Coach Rehab and Rescue Club

[Jersey Girl]

Well, I ended up visiting a leather shop nearby. I told him it was caviar leather so he gave me some Lexol leather conditioner. It is kind of a yellowish colored liquid but very thin so it pretty much goes on clear. It says it may darker light leathers but I don't think I had any trouble with that. After only a couple coats and about an hour and a half here is how she turned out!

Here is that area with the dark spots:

I added my daisy sphere fob to jazz her up!

Beautiful bag and you did a great job cleaning her up!
I love the way that fob looks on the bag too!

 

[teerash]

She looks wonderful! You are really brave to tackle a white pebbled leather bag, fantastic job!

Lexol is great! Glad that worked for you! She is pretty!

Ok, so I just picked up a black Rambler for 25 shipped and guess what! I did not really have to do anything to it except condition. I may do a light metal polish, but that's about it. Nice change of pace getting an EUC bag I don't have to work on.

Now, I just have to figure out which bag I like better. The Rambler or the Station bag. Any opinions? I have two black vintage and can only keep one. I like the thick strap on the rambler and like the handle on the station....so its a toss up.

SUCH a pretty and classy bag! And the key ring is perfect!

Beautiful bag and you did a great job cleaning her up!
I love the way that fob looks on the bag too!

Thanks everybody! Even I was surprised to compare the before and after pics!

 

[x UHOH X]

Please let me know how you like the Leather Honey. I just can't get the hang of using it. It is very sticky, like honey. Maybe I am doing something wrong.

The honey leather has done very nicely on a few items, but not on every item. I suspect if your leather has been sealed (by you? by somebody?) it won't accept the leather honey as well. I first tried it on one side of a black Coach PDA case (so I could see a before and after at the same time?) I'm not sure if that particular item was conditioned especially for rugged use, or what, but I couldn't tell the difference. I tried it on my recently-acquired-but-previously-abused Kate Spade boar skin, and it softened it up nicely...not very noticeably, but nicely. I put some on the top flap of the camel-colored Coach backpack and it darkened the leather (but in a nice way.) I'm not sure if that's really still just drying, though. No sticky issues with any of them...did you try it at room temp/warmer than room temp? I also used a fine cotton cloth and rubbed little circles into the leather...that seemed to suck in the conditioner the best, with little to no excess to wipe off. Even if it doesn't do much for my leather, my fingers are nice and soft now!

But WOWo...the Lexol is rather stinky, isn't it? Maybe I just got the "farm" variety (had to go to a local tack store), and I got the spray on bottle. It really does NOT smell good. Is it just me?

I just received my Apple cleaners/conditioners, and I'm waiting on my Ugg variety before I start the suede job. I found an inexpensive Bleeker bag on eBay and it arrived today. Pretty sure I"m not buying from smokers ever again (and be careful of that note being omitted from ads!), and it arrived with a VERY funky white stain inside, outside, and on the bottom -- looks like mold, but I can't smell it over the smoke smell and the nice dryer sheet stuck in it. I contacted the seller to see if she'd refund, so we'll see.

I also found a very inexpensive microfiber tote that would do well as a gift for a friend...came in the mail with a great deal of perfume (COUGH COUGH!!!) It also had an odd brownish "shimmer" to the seams (two each front and back). So I dunked it in warm Woolite for just a few minutes (ten?) When I pulled it out, I was so aghast at the color of the water, I could only stare!! like dark reddish brown - EW! I have no idea what that was, but it got a second dunking, and it's likely to get a third soon!!

Onto more purse rehab adventures!! The white caviar leather rehab looks awesome, BTW. Good job!

 

[dstalksalot]

^ Yup looks like mold. If you decide to keep it, I would hand wash it and add a little lysol to the soap....that may help get rid of the mold.

Not sure if Lexol should be sticky or smelly. No worse than Apple I would say. Perhaps you got an old bottle??

 

[x UHOH X]

^ Yup looks like mold. If you decide to keep it, I would hand wash it and add a little lysol to the soap....that may help get rid of the mold.

Not sure if Lexol should be sticky or smelly. No worse than Apple I would say. Perhaps you got an old bottle??

I don't THINK it's an old bottle, but I don't see any expiration dates. Do these things expire? I imagine they have a specific shelf life, especially if not stored properly, but... ? Did I get the right thing? Lexol leather dressing, the Needsfoot for today's veggie tanned leathers? I just smelled the bag I tested it on. ush: Going to have to work on that more before giving it as a gift. The Leather Honey really doesn't have a smell, or it's a very subtle soapy smell. I haven't tried the Apple yet, but on opening the bottle, it still doesn't smell as strongly icky as the Lexol. Ah well. More to follow....

 

[YokelMel]

I don't THINK it's an old bottle, but I don't see any expiration dates. Do these things expire? I imagine they have a specific shelf life, especially if not stored properly, but... ? Did I get the right thing? Lexol leather dressing, the Needsfoot for today's veggie tanned leathers? I just smelled the bag I tested it on. ush: Going to have to work on that more before giving it as a gift. The Leather Honey really doesn't have a smell, or it's a very subtle soapy smell. I haven't tried the Apple yet, but on opening the bottle, it still doesn't smell as strongly icky as the Lexol. Ah well. More to follow....

I think Lexol stinks too! It does tend to fade after a day or two though. Apple smells as well, but the smell is growing on me a bit

 

[YokelMel]

Well, I ended up visiting a leather shop nearby. I told him it was caviar leather so he gave me some Lexol leather conditioner. It is kind of a yellowish colored liquid but very thin so it pretty much goes on clear. It says it may darker light leathers but I don't think I had any trouble with that. After only a couple coats and about an hour and a half here is how she turned out!

Here is that area with the dark spots:

I added my daisy sphere fob to jazz her up!

Wonderful rehab! She looks beautiful now, and I am such a sucker for a white bag, you were really brave! I love the fob you put on her too.

 

[katev]

That's one of the reasons that I prefer Leather CPR, it has virtually no smell.

I would try and get a refund on the moldy bag and return it. It's really hard to kill mold!

 

[estlin]

I just bought a bag on ebay with some colour transfer on it. I won't mind if I can't get it out because I plan on using it for school but I do want to put something on that will protect it from future stains and weather.
http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=150647294245

Can I use the stuff that says leather conditioner on burnished leather? The only product I'm familiar with is Autoglym Leather Balm, which is supposed to be for car detailing but awesome for weatherproofing boots. I've seen that Roots sells leather conditioner for $8 but I'm not sure how it would compare to Apple stuff everyone likes.

 

[Odebdo]

Anyone have any ideas on how to clean a new Coach Daisy Flower Grafitti Tote? It was at the outlets (white, black and red) and my niece carried it with unwashed shorts...and we have jeans transfer...

Any help is much appreciated!

 

[bunnymasseuse]

^ Yup looks like mold. If you decide to keep it, I would hand wash it and add a little lysol to the soap....that may help get rid of the mold.

Not sure if Lexol should be sticky or smelly. No worse than Apple I would say. Perhaps you got an old bottle??

I think the Lexol and Apple products always stink, but after a while I just get used to it (and moisturize them outside anyway).

 

[angelaira]

I have been avidly reading everything for a few days now. Thank you for all of the informative posts!!
This all started for me because of a Coach Court bag that I bought in 1999 while I was Active Duty Army. That bag was perfect with the Class A uniform, and Coach was the official recommended bag for uniform wear at that time. Mostly officers had it, because no one else could afford it, and they never issued them, and I got one from my now ex-husband while we were dating. I loved that bag. It was in the house during the divorce, and I never got it back.
I saw the new ads with the Court bag prominently displayed, and it about killed me last week. I decided to take action and find a court bag like my old one, and so I started shopping on e-bay. I got one for $26 shipped, the same except it has the non-adjustable handle whereas my old one had the adjustable version. It came in and the brass was brown, and it was scratched up, it needed cleaning and moisturizing, and I had never done these things. A google search lead me here, and I haven't left since, lol! My Court bag looks fantastic now, and today I ordered a small red canvas and black wristlet from Bonanza, a black Legacy from e-bay, and I called my sister because she has wanted a Coach back pack for years, and I found one for $25 on Etsy, she bought it right after we got off the phone.
http://www.etsy.com/listing/8028285...age=1&ga_search_type=vintage&ga_facet=vintage

 

[angelaira]

Anyway, she is totally excited to have her first Coach bag ever, and looking forward to making it look new again. I don't have before and after pics of my Court bag, but hopefully with the Legacy I will take some and try to figure out how to share them. Is there a way to just paste them into the thread, or do they need to be hosted on another site first? Thank you for everything!!!
My Court bag:
http://www.ebay.com/itm/220828057048?ssPageName=STRK:MEWNX:IT&_trksid=p3984.m1439.l2649

The Legacy I bought today (is that the right name?):
http://www.ebay.com/itm/190567329196?ssPageName=STRK:MEWNX:IT&_trksid=p3984.m1439.l2649

And the wristlet I bought today:
http://www.bonanza.com/booths/trajik/items/39143032

 

[jcrewaddict883]

This is really inspiring. I am wondering for most of you when rehabbing an unlined leather is that a last resort or a starting point. I never knew I could do that but I am itching to try.

 

[dstalksalot]

Jcrew, it definitely improves most older used bags, but if the bag is in good condition then no, I don't automatically wash the bag. Also, if the color is a red, I will give washing a second thought. It really just depends on the bag.