SINGAPORE: Many may crave for a crocodile skin luxury bag but hesitate to buy one due to its cost.

One Singaporean has managed to find a way to recreate this look by putting textured paint on paper.

It may look like the real McCoy, but the Hermes Birkin look alike makes use of oil paint and textured paste to create the look of crocodile skin.

While it may sound easy to produce, its creator said it's no child's play.

Cherin Sim, final year student, LaSalle College, said: "If the textured paste is too dry and you carve it, it cannot be carved and it'll be very jagged. So you must wait till the end. If it's not dry and you carve it, then it will form unnatural creases around the texture and around the lines.

“So I had to wait for a certain amount of time before I could start carving. That's why after that I had to sand it because it cannot be very flat after I carved it."

Cherin was inspired to produce this bag after research she did showed that a salt water crocodile skin Birkin bag sold in an auction for a huge sum of money.

She added: "In popular culture, the Birkin is a status symbol of wealth and luxury. So my work questions this desire to want to own this bag."

When asked if she has shown her works to Hermes, she said: "I don't know how Hermes would react when they see someone doing a replica of the bag because replicas are illegal."

When contacted, Hermes declined to comment on Cherin's creation.

Cherin's bag was on display at LaSalle College of the Arts as part her final year project. - CNA/vm