Coach Rehab and Rescue Club

[GoStanford]

Just gave a brown Jancie Legacy a bath...she drying
I did take before pics and will post once she all pretty

She was really not bad - I think a coat of Leather CPR will do the trick

Yes ADDICTING!!!

It's so neat to see that bag fans like CforC also enjoy rehabbing! I have done rehabs on two bags and it is so therapeutic to feel successful on a crafts project - I am not crafty at all otherwise.

Janice was my first Coach ever and then I went and consigned her last year and regretted it. If I had thought it through and has any inkling the classic bags were coming back I would have kept the bag!

I think all my purchases now are attempts to replace the sentimental value of that original Janice bag.

 

[Porter4]

I've just revealed a vintage Collegiate bag rehab (see link below) and I would be interested in hearing the opinions of other rehabbers about the approach I used to address a strap alteration. Do you think it looks okay and that it will hold up over time? Thanks!

http://forum.purseblog.com/coach/po...problem-rehab-reveal-772093.html#post22771066

I was laughing when you mentioned your friend punching a hole in the strap of the tan City, because I cringed as I read your post Great self control on your part to not let on of "the horror!" After seeing your solution I wondered if you could make a kind of ring with thread that was the same color as the thread used on the bag straps. Possibly take several threads, kind of twist them together and then knot them off at the right size, trimming excess. I have seen this on store bags before. You could use sewing tack to attach it to the bag possibly... Great job on the rehab!

 

[gingerpeach]

Yeah,the red twill with black leather trim I washed had some dye staining issues. Maybe take it old school upholstery cleaning method with soap bubbles and spot cleaning.

The perfume smell was driving me crazy so I went ahead and dunked her before I lost my nerve. Exterior is black and lining is very dark brown so hopefully any color transfer will not be noticeable. Soaking now... will let you all know how it turns out.

 

[katev]

Yeah,the red twill with black leather trim I washed had some dye staining issues. Maybe take it old school upholstery cleaning method with soap bubbles and spot cleaning.

I have a light blue twill bag with black trim and it needs a bath but I am afraid to dunk it; let me know if you figure out something that works well, thanks!

 

[katev]

I was laughing when you mentioned your friend punching a hole in the strap of the tan City, because I cringed as I read your post Great self control on your part to not let on of "the horror!" After seeing your solution I wondered if you could make a kind of ring with thread that was the same color as the thread used on the bag straps. Possibly take several threads, kind of twist them together and then knot them off at the right size, trimming excess. I have seen this on store bags before. You could use sewing tack to attach it to the bag possibly... Great job on the rehab!

Good idea, thanks!

 

[crazyforcoach09]

It's so neat to see that bag fans like CforC also enjoy rehabbing! I have done rehabs on two bags and it is so therapeutic to feel successful on a crafts project - I am not crafty at all otherwise.

Janice was my first Coach ever and then I went and consigned her last year and regretted it. If I had thought it through and has any inkling the classic bags were coming back I would have kept the bag!

I think all my purchases now are attempts to replace the sentimental value of that original Janice bag.

Jajaja. I think the classic r the best bags coach made n i regret sellin all of mine but i am finding cheap. I think rehabin is cool. I look at jess n katev's n i say i will b prfessionals like them one day. Their reveals make u wanna slow down on deletes n rehab more. I have one bag tht might b a lil hard but i will not give up bc i know katev is just a PM away. It is a willis but i will hve to wrk on the inside bc its not a pretty. Going to mke it look pretty n give to my mom. I won a city bag blk for 16. I was soooooooooo happppppy. Cant wait for her to get here.

 

[Esquared72]

Jajaja. I think the classic r the best bags coach made n i regret sellin all of mine but i am finding cheap. I think rehabin is cool. I look at jess n katev's n i say i will b prfessionals like them one day. Their reveals make u wanna slow down on deletes n rehab more. I have one bag tht might b a lil hard but i will not give up bc i know katev is just a PM away. It is a willis but i will hve to wrk on the inside bc its not a pretty. Going to mke it look pretty n give to my mom. I won a city bag blk for 16. I was soooooooooo happppppy. Cant wait for her to get here.

I just finished rehabbing a black City and I looooove that bag! I switched back into it yesterday because I missed carrying her. I have a navy City Bag in the to-do pile. She's a filthy mess, but I got her for $7! Determined to make her gorgeous again.

I also sold off most of my classic Coach bags and could smack myself now, but I am loving finding these bags that others were ready to chuck and making them all purty and full of purpose again!

 

[crazyforcoach09]

I just finished rehabbing a black City and I looooove that bag! I switched back into it yesterday because I missed carrying her. I have a navy City Bag in the to-do pile. She's a filthy mess, but I got her for $7! Determined to make her gorgeous again.

I also sold off most of my classic Coach bags and could smack myself now, but I am loving finding these bags that others were ready to chuck and making them all purty and full of purpose again!

Omg. I love finding them cheap. I want navy n british tan city

 

[Esquared72]

Hmmm...working on polishing the hardware on my Watermelon Tote and it's pretty frustrating. The ball chain on the hang tag polished up bright and beautiful. The clasp of the kiss lock polished up pretty well though there is some wear at the spot where the stress of opening/closing occurs. The weirdness is the metal on the handles - it is really hard to capture with my phone camera, but no matter how much I polish, it's dull, dingy and gray looking:

And...the pull ring on the zipper looks copper (I know it isn't, but it sure looks it - bright like a new penny!) I'm perplexed...is it just that the brass is really old and discolored and will take a LOT more elbow grease (ugh)? Or is there plated metal on parts of the bag and no amount of polishing will make it shiny again?

 

[Esquared72]

Dingy handle hardware aside, she's coming along nicely. Here she is after her first application of Black Rocks:

 

[katev]

Hmmm...working on polishing the hardware on my Watermelon Tote and it's pretty frustrating. The ball chain on the hang tag polished up bright and beautiful. The clasp of the kiss lock polished up pretty well though there is some wear at the spot where the stress of opening/closing occurs. The weirdness is the metal on the handles - it is really hard to capture with my phone camera, but no matter how much I polish, it's dull, dingy and gray looking:
View attachment 1857698

And...the pull ring on the zipper looks copper (I know it isn't, but it sure looks it - bright like a new penny!) I'm perplexed...is it just that the brass is really old and discolored and will take a LOT more elbow grease (ugh)? Or is there plated metal on parts of the bag and no amount of polishing will make it shiny again?

Plated base metal was used on parts of some vintage bags. Try touching your hardware with a magnet and if it sticks it is not brass, it may be brass plated. Below are recent posts by myself and Porter4 about this issue. I once replaced a dingy pull ring on vintage bag with a split ring.

I was hoping for some feedback on this bag. I am working on a VERY abused Swagger bag today. Hyacinth took a look at it and said it looked ok. I dunked her today and when she came out I noticed her zipper pull looks pretty bad:

It appears to be flaking....is that something a Coach authentic pull does? I realize the pull could have been replaced, should I put her back up for Hyacinth to look at? Anyone seen this before on one of their bags? The leather on the pull is an exact match, but not sure if that makes any difference.

Yes, authentic bags can do that, some are brass plated and when the plating wears off they are just a plain base metal that can corrode, as the pull ring on your bag has done.

I had a similar situation with a beat-up bag that I rehabbed. It wasn't corroded but all the plating had worn away and after I shined up the hardware as much as possible I still hated the look of that dull, gray metal pull ring that didn't match the rest of the goldtone hardware on the bag.

I finally decided to remove and replace the ring, although this meant altering the bag from the original condition. I borrowed a wire cutter from my husband's tool bench and cut the ring off, then I threaded a similar sized, brass split ring onto the zipper pull and the pull tab.

I was lucky and had an old keyring around the house that had just the right size ring for my bag, but you can buy split rings pretty inexpensively at hardware or hobby stores or online.

At the link below are before and after pics of the bag so that you can see the change. Good luck!

http://forum.purseblog.com/coach/resurrection-not-rehab-this-bag-is-back-dead-658297.html

 

[Esquared72]

Plated base metal was used on parts of some vintage bags. Try touching your hardware with a magnet and if it sticks it is not brass, it may be brass plated. Below are recent posts by myself and Porter4 about this issue. I once replaced a dingy pull ring on vintage bag with a split ring.

Yup. It's plated (thanks for the magnet test idea!). Since it's the metal that holds the handles, guess I'll just have to get used to it, as I don't think I can do any kind of swap out that would maintain the look of the rectangular metal rings. They'll just be part of her vintage charm.

 

[katev]

Yup. It's plated (thanks for the magnet test idea!). Since it's the metal that holds the handles, guess I'll just have to get used to it, as I don't think I can do any kind of swap out that would maintain the look of the rectangular metal rings. They'll just be part of her vintage charm.

You might try taking the bag to a jeweler to ask if anything could be done to improve the look of the metal.

Or you might take the bag to the the boutique store and ask for advice. Coach still uses that type of hardware because they still make bags like the classic city bag. They will probably suggest sending it in to Coach for repair for a $20 fee. I think for a bag that special, it would be worth trying to have Coach do an authentic repair. If you send it in to coach tell them that you want the bag back even if it can't be repaired.

Here's another idea but it would mean altering the bag and changing the appearance. I was thinking that you might be able to use the D rings for Willis bags to replace the strap rings on your bag because they are flat on the bottom. See the link below from Silver-Coach so that you know the rings I am talking about.

I have been told that Coach will send free replacement D rings for Willis bags. They probably won't send more than 2 at a time because there are only 2 on a willis, but if you called Jax and told them you needed 2 brass D rings for your willis and then ask a friend or relative to call and request 2 more. Just an idea. Good luck!

http://www.ebay.com/itm/BRASS-NICKE...t=US_CSA_WH_Handbags&var=&hash=item5ae3dd04c1

 

[Esquared72]

You might try taking the bag to a jeweler to ask if anything could be done to improve the look of the metal.

You might take the bag to the the boutique store and ask for advice. Coach still uses that type of hardware because they still make bags like the classic city bag. They will probably suggest sending it in to Coach for repair for a $20 fee. I think for a bag that special, it would be worth trying to have Coach do a authentic repair. If you send it in to coach tell them that you want the bag back even if it can't be repaired.

Here's another idea but it would mean altering the bag and changing the appearance. I was thinking that you might be able to use the D rings for Willis bags to replace the strap rings on your bag because they are flat on the bottom. See the link below from Silver-Coach so that you know the rings I am talking about.

I have been told that Coach will send free replacement D rings for Willis bags. They probably won't send more than 2 at a time because there are only 2 on a willis, but if you called Jax and told them you needed 2 brass D rings for your willis and you ask a friend or relative to call and request 2 more. Just an idea. Good luck!

http://www.ebay.com/itm/BRASS-NICKEL-NEW-O-E-M-REPLACEMENT-D-RINGS-FOR-COACH-WILLIS-WINNIE-MURPHY-BAG-/390369969345?pt=US_CSA_WH_Handbags&var=&hash=item5ae3dd04c1

The Willis ring idea is an interesting one...wouldn't be exact but may look good - would probably add a little length to the strap drop, too, since the current rings are pretty small.

I'll be honest...not sure about going to Coach. Since she's 35 years old, I think it would definitely fall under normal wear and tear. LOL. I'd likely send it in just to have it sent back.

I'll try the jeweler route first to see if they have any suggestions. In the meantime, she's such a cutie, that I'll probably take her for a spin this week - she's gonna be a great bag for the office.

 

[Jessi319]

Just gave a brown Jancie Legacy a bath...she drying
I did take before pics and will post once she all pretty

She was really not bad - I think a coat of Leather CPR will do the trick

Yes ADDICTING!!!

Youre jumping in with both feet I see!! Great bag!!
I have a brown Janice that I am going to be rehabbing too!! I just did a British Tan not long ago and a black one which I'm giving to my friend for her birthday.