in the office and as baby bag too =)

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  4. Yup, that is definitely corporate chic. So pretty.

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  5. From the looks of it, it really seems like a sophisticated and high-maintenance bag. And it really looks heavy. When I saw the price, wow, I think I can buy that after 5 years pa. Haha. But I'm not really into bags really. Most of the time, I buy bags when my old ones are broken. And I choose small sized ones, but not super small. The bag needs to fit at least my umbrella, as I cannot leave home without it. :) Anyway, this is such a comprehensive and very informative review. If ever I would buy this one, I know already where to check. Because I don't want to spend much on a fake bag. I would rather spend more on original ones. :) I don't want to pretend that I have originals by buying fake ones.

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  6. The way you say 'beware' honestly sounds so immature and over the top. Your advice seems to contradict itself. You should, in my opinion, stick to reviewing bags and not giving authentication advice as you have no idea what you're talking about.

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  7. Actually, I have the same bag, bought it at Bangkok, all the things you said is the same, as in all same, the only funny thing is that mine is fake. How will I know if yours isn't fake too, are you sure your friend bought you a real one?

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    Replies
    1. Buying counterfeit bags is tacky and immoral. Shame on you.

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  8. Hanna es and Francesca: You're welcome. :)

    Abegaill: Thanks for sharing your insight. Yup, I'd rather buy an unbranded bag than a fake one for a lot of reasons. ;)

    Matromao: Indeed, it is, but I got the wrong size huhu.

    Aviva: Thank you! :D

    Anonymous 1: I don't really get your point when you said that the way I say "Beware" is immature and over-the-top. You can always opt to read someone else's blog if you dislike the way I write. But thanks for visiting anyway. :)

    Anonymous 2: Uhm...yes because he's a friend and he got it from a Givenchy Store? :D

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  9. Hi! Was just wondering, it the medium too big for a work bag? I've been going back and forth on the medium and small and I feel like the small is a better option so wanted to ask as well. Thanks.

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  10. Hey! What a great review and what a GORGOUS bag! I have a question I'm not trying to be a brat or anything but how do you know the black bag at the end of your post is a fake? It looks just liek yours does I think! I am not an expert.

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  11. hi M! Yours is the goat leather right? How's the weight for you? Did you try the calfskin? any difference in weight?

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  12. Anonymous 1: I think it depends on how big is big and how small is small is to you. In terms of style and space, it is a wonderful work bag, but it's just too wide, at least to me. :p

    Anonymous 2: Because I got that photo from a site that sells replica luxury bags. :)

    Anonymous 2: Hello! It's soft calfskin. :) Haven't carried one made from Chevre leather yet so sorry, I can't make a comparison. :)

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  13. I have the medium in this red raspberry color (authentic) and have been eyeing this hazel one for a while. I'm surprised to learn that the metal makes it a pound heavier! My current bag has always been just perfect, weight-wise, and it fits my laptop perfectly. It's become my travel bag and I definitely don't baby it either and it's holding up pretty well. This makes me pause a bit over the hazel with edge...sorry if I missed this part, but have you been able to try a medium regular antigona and compare it to the edge?

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    Replies
    1. Hi Karina,

      Thank you for sharing. Yes, I was able to compare this with a non-edge Antigona; it's a tad bit heavier than the latter, but weight difference between two bags is not that significant. I sold this a few months ago already because size is just too big for me, unfortunately.

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  14. Hi there, Also I have an authentic Antigona purchased directly and the inside is not black so I think that point you make is incorrect. But otherwise great post :)

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  15. This is a very helpful review! Thank you for all the tips on how to spot a fake bag!

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  16. Hi, I got my antigona from Paris in La Fayette, and the lining is not black.. So maybe you'd like to change that point as well? But love your bag and the metal edge!

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  17. The inside of my antigona is not black and I got it straight from givenchy. Change that point, it's missleading.

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  18. Hi, can you add to your review how the serials are stamped at the back of the tag inside the bag? Thank you!

    PS
    GORGEOUS BAG!

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  19. Hi there. This is a very good, thorough review, and I think you give a lot of good advice about differentiating between an authentic Antigona and a replica. A dead giveaway of a counterfeit Antigona is usually found in the Givenchy logo on the triangular fold between the handles. Sadly (or hilariously, depending on how offended you are by replicas), I've seen so many young women confidently carrying an otherwise good replica that they think can pass for the real thing, but the font on the logo is inconsistent, or the lettering is poorly spaced, uneven and/or not centered properly. I do have a small quibble with your post, however: Gold-tone hardware is quite common on the Antigona, especially those made of glazed calfskin. I bought mine in burgundy glazed calfskin from Bergdorf Goodman a couple of years ago, and the hardware is gold. My friend's is black calfskin purchased around the same time, again with gold-tone hardware. I'm told (though have not verified) that the pebbled goat skin almost always sports silver hardware. I like that the interior of this bag is fabric because it lowers the weight of what is already a somewhat heavy bag (especially if carried on the crook of the elbow). I agree that the twill liner doesn't appear to be of the highest quality (in contrast, the twill lining of my Valentino Rockstud trapeze tote is more neatly stitched and finished, fits the bag's interior better and has a better hand-feel, so it seems like less of an afterthought), but I'm not really fazed by the fact that it's textile rather than leather or suede. I just bought a Chanel new medium Boy bag for $5,200 + tax, and it has a fabric lining. I carry this bag daily to work because it's very understated and office-appropriate, so it's also important to me that the interior lining is easy to clean. I went for the medium size even though I'm only 5'2" because I need to carry my iPad and a change of shoes and sometimes files and my water bottle everyday when I go to work. I also travel frequently, and the medium is more convenient as a roomy travel bag. Aesthetically, though, I prefer the small as well.

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  20. Has anyone had issues with the metal for the zipper tarnishing?

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  21. Yes!!! Omg I've been trying to find someone with the same problem! My gold tone has turned into a rusty rose gold colour I hate it!! How about yours?

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