Coach Rehab and Rescue Club

[hetha2001]

Does anyone have any ideas on how to clean a suede tote (I think this may be a Soho tote, number F10920)? I've taken this bag to the cobbler and the fur shop in town. Neither will clean it and neither would dye it (they say their dye would come off on my clothes when wearing the purse). The fur shop manager did show me how to use a rag and some Palmolive and water, but I was hoping for more drastic cleaning. I've dunked unlined leather before but was concerned about dunking suede. Not sure why, they are both leather, right? I was thinking of a soak in Dawn and water, dry and restore the nap with a brush. Has anyone tried this? Or putting the bag in a lingerie bag and washing it in the delicates cycle of the washer? It was $10 from the local thrift shop, so I'm willing to take a bit of risk in hopes of making it look a bit nicer. OR has anyone tried to dye suede??? Any ideas welcome!

 

[whateve]

Does anyone have any ideas on how to clean a suede tote (I think this may be a Soho tote, number F10920)? I've taken this bag to the cobbler and the fur shop in town. Neither will clean it and neither would dye it (they say their dye would come off on my clothes when wearing the purse). The fur shop manager did show me how to use a rag and some Palmolive and water, but I was hoping for more drastic cleaning. I've dunked unlined leather before but was concerned about dunking suede. Not sure why, they are both leather, right? I was thinking of a soak in Dawn and water, dry and restore the nap with a brush. Has anyone tried this? Or putting the bag in a lingerie bag and washing it in the delicates cycle of the washer? It was $10 from the local thrift shop, so I'm willing to take a bit of risk in hopes of making it look a bit nicer. OR has anyone tried to dye suede??? Any ideas welcome! View attachment 4376695View attachment 4376696

I've washed a lined suede bag in the sink. I've also dyed one. I can tell you Fiebing's suede dye doesn't work. It looks great until you brush the suede, then all the dye comes off. I ended up using RIT (without salt). If you can get it clean enough without dyeing, that is the way to go. It is very hard to get the dye on evenly.

 

[hetha2001]

I've washed a lined suede bag in the sink. I've also dyed one. I can tell you Fiebing's suede dye doesn't work. It looks great until you brush the suede, then all the dye comes off. I ended up using RIT (without salt). If you can get it clean enough without dyeing, that is the way to go. It is very hard to get the dye on evenly.

I'm going to try it to wash it! I'll let you all know if it works.

 

[whateve]

I'm going to try it to wash it! I'll let you all know if it works.

You can scrub it in the bath. Please post after pictures.

ETA: Make sure you don't use Soilove. That's why I had to dye mine. It bleached it out in spots.

 

[catthecurious]

For a light conditioning, as in the bag is in decent shape, I have used Lexol conditioner first as a go to and have graduated to Cadillac Supreme. My guess would be the Coach moisturizer would be good. I have heard people says good things about it on other threads. For curiosity sake, I plan on picking up a bottle next time I go to an outlet. I would be hesitant to use a weatherproof creme or mink oil product as there is a possibility they have silicone or sealant products, which would be overkill for my bags. And sealants affect future conditioning. Great for boots and shoes though, who are subject to more abuse.
I am doing a light condition every few uses, it seems these days.
I use Lexol leather cleaner to dunk, as I heard of it early on in another blog, but have used Dawn (hey if it cleans up oily ducks!), my go to in the kitchen and my Castile soap facial cleanser. All work for me. YMMV! For light cleaning, I like to put water and a little Lexol cleaner in a bucket. Wipe down the bag with a damp cloth, then wipe down with the Lexol solution. Saddle soap always struck me as too heavy, waxy for my bags. Great for shoes and saddles though.
As cheap/frugal as I can be, esp with bag purchases, I am willing to spend $ to experiment and try different leather products. Since this is a hobby for me, as well as means of purchasing bags that I use and enjoy, if I spend a little on something that is a hit or miss, it pays off in knowledge for what does and doesn’t work.

Hey LE, if you're wary of using leather care products with silicone, you might want to think twice before buying the Coach moisturizer... It does contain silicone, and it's #1 on the list of the ingredients:

 

[whateve]

Hey LE, if you're wary of using leather care products with silicone, you might want to think twice before buying the Coach moisturizer... It does contain silicone, and it's #1 on the list of the ingredients:

That's why we don't usually recommend Coach moisturizer. I'm surprised it is listed in the ingredients still. I had heard they had started making it without.

On top of that, it is a really small bottle for a big price.
I have the cleaner, which I guess works okay, but I hate the bottle. It would be so much more useful in a spray bottle like Lexol.

 

[Lake Effect]

Hey LE, if you're wary of using leather care products with silicone, you might want to think twice before buying the Coach moisturizer... It does contain silicone, and it's #1 on the list of the ingredients:

Thank you!! It doesn't surprise me, though.

 

[zooba]

Anyone here have a vintage Coach briefcase or satchel?

The husband has asked me to source a laptop bag for him [emoji3][emoji3].

He's really tall, so I would ideally need a long strap drop so he can wear cross body. Does such a bag exist? I was checking out a listing for an Essex, but the strap looks like a shoulder carry length.

Any suggestions welcome!

I have a vintage Lexington that might be an option.


I found this thread 2 years ago when looked at my father's leather folio from the 70s. Started dunking Coach bags last summer to practice. Along the way discovered the perfect bag for me (stewardess) and have been rehabbing bags for friends and family. Thanks for sharing your expertise!!

 

[Ammrx]

I dunked my Bleecker bag. It might look worse now than before. I understand that this can happen with reds/pinks. It bled so much it looked like a bloodbath and now it is blotchy. I have used a couple of coats of leather cpr on it. Do I just finish up with blackrock and call it as good as it gets or are there other things I should try ?

 

[Cyanide Rose]

Red is very tricky. My red bag was blotchy and I had to dunk it again making sure it was wet evenly and then let it dry. It did dry evenly after that. My red dinky was worse after dunking but the color evened out after a while. These red bags and their leather is all so different, it’s may just be a waiting game honestly.

 

[catthecurious]

so I have a question about replacing d rings and hang tags. Can these be gotten from coach ? If not, do any of you guys have a favorite source you from could share. Thanks for the information.

Here is a thread about a British Tan Willis that I rehabbed that needed parts, including a D ring:

https://forum.purseblog.com/threads/coach-rehab-and-rescue-club.833400/page-914#post-31379596

You can call Coach or email them to get hangtags. There is a limit. If you are near a store, preferably an outlet, they usually have a box of hangtags that have fallen off bags. I got a d ring once from an SA at a Coach store but that was a really long time ago. I don't know if they will provide those. If not, you can get them on ebay. This seller specializes in Coach parts: http://www.ebaystores.com/SCECKERT-...l?_fsub=8&_sid=14491045&_trksid=p4634.c0.m322

I got a D-ring at the Coach store last year when stopped by for a replacement hangtag. The SA's usually go to the back of the store and bring a hangtag or two back, but this girl brought back a small plastic organizer with several drawers that contained various parts. Since I was looking for a D-ring of a specific size, I asked her and she found one for me. So they usually do have different replacement parts, they just don't take them out unless you ask.

 

[WishingonaCoach]

I got a D-ring at the Coach store last year when stopped by for a replacement hangtag. The SA's usually go to the back of the store and bring a hangtag or two back, but this girl brought back a small plastic organizer with several drawers that contained various parts. Since I was looking for a D-ring of a specific size, I asked her and she found one for me. So they usually do have different replacement parts, they just don't take them out unless you ask.

It depends on the sales associate that is helping you out. I had a very nice lady once that when I asked for a replacement tag, brought me three to chose from, and when I said two of them were perfect but I couldn't decide which one, gave me both.
After a year or better, I went back and asked for a simple black or silver and this time the guy that was helping me, said no... we do not have any extra tags or parts.

 

[Morgan_Bellini]

Silly question maybe but any thoughts on dunking bags in a stainless steel kitchen sink? I'm ready to dunk my Bleecker duffle but the dang thing is big enough to double as a sleeping bag and it won't lay flat in the plastic tub I usually use for dunking. I was able to find one post about using a stainless steel basin but most of the rehab pics I've seen show a plastic tub with purse colored water. I don't want to wreck my sink.

 

[catthecurious]

That's why we don't usually recommend Coach moisturizer. I'm surprised it is listed in the ingredients still. I had heard they had started making it without.

On top of that, it is a really small bottle for a big price.
I have the cleaner, which I guess works okay, but I hate the bottle. It would be so much more useful in a spray bottle like Lexol.

Unless the ratio of the ingredients is different, the newer version is fully identical to the older one. This is the bottle that I've had for years:

 

[Cyanide Rose]

Silly question maybe but any thoughts on dunking bags in a stainless steel kitchen sink? I'm ready to dunk my Bleecker duffle but the dang thing is big enough to double as a sleeping bag and it won't lay flat in the plastic tub I usually use for dunking. I was able to find one post about using a stainless steel basin but most of the rehab pics I've seen show a plastic tub with purse colored water. I don't want to wreck my sink.

I always use a stainless sink to dunk my bags [emoji4]