Thanks everyone for your opinions, both pro and con!! You all make valid points - now I just have to figure out what to do!!! Thanks again for all of your responses.
The age old question - condition whiskey legacy leather or not?
- Thread starter donnalynn11
- Start date
I'm in the same exact boat. I did some research and decided that I would condition, but ONLY with Apple moisturizer. I conditioned both my black and whiskey Alis and am very happy with the results. As Mariadele said, it took out the scratches (most of them at least) and now it definitely does not scratch as easily. I'm very happy with the results.
:shame:
Once again I can't say enough about Apple conditioner, but it is definitely up to the individual. 
Donna~~the Ali support group thread was a great help to me when deciding to condition or not.
http://forum.purseblog.com/coach/ali-support-group-152300.html
Good luck!
http://forum.purseblog.com/coach/ali-support-group-152300.html
Good luck!
The answer is...sometimes you can do it, and other times it streaks or stains in areas...I've seen this happen. I usually just spray with Shining Monkey, which is great especially on natural Vachetta to keep it from darkening with exposure to light and oils in the skin. They use this on higher end handbags, and actually it's endorsed by Kooba I found out from someone. As for conditioning, I have used the Coach conditioner on my whiskey Mandy, and it was not a problem. I did that because the leather was so stiff, and when I first bought it, it came from a factory and had scratches. Rubbing with my fingers didn't really remove all the scratches..although that always works on my Abbey bags, so it's kind of leather dependent I think. So on the Mandy, I started out with a small area first in the back, and made sure it was ok. The thing is to go lightly and evenly..not a huge hunk in one area...and keep buffing it in till it all looks even and soft. It made the bag so soft and those scratches are now nonexistent. Some people like Applegard, and that's fine too. HOWEVER...as I say this, I saw a SA use the conditioner on one of the wallets and it was a DISASTER. It is not recommended by Coach, but I would say if you want to remove scratches and eliminate the possibility from spotting from rain, you need to either do that or use Shining Monkey spray. I did not initially do anything to my clay Gigi, and got it out in snow flurries, and got some spotting. I had to condition it to remove the spots, and from that point, I always spray or conditioner. You should not have a problem with rain or water spots so much if you condition or spray. If it's the light and natural Vachetta, I would advise AGAINST conditioner, because that's easier to spot. Use Shining Monkey for that.
After reading the other posts, I just wanted to confirm that yes, actually the whiskey leather is called vintage leather, as is the pebble grain vintage leather on my Abbeys called "vintage". You are not supposed to use any conditioner on these leathers. However.. I have used conditioner even on the vintage leather Abbeys in places where my "pervert techniques" with my fingers didn't help 
, and I did not find it ruined anything at all.
Also...I did want to say that if Coach does not recommend using something on a particular product, it does NOT matter whether it's their brand or Apple, or any other brand that's used..if they know about it, they will not do anything to help you. I was also told you will void your warranty if they know you use ANYTHING on their pebble grain leather because it will collapse the grain. I've never had conditioner collapse the grain on my bags, but I try to limit its use. All of this was clearly stated to me by 3 diff. SAs at different Coach stores, and one actually pulled me aside and whispered to me that personally she uses the conditioner all the time and it's fine. It's just that they are told by Coach to say that, etc. I even had another SA that took the mineral vintage leather bag in the back and conditioned it before I purchased it (since it was a display), something she was not supposed to do. Nevertheless, because I've seen someone ruin a whiskey colored wallet (probably by pouring a huge amount on), I know it's possible to ruin something...so I use extreme care. I will say that any time I have used conditioner on my own bags, or in spots on my bags, it's worked out great... and you won't find softer leather that is less susceptible to future scratches! As I have had success with it, I have been less and less afraid to use it on other bags. Just don't pour a lot on, rub it in, and WAIT to make sure the test spot is ok before proceeding.
, and I did not find it ruined anything at all. Also...I did want to say that if Coach does not recommend using something on a particular product, it does NOT matter whether it's their brand or Apple, or any other brand that's used..if they know about it, they will not do anything to help you. I was also told you will void your warranty if they know you use ANYTHING on their pebble grain leather because it will collapse the grain. I've never had conditioner collapse the grain on my bags, but I try to limit its use. All of this was clearly stated to me by 3 diff. SAs at different Coach stores, and one actually pulled me aside and whispered to me that personally she uses the conditioner all the time and it's fine. It's just that they are told by Coach to say that, etc. I even had another SA that took the mineral vintage leather bag in the back and conditioned it before I purchased it (since it was a display), something she was not supposed to do. Nevertheless, because I've seen someone ruin a whiskey colored wallet (probably by pouring a huge amount on), I know it's possible to ruin something...so I use extreme care. I will say that any time I have used conditioner on my own bags, or in spots on my bags, it's worked out great... and you won't find softer leather that is less susceptible to future scratches! As I have had success with it, I have been less and less afraid to use it on other bags. Just don't pour a lot on, rub it in, and WAIT to make sure the test spot is ok before proceeding.
I was trying to rub some of my Ali's scratches out while riding the bus today...it occurred to me that anyone watching must be wondering what the h*** I was doing!
I'd really like to condition my Ali with Apple after all the positive comments I've heard about it on TPF--especially b/c she got a few rain spots yesterday and today--but I don't trust myself not to put too much on. I'll be interested to hear what you decide, donnalynn.
I have "rain spots" on my Whiskey legacy shoulder bag. Is it the coach conditioner I want to use if I decide to condition the bag? Thanks.