Hermes Kelly Depeches 25 Pouch Handmade In Epsom Calfskin Leather Silver Hardware 3G Alezan

Alezan is the chestnut of a good pair of riding boots, and on a slim folder like this it looks like something a working desk would hold. The Kelly Depeches is the most orderly small piece I own: a flat 25 by 19.5 by 4 cm body, an Epsom surface that refuses to crease, silver hardware, and a strap that comes over the front and fastens with a turn-lock rather than a zip.

What fits is paperwork, mostly. An iPad mini, an A5 notepad, a passport, cards in the slots, a pen – and with the flat interior, nothing shifts around even when the pouch is half full. I use it for meetings where a full bag would be too much, and the chestnut colour has warmed the plain grey of my work clothes rather than fighting them.

Honest notes: a folder this shape is not a handbag, and it will not take a bottle, a tablet plus a laptop or anything with bulk – choose it for documents, not for days. And Epsom, being rigid, does not stretch to allow extra: what fits on day one is what fits on day three hundred.

What it does, it does with an air of competence, and Alezan’s deep brown will pick up a soft polish over the years rather than going dull. It is the closest thing I have to a briefcase that fits in a dinner jacket.