I took this pic for Passenger Seat. I love all the stuff I can cram in this bag. Market Tote.
Coach Rehab and Rescue Club
- Thread starter greenpixie
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Hi! *waves* If you scroll through old posts, you will see alot of us here avoid shoe polish like the plague. Shoes are different beasts than hand bags and once shoe polish is applied to a handbag, chemicals in it affect the leather and it is a beast, if not impossible to remove. Do a search of this thread first for shoe polish. I have read posts where people have used a Melantonian shoe cream, which some say is different and okay to use.
Read through the posts to see many of us wash or *dunk* our bags first in a water bath with Dawn soap, castille soap or Lexol leather cleaners. As the bag dries over a few days, it is stuffed with towels and applications of deeper leather conditioners like Leather THERAPY or Leather CPR are applied, with buffing in between. Then a final finisher, like Blackrock is applied. And more buffing.
Oops, hit post too soon! If you still want more color, some use acrylic paints or dyes. IMO, the Search feature is the bomb. Use it with any keyword to find out how others used procucts or solve problems. Good luck!
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Hi everyone! I bought a vintage Willis bag back in August from eBay. This is my first Coach bag. Unfortunately, I didn't realize when I purchased it that the strap had been modified and was shortened significantly (many thanks to the lovely folks on the authentication thread for pointing this out!). I've been meaning to replace it so I can wear the bag as a crossbody. The other day the strap itself broke, so I'm now in desperate need of a replacement as I have no other purses. The bag is black leather and in otherwise excellent condition. Where can I find a replacement strap?
Thanks so much!
Thanks so much!
Sorry to hear about the broken strap!
eBay is probably your best bet. Search for "coach black leather replacement strap" and make sure you select the length, width and hardware you want to match your bag. Some straps are adjustable with a buckle, some are not. Some have brass colored hardware, some nickel. Some are brand new, not made by Coach, and some are vintage Coach. It's a good idea to know which type of strap will suit you best. Good luck!
This is exactly what I needed, thank you so much! I think I found the perfect replacement strap
Hi there, New to the PF. Can anyone give me some links to directions or personal insights on bathing techniques for my vintage Legacy leather Coach bags? Got some good eBay finds that ended up reeking of cigarette smoke. I think there is a tar build-up actually on the leather. The others are just filthy. Cheers!Waverly hobo came out of the bath and is black, not navy, as it appeared in the store. It's amazing what a bath can do to bring out the original color! I shouldn't be that surprised as I have two boys who are usually a different color going into the bath from when they come out
Hi, welcome! See my full quote to check out my general process. Mind you others here have much more experience than me. I have not had to do cigarette smoke removal (yet). It is discussed regularly and I believe it was discussed in the last week or so. I don't necessarily apply Obenauf's Oil to all the bags I rehab, more so with darker bags that need conditioning ( and please make a note somewhere that there is an entirely different product called Obenauf's Leather Protecter!) but this my general routine. Usually do it right in my kitchen sink. I have not done any serious brass cleaning (yet) but others here can help with that. Suede and Nubuc get a little different handling. Side note: several people have sworn off nubuc, they will tell their stories, as needed, I am sure! And we love to see before and after pics to!
Welcome! I started my rehabbing hobby with a Coach Court I found at Goodwill. She was so dry and flattened. I searched this forum and found a lot of great tips to get started. I still consider myself a newbie, but I love seeing how the bags look so nice when complete. I don't have any tips on getting rid of smoke, but others might. I bathe in lukewarm water with mild dish soap and the brush lightly with a toothbrush. I then rinse in another bath. I love this forum as I am always learning new tricks and tips for rehabbing. Definitely an addicting hobby!
Thanks for your response. I am busy searching the boards and collecting snippets of info and I am now obsessed with rehabbing! I have a bag to experiment on and will post pictures. I hope to get started this weekend. So happy I found this forum!
Thanks for responding! I think I'm already obsessed! Going to get started this weekend on a Legacy bag from eBay that ended up being in worse shape than I thought. I think it's the Perfect Storm of issues. There are spots where someone tried to remove gunk and ended up scrubbing so hard they lightened the leather, but didn't get rid of the gunk, caked filth, grease spots, an ink stain, and a bit of worn piping. How did I not know that bag rehab is a thing!Welcome! I started my rehabbing hobby with a Coach Court I found at Goodwill. She was so dry and flattened. I searched this forum and found a lot of great tips to get started. I still consider myself a newbie, but I love seeing how the bags look so nice when complete. I don't have any tips on getting rid of smoke, but others might. I bathe in lukewarm water with mild dish soap and the brush lightly with a toothbrush. I then rinse in another bath. I love this forum as I am always learning new tricks and tips for rehabbing. Definitely an addicting hobby!
I tried my first dye job few days ago. Surprisingly it wasn't as messy as I thought it would be! I used Fieblings and it seemed to absorb pretty good and quick into the leather! The top of the bag had pretty bad color fading and it looks so much better now! Before: 
