Vintage bags recoloured

[kakacarmen]

Hi Ladies, I am considering a couple of vintage bags online. One of them is white and the other one is beige. Both of them are very clean in the pictures.

I have purchased one bag online before and it was recoloured ( it wasn’t declared on the listing ) , the Lambskin was stiff and a bit crackly when the leather being pressed on. I ended up returning it as it’s just not how chanel Lambskin should feel.

Now I have asked both seller if the bags have been recoloured and their answers are similar: that they have not redyed it themselves but not sure if it has previously as it is a vintage piece.

My question is: is there any way to tell a bag had been recoloured from the pictures and do you think any of these two bags has been redyed? I don’t want to be disappointed again if I purchase the bag and it is redyed.

Thank you.

I have purchased a

 

[tenyongie]

Hi! Funny enough i’ve Also had experience buying and returning an undeclared recolored vintage double flap and the Lambskin was Super stiff and crinkly as you described!! Based on my own observations scrutiny, I would suggest you ask the seller for Super closeups of the Lambskin itself. If it’s natural smooth lambskin it should look Super lustrous and buttery And u can kind of see the “stretch mark” pattern of the lambskin up close, if that makes sense LOL. But if it’s recolored it should be a lot more dried and dehydrated and you can’t really see the “stretch mark” patterns of the lambskin anymore and instead it will look very taut and stretched and dried out? Like it Just doesn’t appear buttery and smooth even in pictures. So ask for a good close up shot of the material okay it should help!! All the best !!

(Then again I should mention that it depends on the quality of the recoloring work. Mine was quite poorly recolored hence the drastic loss of lambskin quality. However, i’ve Seen many excellent recoloring works that barely affected the lambskin quality. Really depends on workmanship.)

 

[kakacarmen]

Hi! Funny enough i’ve Also had experience buying and returning an undeclared recolored vintage double flap and the Lambskin was Super stiff and crinkly as you described!! Based on my own observations scrutiny, I would suggest you ask the seller for Super closeups of the Lambskin itself. If it’s natural smooth lambskin it should look Super lustrous and buttery And u can kind of see the “stretch mark” pattern of the lambskin up close, if that makes sense LOL. But if it’s recolored it should be a lot more dried and dehydrated and you can’t really see the “stretch mark” patterns of the lambskin anymore and instead it will look very taut and stretched and dried out? Like it Just doesn’t appear buttery and smooth even in pictures. So ask for a good close up shot of the material okay it should help!! All the best !!

(Then again I should mention that it depends on the quality of the recoloring work. Mine was quite poorly recolored hence the drastic loss of lambskin quality. However, i’ve Seen many excellent recoloring works that barely affected the lambskin quality. Really depends on workmanship.)

Thank you for your comment. I am not 100% sure if I know what I am looking for [emoji28][emoji85][emoji85]I do have a few close up shots of the bags, there’s some wrinkling but not sure if they are as a result of redye or normal for the age. The seller of beige Diana has mentioned it had spa treatment from leather surgeon but not sure if redye has been done. I do think from the photo it look slightly matt??
Judging from these photos, what do you think? It’s just like a minefield trying to get a light colour vintage without seeing it in person[emoji28][emoji28]

Thank you in advance!

 

[kakacarmen]

Hi! Funny enough i’ve Also had experience buying and returning an undeclared recolored vintage double flap and the Lambskin was Super stiff and crinkly as you described!! Based on my own observations scrutiny, I would suggest you ask the seller for Super closeups of the Lambskin itself. If it’s natural smooth lambskin it should look Super lustrous and buttery And u can kind of see the “stretch mark” pattern of the lambskin up close, if that makes sense LOL. But if it’s recolored it should be a lot more dried and dehydrated and you can’t really see the “stretch mark” patterns of the lambskin anymore and instead it will look very taut and stretched and dried out? Like it Just doesn’t appear buttery and smooth even in pictures. So ask for a good close up shot of the material okay it should help!! All the best !!

(Then again I should mention that it depends on the quality of the recoloring work. Mine was quite poorly recolored hence the drastic loss of lambskin quality. However, i’ve Seen many excellent recoloring works that barely affected the lambskin quality. Really depends on workmanship.)

Sorry forgot to add the photos

 

[katlina]

Sorry forgot to add the photos

funny topic because I am also very much researching on this topic.

please dont take this as truth AT ALL because its 100% only my own opinion and I could easily be entirely wrong. to me, the white one looks colour-dyed. The weird crackly look is odd, I wouldnt know how a chanel vintage in white can stay THAT white for decades and the weirdest bit to me is always the look of the thread at the back of the bag on each corner of the bag flap - that looks coloured to ME at least? the beige one could be okay, may have dyed leather straps in the chain but could be wrong.
again, i am zero expert, please dont take my word for it.

 

[Rumbabird]

I'm not positive regarding all Chanels, but for my vintage flaps, the inside leather color is the same as the outside. I believe if the inside color is different, that would be a tell that the bag has been recolored.

 

[stylistbydesign]

Just my 2 cents (my background is in textile science)....I think the white bag has definitely been recolored. The leather is an odd texture, and when it looks that stiff and sort of glossy, it's usually had something applied post-production. Also would note that the color looks sloppy around the grommet for the chain.

The beige bag....hard to tell. If it was recolored, LS did a much better job than what was done on the white bag. It might be possible to email LS with the serial number and ask if they have ever dyed that particular bag. It's worth a shot to ask. I do think the leather looks pretty natural on the beige bag. LS may have only touched up portions of the color.

Good luck with your purchase! I've bought some pre-loved bags that had me anxiously waiting to see the true condition!

 

[kakacarmen]

funny topic because I am also very much researching on this topic.

please dont take this as truth AT ALL because its 100% only my own opinion and I could easily be entirely wrong. to me, the white one looks colour-dyed. The weird crackly look is odd, I wouldnt know how a chanel vintage in white can stay THAT white for decades and the weirdest bit to me is always the look of the thread at the back of the bag on each corner of the bag flap - that looks coloured to ME at least? the beige one could be okay, may have dyed leather straps in the chain but could be wrong.
again, i am zero expert, please dont take my word for it.

Hi thanks, I agree with you on how a vintage bag can stay so white after such a long time. I want a vintage white flap but I just can’t pull the trigger again fearing it is redyed again.
On the other hand, the seller for the Diana said the leather is still very soft and not stiffen up. She sent me a picture of before and it doesn’t look bad enough for a redye job??

 

[kakacarmen]

Just my 2 cents (my background is in textile science)....I think the white bag has definitely been recolored. The leather is an odd texture, and when it looks that stiff and sort of glossy, it's usually had something applied post-production. Also would note that the color looks sloppy around the grommet for the chain.

The beige bag....hard to tell. If it was recolored, LS did a much better job than what was done on the white bag. It might be possible to email LS with the serial number and ask if they have ever dyed that particular bag. It's worth a shot to ask. I do think the leather looks pretty natural on the beige bag. LS may have only touched up portions of the color.

Good luck with your purchase! I've bought some pre-loved bags that had me anxiously waiting to see the true condition!

Hi thank you so much, love your suggestion for asking leather surgeon, definitely worth a shot.
I will probably stay away from the white flap for now. What you said make total sense with the texture and I also suspect on how white it looks considering how old the bag is.

There’s not many consignment store near where I live so can only buy online but with light colour bags, it’s harder to tell the true condition on photos!

 

[kakacarmen]

I'm not positive regarding all Chanels, but for my vintage flaps, the inside leather color is the same as the outside. I believe if the inside color is different, that would be a tell that the bag has been recolored.

I think the white flap might have been a redyed as the inside is more yellowish than outside.

 

[tenyongie]

funny topic because I am also very much researching on this topic.

please dont take this as truth AT ALL because its 100% only my own opinion and I could easily be entirely wrong. to me, the white one looks colour-dyed. The weird crackly look is odd, I wouldnt know how a chanel vintage in white can stay THAT white for decades and the weirdest bit to me is always the look of the thread at the back of the bag on each corner of the bag flap - that looks coloured to ME at least? the beige one could be okay, may have dyed leather straps in the chain but could be wrong.
again, i am zero expert, please dont take my word for it.

YES!!! I was about to say upon closer scrutiny the white one looks recolored!!! Whereas the diana looks very natural in my opinion The white one looks really matte and taut while the diana still looks really supple from pictures (chanel lambskin really possesses a lustrous quality that can be observed even through pictures)

And to be honest, the white one looks waaay too fresh and pristine for a vintage white bag, which makes me suspect even more that it has indeed been refreshed over the years. Usually like it or not such vintage white chanels should sport a bit of stains, dirt marks, discolorations and yellowing.

 

[tenyongie]

Sorry forgot to add the photos

Honestly the diana looks stunning and i think the bag spa professional has done a really good job preserving the authentic quality of the lambskin quality! Still looks really supple and I can almost imagine the actual tactile sensation through the pictures if that makes sense

 

[Regina07]

I agree with everyone who said the White bag looks re-dyed and the beige Diana looks natural. I've had several of my white Chanels redyed by Leather Pros and thanks to his expertise, the leather is still soft. But the big difference is the stitching. It feels rough. No way around that, I think.

Good luck with your search and eventual purchase.

 

[kakacarmen]

Ladies, thank you to all of you for your input. Really appreciate. I have decided that I am going to for the beige Diana. Can’t wait to see it when it arrives!