Yes, but you'd have to like studio flaps. They're hard to sell.
Coach Rehab and Rescue Club
- Thread starter greenpixie
- Start date
TPF may earn a commission from merchant affiliate
links, including eBay, Amazon, and others
Hello, newbie here! I just received a Coach briefcase that is in awful shape (just the exterior, the interior looks as though it is brand new) and I wanted to know if it is salvageable and if it is, how would I go about restoring it to its former glory? Any tips or advice is appreciated, thank you!
QUOTE="Aterhune, post: 32385986, member: 645579"]Hello, newbie here! I just received a Coach briefcase that is in awful shape (just the exterior, the interior looks as though it is brand new) and I wanted to know if it is salvageable and if it is, how would I go about restoring it to its former glory? Any tips or advice is appreciated, thank you!View attachment 4113848View attachment 4113849View attachment 4113850View attachment 4113852View attachment 4113853View attachment 4113854[/QUOTE]
I’ve rehabbed its twin. Got it in a similar condition, dunked, conditioned, put some acrylic paint (mixed with conditioner) on the edges, finished with Blackrock. Unfortunately, the leather quality on these is not what it used to be on the older bags. The creases have never recovered, and any new scratch stays there forever instead of gradually blending in. This is my before and after pictures, but it doesn’t look like that anymore - my husband really abuses his bags.
I’ve rehabbed its twin. Got it in a similar condition, dunked, conditioned, put some acrylic paint (mixed with conditioner) on the edges, finished with Blackrock. Unfortunately, the leather quality on these is not what it used to be on the older bags. The creases have never recovered, and any new scratch stays there forever instead of gradually blending in. This is my before and after pictures, but it doesn’t look like that anymore - my husband really abuses his bags.
So I rid myself of the demon bag, which had been the darling bag. Now I am thinking of divesting myself of several other vintage Dooneys. What can I say? It's kind of like the end of a love affair -- when you're disappointed, you want to throw out all his stuff. (I do love the wacky Dooney vintage styling, though.) Coach never disappoints like that -- those bags wear like iron. Even filthy, you can see the good bones. I picked up two sad cases yesterday on thrifting rounds -- a Gallery bag from the early 1990s and a vintage two-tone Swagger. If someone wants a cheap rehab, someone (not me) is selling a black and tan Swagger for $14 on ebay. She doesn't know what it is, so it is not listed as such.
Sad... I don't know why I still have mine.. I guess I kept it for parts. Its strap is good. I have this idea that sometime I will figure out how to make cool stuff out of leather scraps so if I keep some nice leather I can then use it. I also have a bunch of Dooney's I often think of getting rid of just coz I have too many bags.
I started with vintage AWL Dooneys before I got hooked on Coach. I owned a lot of Dooneys at one time, but I'm down to only two bags and one wallet now. I love them, but nothing rehabs like a vintage Coach!
You will need a lot of layers to build it up to that level. You could start by possibly glueing down what remains of the edging. It will not turn out prefect. It's really a bummer they always use that kind of edging on new Coach these days. It never lasts!
Those are mold stains. I don't think you'll be able to get rid of them. If it gets bad, they will indent. Wipe with vinegar or put in the sun to make sure it is dead.
Ack! That’s what I was afraid of. It’s on the inside too, which might be too much with my mold allergy! Thanks for the info, I appreciate it! You guys are the best!
Hi everyone! I have a couple of recent thrifting finds I did a small rehab (?) to. The first photo shows both before.
The red bag ( I have not looked up the style name yet) I would like to use as a crossbody, so needed to figure out a way to lengthen the strap. I won't ever wear it as an armpit bag. Hate those super short straps. The strap on the black bag - a Tribeca Bucket Bag- is pretty worn, so I needed a replacement. I put 3 coats of leather cream on the black bag, it was pretty faded and sad looking, but didn't think it was bad enough for a full dunking process.
As you can see in the above image, the bag had a buckle closure on the strap so there is still the post thingy from the buckle. Does that look silly? I will have to try it to find out if it is pokey while wearing. I didn't really want to permanently alter the bag, this way I can go back or sell it in it's original form.
The black bag I am pretty happy with, other than the hardware not matching, but that doesn't bother me much. The original strap is still usable, but worn. It is thinner leather than the bag. Does anyone have hints to rehab it? The straps were a Target clearance find- knockoffs of the Valentino straps- they were in and out of Target fast, glad I snagged a couple, and mad at myself for not buying the whole darn lot of them. Tell me what you think, if I might need to dunk the black bag after all, or if the buckle thing looks funny. Thank You!
The red bag ( I have not looked up the style name yet) I would like to use as a crossbody, so needed to figure out a way to lengthen the strap. I won't ever wear it as an armpit bag. Hate those super short straps. The strap on the black bag - a Tribeca Bucket Bag- is pretty worn, so I needed a replacement. I put 3 coats of leather cream on the black bag, it was pretty faded and sad looking, but didn't think it was bad enough for a full dunking process.
As you can see in the above image, the bag had a buckle closure on the strap so there is still the post thingy from the buckle. Does that look silly? I will have to try it to find out if it is pokey while wearing. I didn't really want to permanently alter the bag, this way I can go back or sell it in it's original form.
The black bag I am pretty happy with, other than the hardware not matching, but that doesn't bother me much. The original strap is still usable, but worn. It is thinner leather than the bag. Does anyone have hints to rehab it? The straps were a Target clearance find- knockoffs of the Valentino straps- they were in and out of Target fast, glad I snagged a couple, and mad at myself for not buying the whole darn lot of them. Tell me what you think, if I might need to dunk the black bag after all, or if the buckle thing looks funny. Thank You!
Can't really see the pokey thing much in the photo. Can you possible bend it back far enough to tuck under the thing the other strap goes in to? That way maybe it won't poke you.
On the red bag, personally I think I'd remove the short brown parts with the buckles, and clip the new strap directly to the large silver rings on the bag. You'd lose a little length, and it would permanently alter the bag, but IMO it would look a bit better, and you wouldn't have to worry about the buckle tongues poking you.
The new strap on the black bag looks great -- definitely an improvement over the worn, thin black strap it had on it!