Hermes R.M.S. Passport Holder Handmade In Evecolor Calfskin Leather Enamel Fittings Hardware 37 Gold

The enamel fittings are what change the story on this one. On a gold-tone Evecolor cover they read as a deliberate accent, a small glossy note against a matte, sandy surface, and the whole object looks less like stationery and more like something you would keep long after the stamps have run out.

Dimensions are the familiar 13.5 by 9.5 cm with a 1.5 cm spine, and the calfskin is soft enough that the cover lies flat when open. Gold-tone leather is warm in daylight and nearly neutral indoors, which makes it an easy pairing with brown, green or navy jackets.

Practically, it holds a standard passport and a folded boarding pass, with a little room to spare for a photo or a vaccine card. Because the leather is supple rather than rigid, the cover does not develop the crack lines that stiffer passport holders can get along the fold.

A note of caution, and it comes from the grain rather than the colour: fine calf will mark if you slide it across rough surfaces, so I treat the cover the way I would treat a notebook. The reward is a piece that softens with handling, and unlike a dark passport cover, this one is easy to spot on a crowded tray.

Where it suits: long-haul cabins and any trip where you keep the passport on you for hours. The warm tone is a small antidote to the flat light of an aeroplane, and the enamel detail gives you something to look at other than the seat-back screen.