Amazona by Loewe. Photo provided to China Daily

Stand out with style

'Mystery' jewelry

The greatest selling point of the Amazona is how it is as perfect on the inside as it is on the outside. In fact, the interior is of such good quality that it would be what other luxury brands use on the outside. The leather you see on the outside and feel on the inside are one and the same because the bag is unlined, one side of a 0.7-mm thick piece of lambskin being of the softest suede and the other of the smoothest nappa.

Visually, the Amazona already has a lot going for it. Historically, it is a game-changer that fashion insiders acknowledge. It is known to be the first flexible handbag and was a radical change from boxy and formally structured bags of that time. It was soft, lightweight and supple but structured enough to be practical and elegant. It stood alone in more ways than one. What made it stand out was that the practical elements of the bag not only contributed to its construction but also to its iconic design. It has that rare quality in fashion: Function is the design and vice versa.

The style signifier of every Amazona is the contrasting leather square patches on the bottom of the bag and its handles, and the leather bindings on the seams. The patches on the base and handles are to reinforce weight-bearing areas of the bag. The leather bindings are meant to seal and protect seams that hold the unlined bag. Done in a contrasting color, they serve to outline the shape of the bag, too.

An unlined bag is more difficult to make than one with a lining because construction techniques have to be seamless and almost invisible. A padlock and key pouch which is found in most leather goods from luxury brands is also a feature of this bag as a design and security feature.

The anagram, a square icon with four letter Ls in stylised script, was introduced in 1974. Today, el cangrejo (the crab), as it is called in Spain, is still branded by hand into every Amazona and other leather goods, using a machine that is more than 100 years old.