Jane Birkin, Style Icon and Namesake of the Hermès Bag, Ensured Her Legacy of Fashion and Charity Will Continue

Though she was known for her effortlessly chic style, Jane Birkin dedicated much of her 76 years to efforts of a different nature — social justice.

The singer and actress, who died on July 16, used her time, wealth and influence to aid myriad causes, leaving behind an intertwined legacy of fashion and charity far bigger than even the most overstuffed handbags in her collection.

Though the British-entertainer-turned-style-icon’s status as a French “it” girl is often described as peaking — or at least cementing — in the 1960s and ‘70s, her unique approach to fashion was inspiring new audiences even in the final months of her life.

Earlier this year, TikTok videos with hundreds of thousands of likes show users “Jane Birkin-ifying” their bags — emulating the way Birkin made her bags "another extension of her person" by ornamenting them with ribbons, beads and other knickknacks.

Although most participants in the maximalist trend weren’t using actual Hermès purses, they were explicitly inspired by the way the actress decked out her own Birkin bags — which were named after her by the French design house.

Over a decade ago, the "Je T'Aime... Moi Non Plus" crooner recalled the story of how the iconic bag came to be after a chance meeting in 1981.

“I remember it perfectly well!” she told Vogue in 2012 while toting around her own “Birkin-ified” bag adorned with bracelets, ribbon, a watch — and even a miniature harmonica.

She continued, “I’d been upgraded by Air France on a flight to London, and I found myself sitting next to a man [Hermès’ Jean-Louis Dumas]. I’m not quite sure what type of bag I had with me — my husband Jacques Doillon had reversed his car over my basket, crushed it on purpose not two days before.

“Little did he know that on this airplane journey, when everything fell out of whatever bag I had, the man next to me said, ‘You should have one with pockets.’ I said, ‘The day Hermès makes one with pockets I will have that.’”

Birkin told the magazine that she asked the French businessman, “Why don’t you make a handbag that is bigger than the Kelly but smaller than Serge’s suitcase?” to which Dumas replied, “Well, what would it be like?”

Naturally, Birkin proceeded to execute her vision for what is now the most iconic handbag in the world on a barf bag.

Dumas, who told her she “deserved more,” took the sketch and said, “I’ll make it for you,” she recalled to Vogue.

When she went to purchase one of the sky-born designs three years later, she paid not with money but her own moniker, christening the bag with her surname — “I was very flattered!”

In the same interview, Birkin also pointed to where perhaps her two largest legacies outside of entertainment — fashion and social justice — intersect, explaining that the entirety of her yearly royalty from the fashion house (which was £30,000 in 2011, per Vogue) went to various charities.

An outspoken advocate for both human and animal rights, the singer’s dedication to social justice was unwavering — even when it meant clashing with the brand behind her eponymous bag. In 2015, Birkin told Hermès she did not wish to be the namesake for the crocodile-skin version of the handbag after being “alerted to the cruel practices” used in their creation.

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More recently, Birkin shared a video of herself cutting her hair — hashtagged #HairForFreedom and #SoutienFemmesIran, which translates to #SupportIranianWomen — in a symbolic gesture of support for the women of Iran protesting for their rights following the death of Mahsa Amini.

In 2011, Birkin revealed in a Q&A with Women’s Wear Daily that she had plans in place to keep her combined legacy of style and social justice alive when she is not.

"A certain amount of money every year goes straight to my charity and it will continue to after my death," she said. "This year I was able to [use some of that money] to go to Japan for a benefit concert after the earthquake. We use some of the money to feed the poor people who can’t afford to eat in France. I sold one of my Birkin bags for $163,000 to help the Japanese Red Cross."

She finished, "So that rather trivial piece of heavy luggage has done a lot of good in the world."