Hermes Kelly 28 Bag Handmade In Epsom Calfskin Leather Silver Hardware U2 Blue Zephyr

Blue Zephyr is a light, airy blue with a grey-green thread running through it – the colour of wind on water rather than a summer sky – and in Epsom it stays cool and even, unclouded by gloss. It is the lightest colour in this collection after Craie, and it behaves like one: everything around it looks fresher.

The Kelly 28’s 28 by 22 by 10 centimetres take wallet, phone, keys, sunglasses and a pouch with ease, and the firm Epsom body keeps its shape on a cafe chair through a long lunch. Silver hardware suits the breeze-light tone and disappears against it; gold would add a warmth this colour does not ask for.

Care is simpler than the pale tone suggests: the embossed surface wipes clean, rain does not spot it, and because the blue is greyed rather than bright, faint marks are hard to read on it at all. My main rule is to keep new dark denim away from the back panel for the first month of wear – pale leather and raw dye are natural enemies.

Honest note: this is a daytime colour. Under evening lights it loses its airiness and reads grey, which bothers colour purists. I choose it fresh from the bag in the morning and let it do daylight duties only.

For summer tailoring, pale denim and white linen, Zephyr is the colour that floats over an outfit without weighing on it.