Lily Allen has stepped out in Paris carrying an £11,000 Hermès Birkin just weeks after publicly admitting she is undergoing therapy to address what she described as compulsive shopping. The singer, 40, was photographed walking through the French capital during Paris Fashion Week, a setting that placed her recent comments about spending and self-control into sharp relief.
Allen was seen with a Birkin 35 Rouge Vif Togo Leather bag, pairing the luxury accessory with a black coat and flared trousers. She dressed down the look with a grey wool jumper and white trainers, giving the appearance of effortlessness while carrying one of fashion’s most recognisable status symbols. Later in the day, she was spotted manoeuvring her luggage through the city, her appearance calm and unhurried.
Luxury Surroundings and the Cost of Lifestyle
The Paris outing coincided with Allen’s attendance at the Valentino fashion show, placing her inside an environment defined by exclusivity and excess. She was staying at the five-star Le Bristol Hotel, where rooms cost upwards of £1,700 per night. Alongside the Birkin, she was seen transporting her belongings in a £195 Antler heritage overnight bag and a £425 Antler suitcase, details that quietly underlined the scale of her everyday spending.
Lily Allen stepped out in Paris with her £11,000 Hermès Birkin 35 Rouge Vif Togo leather bag, pairing the iconic accessory with casual chic attire.
Podcast Confession About Compulsive Spending
What made the images resonate was their timing. Earlier this month, Allen returned to her Miss Me? podcast and spoke candidly about her recent relationship with money. In conversation with co-host and longtime friend Miquita Oliver, she admitted she had been “shopping like an insane person” and spending as though she were “convinced” she was a billionaire. The comments were delivered with humour, but the underlying concern was clear.
During the episode, Allen listed several major purchases she had made in a short period of time, including a £120,000 Porsche and a £16,500 Hermès handbag. At one point, she joked about playing with a diamond and emerald ring she had bought herself, acknowledging that the gift was far from small. She framed the spending as a way of marking moments and emotions, even as she recognised it had crossed into behaviour she no longer felt comfortable ignoring.
EMDR Therapy and Breaking the Spending Cycle
Allen went on to explain that she has been in eye movement desensitisation and reprocessing therapy, commonly known as EMDR, for the past four months in an effort to curb her shopping addiction. The therapy is often used to help people process past experiences that influence present behaviour, and Allen described it as “life changing.” She said the process had helped her understand how emotional highs can become tied to self-worth.
Speaking openly about the sessions, Allen explained that when the goal is to stop a negative behaviour, the therapy works by separating the pleasurable feeling from the action itself. In her case, that meant challenging the idea that a luxury purchase made her a better or more complete person. She admitted she did not fully understand the science behind it, but said the change in perspective had already begun to shift how she viewed spending.
Lily Allen and David Harbour relax in the green-accented living room of their Brooklyn brownstone, a space filled with eclectic design details before the home sold at a $600K loss.
Personal Upheaval and a Shift in Perspective
The openness struck a chord because shopping addiction is often dismissed when it involves wealth. Allen’s comments suggested a more complex reality, where money becomes both comfort and coping mechanism. The visibility of her lifestyle means those patterns play out in public, particularly when she appears in cities like Paris, where luxury is woven into the cultural fabric.
Her recent personal history adds further context. Allen has described the past year as difficult following her “devastating” split from actor David Harbour at the end of 2024. In February, she also revealed she had undergone breast enhancement surgery, saying she chose to do it for herself as part of what she called a personal “glow up.” Together, the changes point to a period of emotional recalibration and self-examination.
Against that backdrop, the £11,000 Birkin takes on added meaning. It is both an object of desire and a symbol of the habits Allen is actively trying to untangle. Carrying it through Paris after admitting she is seeking help highlights the tension between awareness and behaviour, and the reality that change is rarely immediate.
Final Thoughts On This Latest Revelation
Allen has long been known for her willingness to talk about uncomfortable subjects, from mental health to addiction, without smoothing the edges. That candour remains central to her public image, even as she navigates a world where luxury is readily available and often encouraged. Therapy, she has suggested, is not about renouncing enjoyment, but about understanding why certain things feel necessary.
For observers, the moment invites reflection rather than judgement. When emotional regulation comes with a high price tag, learning to stop can be as complex as the lifestyle itself. Allen’s Paris appearance captures someone mid-process, still moving through glamorous spaces, but doing so with a new awareness of what those comforts have come to represent.
