Hermes R.M.S. Passport Holder Handmade In Evecolor Calfskin Leather Enamel Fittings Hardware 2z Blue Nuit

Blue Nuit is dark enough to be mistaken for black until you put it beside actual black, at which point the blue shows through like the last light in a night sky. On a passport holder that restraint matters; this is a piece that lives in a jacket pocket and should not compete with anything you are wearing.

The format is the same compact 13.5 by 9.5 cm cover, 1.5 cm thick, built to take a standard passport with a little air around it. Evecolor has a fine, even grain and a soft hand, so the cover flexes rather than cracking at the spine when you open it a hundred times on a long trip.

Inside, a passport slots against one panel and there is room left for a folded customs form or a second boarding pass. The enamel fittings catch the light at the closure, and against this shade of blue they read almost like jewellery, which is a pleasant surprise on an object designed for paperwork.

One warning: this blue is dark enough to hide in a black-lined bag, so the enamel fitting becomes your landmark when you are digging for it at a gate. Otherwise it has been effortless, with no conditioning and no babysitting, just a passport kept straight and dry.

Where it suits: overnight flights, visa queues and any desk where you would rather not draw attention to your papers. It behaves the way a good coat button behaves, functioning quietly, and it will outlast the passport it protects if you let it.