Coach Rehab and Rescue Club

[chowlover2]

I used a sponge to apply it and I thought that the dye/conditioner mix was much easier to to use than acrylic paint, and I am pleased that it doesn't have that chalky look that you sometimes get with paint. But the color looks more "irridescent" than is typical of vintage coach bags. Maybe the shine will diminish over time.

One area of concern. The manufacturer claims that the dye will not rub off on hands or clothes and it did dry very quickly. But the last step in the process is to wipe it down with a soft cloth and I've just done that, and I got a faint blue tinge on the white cloth. But it may still be drying - I just applied the dye last night - so I will keep an eye on that issue for a few days.

Before I applied the dye I rewashed the bag in the washer in warm water to get all the conditioner and black rocks out of it, and I think that was a good idea.

The directions say to apply the dye straight out of the jar but I decided to mix it with leather cpr because the bag was so dry after washing (and Gallina said that she has mixed it with conditioner in the past.)

But I would do a few things differently if I did it over. The navy dye is brighter and more purple than Coach navy color. I would probably buy a jar of black and mix the two shades to get a darker navy blue. I may still do that and apply a second coat of dye.

I would also remove the turnlock hardware to make it easier to apply the dye. And I would wear disposable plastic gloves. I wore my new pair of kitchen rubber gloves and they were ruined. But it was easy to clean up the dye from other surfaces using plain water.

The first pic below is of the bag after I rewashed it to remove the conditioners and let it dry. The last 4 pictures are after I dyed the bag and I think it is a big improvement but not perfect. But at least I won't be afraid to dye a bag in the future if I think it is necessary!

She looks great!

 

[m3rma1d]

For those following the Crescent Bag saga...

Trying out the Leather Refinish Color Restorer... At first I tried it in a hidden spot and I was REALLY bummed because it wasn't AT ALL like I expected. But then I figured I got nothing to lose (I was really just ready to throw it in the rubbish and walk away at that point), I went for the flap. It'll do, I guess! Not what I was expecting, but the stains/lines/whatnot will definitely ALL be gone now!
(I will miss some of the patina, tho)

Here's a "during" pic showing the before/after:

 

[NellieSue]

For those following the Crescent Bag saga...

Trying out the Leather Refinish Color Restorer... At first I tried it in a hidden spot and I was REALLY bummed because it wasn't AT ALL like I expected. But then I figured I got nothing to lose (I was really just ready to throw it in the rubbish and walk away at that point), I went for the flap. It'll do, I guess! Not what I was expecting, but the stains/lines/whatnot will definitely ALL be gone now!
(I will miss some of the patina, tho)

Here's a "during" pic showing the before/after:

Oh Mermaid! I love this! I think you are going to be really pleased with it going forward. It is probably just kind of a shock after looking at those swirls. BTW, your new Avatar is great! You seem a little high-strung, though.....unable to cut loose and have some fun

 

[katev]

For those following the Crescent Bag saga...

Trying out the Leather Refinish Color Restorer... At first I tried it in a hidden spot and I was REALLY bummed because it wasn't AT ALL like I expected. But then I figured I got nothing to lose (I was really just ready to throw it in the rubbish and walk away at that point), I went for the flap. It'll do, I guess! Not what I was expecting, but the stains/lines/whatnot will definitely ALL be gone now!
(I will miss some of the patina, tho)

Here's a "during" pic showing the before/after:

Wow, it's looking much better! I know what you mean about patina; I was a little taken aback by the shiny new surface from the Leather Finish Color Restorer on my navy City Bag, but I have to admit, it's a significant improvement.

 

[m3rma1d]

Wow, it's looking much better! I know what you mean about patina; I was a little taken aback by the shiny new surface from the Leather Finish Color Restorer on my navy City Bag, but I have to admit, it's a significant improvement.

How long before yours dried?

 

[katev]

How long before yours dried?

It started drying pretty quickly, like parts of it were almost while I was still working on other areas; but just leave it be and see what happens.

Did you mix it with a conditioner or apply it straight from the bottle? I know the instructions say to use it straight from the bottle but I mixed it with conditioner and I think it helped the leather absorb it.

 

[m3rma1d]

It started drying pretty quickly, like parts of it were almost while I was still working on other areas; but just leave it be and see what happens.

Did you mix it with a conditioner or apply it straight from the bottle? I know the instructions say to use it straight from the bottle but I mixed it with conditioner and I think it helped the leather absorb it.

I only used a tiny amount of conditioner really, it didn't seem to be going on as well with it... So I used a minimal amount. Hope I didn't screw it up more

 

[katev]

I only used a tiny amount of conditioner really, it didn't seem to be going on as well with it... So I used a minimal amount. Hope I didn't screw it up more

Probably not, because the directions say to use it straight from the bottle and gallina said that she has done it both ways. You might want to send a PM to gallina because she has a lot of experience using the stuff.

So far I am happy with the navy city bag. I still say that dying a bag is my last resort, I would prefer keep the original finish intact. But when the bag is in such a state that it can no longer be carried - then I am okay with dying it.

I recently used acrylic paint to restore a white legacy zip, and now I wish I had tried the leather color restorer, because the acrylic looks okay but it has kind of a flat appearance. I thought that this stuff was a lot easier to work with than the acrylic also.

 

[Jessi319]

I used a sponge to apply it and I thought that the dye/conditioner mix was much easier to to use than acrylic paint, and I am pleased that it doesn't have that chalky look that you sometimes get with paint. But the color looks more "irridescent" than is typical of vintage coach bags. Maybe the shine will diminish over time.

One area of concern. The manufacturer claims that the dye will not rub off on hands or clothes and it did dry very quickly. But the last step in the process is to wipe it down with a soft cloth and I've just done that, and I got a faint blue tinge on the white cloth. But it may still be drying - I just applied the dye last night - so I will keep an eye on that issue for a few days.

Before I applied the dye I rewashed the bag in the washer in warm water to get all the conditioner and black rocks out of it, and I think that was a good idea.

The directions say to apply the dye straight out of the jar but I decided to mix it with leather cpr because the bag was so dry after washing (and Gallina said that she has mixed it with conditioner in the past.)

But I would do a few things differently if I did it over. The navy dye is brighter and more purple than Coach navy color. I would probably buy a jar of black and mix the two shades to get a darker navy blue. I may still do that and apply a second coat of dye.

I would also remove the turnlock hardware to make it easier to apply the dye. And I would wear disposable plastic gloves. I wore my new pair of kitchen rubber gloves and they were ruined. But it was easy to clean up the dye from other surfaces using plain water.

The first pic below is of the bag after I rewashed it to remove the conditioners and let it dry. The last 4 pictures are after I dyed the bag and I think it is a big improvement but not perfect. But at least I won't be afraid to dye a bag in the future if I think it is necessary!

That's awesome!!! I'll be keeping this product in mind when I get to some of my worst bags!

 

[Jessi319]

For those following the Crescent Bag saga...

Trying out the Leather Refinish Color Restorer... At first I tried it in a hidden spot and I was REALLY bummed because it wasn't AT ALL like I expected. But then I figured I got nothing to lose (I was really just ready to throw it in the rubbish and walk away at that point), I went for the flap. It'll do, I guess! Not what I was expecting, but the stains/lines/whatnot will definitely ALL be gone now!
(I will miss some of the patina, tho)

Here's a "during" pic showing the before/after:

That is amazingly smooth looking!! Can't wait to see it when you are done!

 

[Rarity]

I used a sponge to apply it and I thought that the dye/conditioner mix was much easier to to use than acrylic paint, and I am pleased that it doesn't have that chalky look that you sometimes get with paint. But the color looks more "irridescent" than is typical of vintage coach bags. Maybe the shine will diminish over time.

One area of concern. The manufacturer claims that the dye will not rub off on hands or clothes and it did dry very quickly. But the last step in the process is to wipe it down with a soft cloth and I've just done that, and I got a faint blue tinge on the white cloth. But it may still be drying - I just applied the dye last night - so I will keep an eye on that issue for a few days.

Before I applied the dye I rewashed the bag in the washer in warm water to get all the conditioner and black rocks out of it, and I think that was a good idea.

The directions say to apply the dye straight out of the jar but I decided to mix it with leather cpr because the bag was so dry after washing (and Gallina said that she has mixed it with conditioner in the past.)

But I would do a few things differently if I did it over. The navy dye is brighter and more purple than Coach navy color. I would probably buy a jar of black and mix the two shades to get a darker navy blue. I may still do that and apply a second coat of dye.

I would also remove the turnlock hardware to make it easier to apply the dye. And I would wear disposable plastic gloves. I wore my new pair of kitchen rubber gloves and they were ruined. But it was easy to clean up the dye from other surfaces using plain water.

The first pic below is of the bag after I rewashed it to remove the conditioners and let it dry. The last 4 pictures are after I dyed the bag and I think it is a big improvement but not perfect. But at least I won't be afraid to dye a bag in the future if I think it is necessary!

Congrats! It looks awesome!

Great minds think alike. I decided to dye my old Coach pouch (?) which Hyacinth authenticated here:

http://forum.purseblog.com/coach-shopping/authenticate-this-coach-763164-27.html#post22480036

I ended up using the Fiebings and dyed it black, which I'm rethinking and wishing I had dyed it a dark brown instead.

Here's a picture of the first pass, since I'll be dyeing it again. It looks "streaky" but I'm sure this will change once I condition it.

katev, I've found that conditioning (especially Blackrocks) diminishes that irridescence quite a bit.

I'll post pictures once it's all done.

 

[Rarity]

For those following the Crescent Bag saga...

Trying out the Leather Refinish Color Restorer... At first I tried it in a hidden spot and I was REALLY bummed because it wasn't AT ALL like I expected. But then I figured I got nothing to lose (I was really just ready to throw it in the rubbish and walk away at that point), I went for the flap. It'll do, I guess! Not what I was expecting, but the stains/lines/whatnot will definitely ALL be gone now!
(I will miss some of the patina, tho)

Here's a "during" pic showing the before/after:

Wow! That's aMAzing! How did you know which color to pick?

 

[chowlover2]

For those following the Crescent Bag saga...

Trying out the Leather Refinish Color Restorer... At first I tried it in a hidden spot and I was REALLY bummed because it wasn't AT ALL like I expected. But then I figured I got nothing to lose (I was really just ready to throw it in the rubbish and walk away at that point), I went for the flap. It'll do, I guess! Not what I was expecting, but the stains/lines/whatnot will definitely ALL be gone now!
(I will miss some of the patina, tho)

Here's a "during" pic showing the before/after:

I think it's amazing,what a change!

 

[NellieSue]

I used a sponge to apply it and I thought that the dye/conditioner mix was much easier to to use than acrylic paint, and I am pleased that it doesn't have that chalky look that you sometimes get with paint. But the color looks more "irridescent" than is typical of vintage coach bags. Maybe the shine will diminish over time.

One area of concern. The manufacturer claims that the dye will not rub off on hands or clothes and it did dry very quickly. But the last step in the process is to wipe it down with a soft cloth and I've just done that, and I got a faint blue tinge on the white cloth. But it may still be drying - I just applied the dye last night - so I will keep an eye on that issue for a few days.

Before I applied the dye I rewashed the bag in the washer in warm water to get all the conditioner and black rocks out of it, and I think that was a good idea.

The directions say to apply the dye straight out of the jar but I decided to mix it with leather cpr because the bag was so dry after washing (and Gallina said that she has mixed it with conditioner in the past.)

But I would do a few things differently if I did it over. The navy dye is brighter and more purple than Coach navy color. I would probably buy a jar of black and mix the two shades to get a darker navy blue. I may still do that and apply a second coat of dye.

I would also remove the turnlock hardware to make it easier to apply the dye. And I would wear disposable plastic gloves. I wore my new pair of kitchen rubber gloves and they were ruined. But it was easy to clean up the dye from other surfaces using plain water.

The first pic below is of the bag after I rewashed it to remove the conditioners and let it dry. The last 4 pictures are after I dyed the bag and I think it is a big improvement but not perfect. But at least I won't be afraid to dye a bag in the future if I think it is necessary!

Thank you SO much for sharing this awesome rehab with us! It looks fabulous....I am totally down with the sheen of the finished product. It is retro and modern at the same time! Great Job!

 

[katev]

I only used a tiny amount of conditioner really, it didn't seem to be going on as well with it... So I used a minimal amount. Hope I didn't screw it up more

That's awesome!!! I'll be keeping this product in mind when I get to some of my worst bags!

Congrats! It looks awesome!

Great minds think alike. I decided to dye my old Coach pouch (?) which Hyacinth authenticated here:

http://forum.purseblog.com/coach-shopping/authenticate-this-coach-763164-27.html#post22480036

I ended up using the Fiebings and dyed it black, which I'm rethinking and wishing I had dyed it a dark brown instead.

Here's a picture of the first pass, since I'll be dyeing it again. It looks "streaky" but I'm sure this will change once I condition it.

katev, I've found that conditioning (especially Blackrocks) diminishes that irridescence quite a bit.

I'll post pictures once it's all done.

Thank you SO much for sharing this awesome rehab with us! It looks fabulous....I am totally down with the sheen of the finished product. It is retro and modern at the same time! Great Job!

Good news! I just rubbed black rocks onto my dyed navy city bag and at first it was scary because a lot of blue color came off. But the stuff that came off is the shiny, irridescent, purplish sheen. Right now that bag is looking much better! I hope this works well!