Moisturizing to "Correct" Dry Leather or "Remove" Veins

hipnycmom

O.G.
Feb 13, 2007
3,915
21
Happy Holidays everyone!

I had a few heart-stopping moments yesterday and thought I should share them with you.
As some of you know, I got an 05 caramel twiggy last month. It has always been a big color on my wishlist and I felt really lucky to have found it. There were some areas of the bag that were pretty dry though and it was faded in some spots. I've treated it a few times with Apple Care lotion, particularly on the top panels surrounding the main zipper, but wasn't happy with the effect at all. Yesterday I decided to bite the bullet and try Lubriderm:wtf: I know there's been talk of using lubriderm on b-bags in this forum, but I am not one to apply things on my bags just because.
Anyway, I must say the results are a very pleasant shock:sweatdrop: HOWEVER I am not recommending that you try this on your own B-bags as the procedure isn't risk-free and it would be sad to lose a B-bag to an experiment.

Ufortunately, I don't have good "before" pictures because I didn't want to document my stupidity and have something to cry over later on... I do have the original pics I took though, and some "after" shots.

Step 1: Bought some Lubriderm. Hard to find here - I could only get Lubriderm Skin Nourishing Lotion with Shea and Cocoa Butters, so that's what I used.

Step 2: I applied Lubriderm on my hands, warmed/spread it out, then massaged it into my B-bag (while holding my breath and cursing myself at the same time). I did this ALL OVER

Step 3: Registered SHOCK as my bag turned DARK AND DULL everywhere. Took a deep breath and decided to even out the color with more Lubriderm (what can I say? I'm nuts)

Step 4: Waited and prayed. I put the bag away to dry (Where I would't see it - I was experiencing some real regret at this point)

Step 5: Checked on the bag after a couple of hours and VOILA! The color had evened out nicely!

Step 6: Took the bag outside and sprayed Apple Gard ALL OVER. Left the bag to dry overnight.

Step 7: :wlae: :yahoo::woohoo: when I realized that my bag now has the perfect Caramel color all over, and is a lot smooshier than when I first got her!! The AG seemed to have restored the shine as well.

Step 8: Breathe a sigh of relief and promise to NEVER EVER try this again!!!
 
first 2 are Before pics, next 2 are After.
The color didn't really change - it just evened out nicely so that all the pale areas are now gone. The distressing still shows through but the leather now feels thicker and softer.
 

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Oh great job! You're a brave one too! :woohoo:I have a bottle of lubriderm that I purchased specifically for bbags sitting on my shelf, but haven't used it yet. I find these before and after threads so helpful- thanks for sharing.
 
^^ For the most part I leave my bags untreated but this was one I just had to try it on. And I really am just sharing this for those who want the infformation. It comes with a huge DISCLAIMER:nogood:

DO NOT TRY THIS UNLESS YOU'RE WILLING AND READY TO ACCEPT UNSATISFACTORY RESULTS

I would be a little too terrified to slather body lotion an already perfect B-bag
 
What was it about the apple care lotion that you didn't like? And, did you clean it before jumping into the lubriderm experiment? I've got a bag in need of tlc and am trying to decide what I want to do. Thanks -