Coach Rehab and Rescue Club

[catthecurious]

I've never tried rehabbing this particular bag but I've tried other Legacy bags from the same collection, and I failed miserably. For some reason, no matter what I did generally made the bags worse. I tried to paint the worn colors but instead of the paint covering up the wear, it made it darker as if I had painted it with water. I tried many different kinds of paint and nothing worked. I did paint an entire Legacy bag with wood n stuff leather refinisher but that was after I had dipped the bag in RIT dye. I think that dipping may have made the leather more receptive to the paint. I made a horrible mistake when I dipped in the RIT in that I used the hot water that is recommended and it melted off all the brown edge coating.

I hope your experience is better than mine.

I don't have any experience with that type of bags, but your post, @whateve, made me think what if the leather they're made of is especially porous and absorbent and just sucks in the paint that would normally stay on the surface? It's pure speculation, but maybe covering the area with some sort of leather-friendly sealant (clear Edge Kote?) and THEN with the paint would work better?

 

[katev]

(damn autocorrect... I always proofread before posting, but sometimes that sneaky bastard manages to switch similarly looking words... It's Madison *project*, not protect, and *tried* polishing, not tired - although, yes, it sure is often tiresome, LoL!)

Thank you, Kate!

Guess I'm not very hesitant dunking-wise because that Copley is in a very sad condition... Got it locally and couldn't resist the rare Citron color - although even after bargaining I had to pay more than the top $20 I'd normally pay for the VERY seasoned purse.

Don't mind long drying time at all! I actually complain sometimes my bags get dry too fast because I like taking my time reshaping them over and over... guess I'm overly fixated on that.

Just ordered a tube of Wenol which I've been meaning to try for a while... I know it's your go-to polish; I normally use Brasso -> 2×2 polishing squares -> shining cloth; from what I'm reading both Wenol and Brasso work chemically, but Wenol is better for fine metals.

Do you see advantage in polishing the hardware as finishing, not beginning step? I'm always afraid to damage the leather while cleaning non-removable locks and rings, but if something goes south, its easier to wash off immediately.

I usually wait to the end before polishing brass but I hate hardware cleaning so that might be the reason!

 

[katev]

deleted duplicate

 

[katev]

View attachment 4393232
I think I'll end up moisturizing instead if these bags are so difficult. I got this for 30 bucks and I'd hate to ruin it.

You're bag was released in 2012 and it is called the Legacy Leather Medium Candace Carryall, style number 19890. I know that it came is a few red shades, including a dark Cherry Red. The bag in the picture below is in an orangish red shade called Carnelian.

I am not an authenticator but I don't see any problems with your bag and it seems to be authentic. It appears that your bag is missing the decorative tassels and the hangtag but you can get a free silver metal hangtag from Coach Customer Service as mentioned. Call them soon because sometimes is takes awhile for it to arrive - but it is genuine and free!

You could try to find replacement tassels on ebay but I wouldn't bother because it would be hard to make sure that you are getting the same shade of red. You can always decorate the bag with a pretty charm if you wish. Or you could look for tassels in a contrasting color, like navy or black, that would look nice and no need to worry about matching.

I think moisturizing is good but I would try giving it a bath first because it is a grubby and misshapen, but it is a beautiful bag and it has a lot of potential - and it only cost $30!

 

[katev]

View attachment 4393232
I think I'll end up moisturizing instead if these bags are so difficult. I got this for 30 bucks and I'd hate to ruin it.

BTW, your bag originally sold for $398 in 2012 - nice find!

Also, ask others here for advice before you dunk the bag. Red bags are tricky and it might work fine just to surface clean and condition it - I have a tendency to give bags a bath whenever I can because I like to make sure that they are clean and have the chance to reshape them - but red bags are tricky and I have never rehabbed a bag from that legacy line.

 

[Morgan_Bellini]

I just received this Manor bag today and lookit what the silly previous owner did to the brass rings. Would this bother you guys? Are these rings replaceable? Would you guys send the bag back? I'm bummed. What the heck is the purpose of this??

 

[aerinha]

My British tan court bag arrived, made in USA. The leather is super supple, but really dirty looking. Debating if I want to wash it or wipe it because the leather on my now dry Willis lost something in the washing process. It has had several conditionings but it felt nicer before meeting water. Yet the court bag smells rather foot like...

 

[Morgan_Bellini]

My British tan court bag arrived, made in USA. The leather is super supple, but really dirty looking. Debating if I want to wash it or wipe it because the leather on my now dry Willis lost something in the washing process. It has had several conditionings but it felt nicer before meeting water. Yet the court bag smells rather foot like...

My courier didn't feel as nice after a dunk as it did before the dunk and I was disappointed but I took the advice of members here and just kept on applying conditioner and it's feeling really nice now. Soft and supple. I have maybe 10 coats of CPR on it already and it's still taking more! The leather was very dry I guess. You could wipe first and see if it improves, then dunk later if it still looks dirty or smells footy. (Yuck!)

 

[aerinha]

My courier didn't feel as nice after a dunk as it did before the dunk and I was disappointed but I took the advice of members here and just kept on applying conditioner and it's feeling really nice now. Soft and supple. I have maybe 10 coats of CPR on it already and it's still taking more! The leather was very dry I guess. You could wipe first and see if it improves, then dunk later if it still looks dirty or smells footy. (Yuck!)

I think I need to buy come CPR. I’ve been using Apple, which has worked well before, but on this, not so much. It’s not dry, but it’s like butter which it was before I found it was full of animal fur, freaked and dunked it.

I may try wiping the Court and seeing how it goes, debating if I want to try to return it as it’s somewhat worse off than the listing made out (more discoloration, more rubs and a pen mark- all not listed or photographed). Oh and the edging on the top handle is really scuffed, I would not have bought this bag had I known all this. Sigh.

 

[aerinha]

I worked on my Willis’ strap. It had a couple cuts like this

I glued the flap of leather down and then used a small amount of black leather paint to secure it

 

[whateve]

I don't have any experience with that type of bags, but your post, @whateve, made me think what if the leather they're made of is especially porous and absorbent and just sucks in the paint that would normally stay on the surface? It's pure speculation, but maybe covering the area with some sort of leather-friendly sealant (clear Edge Kote?) and THEN with the paint would work better?

I think I tried that too.

 

[whateve]

(damn autocorrect... I always proofread before posting, but sometimes that sneaky bastard manages to switch similarly looking words... It's Madison *project*, not protect, and *tried* polishing, not tired - although, yes, it sure is often tiresome, LoL!)

Thank you, Kate!

Guess I'm not very hesitant dunking-wise because that Copley is in a very sad condition... Got it locally and couldn't resist the rare Citron color - although even after bargaining I had to pay more than the top $20 I'd normally pay for the VERY seasoned purse.

Don't mind long drying time at all! I actually complain sometimes my bags get dry too fast because I like taking my time reshaping them over and over... guess I'm overly fixated on that.

Just ordered a tube of Wenol which I've been meaning to try for a while... I know it's your go-to polish; I normally use Brasso -> 2×2 polishing squares -> shining cloth; from what I'm reading both Wenol and Brasso work chemically, but Wenol is better for fine metals.

Do you see advantage in polishing the hardware as finishing, not beginning step? I'm always afraid to damage the leather while cleaning non-removable locks and rings, but if something goes south, its easier to wash off immediately.

I find that when I polish the hardware first, I end up having to polish it again at the end. What I do sometimes is make a barrier on the leather with plastic wrap. Someone did it here with adhesive plastic wrap. She cut a hole in it, then stretched it over the turnlock so the leather was covered and the turnlock stuck out of the hole. I don't have the adhesive plastic wrap so it doesn't work as well for me.

 

[theblissfullyobsessed]

My British tan court bag arrived, made in USA. The leather is super supple, but really dirty looking. Debating if I want to wash it or wipe it because the leather on my now dry Willis lost something in the washing process. It has had several conditionings but it felt nicer before meeting water. Yet the court bag smells rather foot like...

My courier didn't feel as nice after a dunk as it did before the dunk and I was disappointed but I took the advice of members here and just kept on applying conditioner and it's feeling really nice now. Soft and supple. I have maybe 10 coats of CPR on it already and it's still taking more! The leather was very dry I guess. You could wipe first and see if it improves, then dunk later if it still looks dirty or smells footy. (Yuck!)

Hi, aerinha & MB!

I find it normal for bags not to be as supple just after washing but they will soften again after some use.

Here’s a snippet from a vintage Coach leaflet:
A FEW TIPS ON HOW TO CARE FOR YOUR COACH BAG
After it has dried, the leather may appear to be a little stiff, but as COACH Leather is rich in natural emollients, it will soon regain its characteristic suppleness.

 

[Catbird9]

I just received this Manor bag today and lookit what the silly previous owner did to the brass rings. Would this bother you guys? Are these rings replaceable? Would you guys send the bag back? I'm bummed. What the heck is the purpose of this??View attachment 4393446

I would be bummed too! I might send it back, but the rings are probably replaceable. You can get "open" brass d-rings on eBay. https://www.ebay.com/i/113522183026?chn=ps&var=413705686872

You might need to take it to a good cobbler to get the old d-rings removed and install new ones without scratching them up or damaging the leather.

 

[Morgan_Bellini]

I would be bummed too! I might send it back, but the rings are probably replaceable. You can get "open" brass d-rings on eBay. https://www.ebay.com/i/113522183026?chn=ps&var=413705686872

You might need to take it to a good cobbler to get the old d-rings removed and install new ones without scratching them up or damaging the leather.

Thank you, I was looking for something like that! I love the bag, I might go ahead and replace the rings. Maybe the seller will give me a discount. Ugh I'm annoyed. The bag itself is in lovely condition, otherwise I'd just send it back.