Coach Rehab and Rescue Club

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#25,291
Splatnext said:
Looking at your beautiful Copely, is what makes me daubt my own abillities, while I have already dunked the beechnut Carlyle and she took no harm the Gramercy is so light, she is a little more grungy then the picture shows, I don't seem to be able to capture her true color, plus she needs restauration work done one the lower third edges that's what makes her look dirty.
The Gracie is the real suprise, first of all I had no concept of how diminutive she realy is.Second when I pulled the trigger, the Gracie seemed more of an aftertought.That was untill I unboxed her :loveeyes: :heart::heart: it's like the Gramercy and Biltmore had babies and I get to keep one.:hbeat:
Click to expand...

The first Italian Coach bag that I dunked was a black Gramercy Zip. It was misshapen, scuffed, and the suede lining and cloth pocket were very dirty. First I tried all the surface cleaning techniques and it improved the bag a little but not good enough to wear - so I gave her a bath. That made a big difference and the pocket and suede lining got very clean and I was lucky because they weren't stretched. There were still a few scuffed areas on the outside of the bag after bathing, but leather therapy & restorer brought back the shine. If you feel that giving it a bath is necessary, then I vote for giving it a bath!

I noticed that your gramercy needs a new hangtag and I am sure that any gold hangtag would be fine, but when I was rehabbing the Black Zip Gramercy I took a photo showing the differences between its hangtag and the standard gold hangtag. The gramercy hangtag is shorter, thicker, and the shape is a little differen.

Also below are before and after pics of my black gramercy zip - a bath can be a good thing IMO, even for a vintage Italian bag.

GramercyZipBlk 020.jpg

GramercyZipBlk 008.jpg

GramercyZipAfterCleaning 033.JPG
 
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#25,292
katev said:
The first Italian Coach bag that I dunked was a black Gramercy Zip. It was misshapen, scuffed, and the suede lining and cloth pocket were dirty. First I tried all the surface cleaning techniques and it improved the bag a little but not good enough to wear - so I gave her a bath. That made a big difference and the pocket and suede lining got very clean and I was lucky because they weren't stretched. There were still some dull, scuffed areas on the outside of the bag but leather therapy & restorer brought back the shine. If you feel that giving it a bath is necessary, then I vote for giving it a bath!

I noticed that your gramercy needs a new hangtag and I am sure that any gold hangtag would be fine, but when I was rehabbing the Black Zip Gramercy I took a photo showing the differences between its hangtag and the standard gold hangtag. The gramercy hangtag is shorter, thicker, and the shape is a little differen. Also below are before and after pics of the black gramercy zip - a bath can be a good thing, even for a vintage Italian bag.

View attachment 4653567

View attachment 4653574

View attachment 4653576
Click to expand...
I rehabbed the same bag! Mine was in even worse shape than yours to begin with. gramercy before c.JPG gramercy before f.JPG gramercy rehab023.jpg gramercy rehab005.jpg
 
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#25,295
Narnanz said:
Wow what a difference...did you have to dye it in places or did the conditioner work its magic?
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I painted it in places. I also had to add back some texture where it was completely worn. I used puff paint and pulled a toothpick through it in the crosshatch pattern. I didn't get rid of all the wrinkles near the zipper.

I bought it on ebay for less than $10 shipped so I was willing to experiment. It's a lot easier to get great results on a black bag.
 
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#25,296
whateve said:
I painted it in places. I also had to add back some texture where it was completely worn. I used puff paint and pulled a toothpick through it in the crosshatch pattern. I didn't get rid of all the wrinkles near the zipper.

I bought it on ebay for less than $10 shipped so I was willing to experiment. It's a lot easier to get great results on a black bag.
Click to expand...
I have to try and find that puff paint in Nz....need to find a putty colour. A store called spotlight has them but I would prefer to go to the store then buy from online. That way I can find the best colour to mix.
Would not have thought you had done all that...looks great.
 
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#25,297
Narnanz said:
I have to try and find that puff paint in Nz....need to find a putty colour. A store called spotlight has them but I would prefer to go to the store then buy from online. That way I can find the best colour to mix.
Would not have thought you had done all that...looks great.
Click to expand...
Thanks! Puff paint is also called fabric paint. It's what people use to paint on tee shirts. It goes on thicker than regular paint.
 
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#25,299
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#25,300
katev said:
The first Italian Coach bag that I dunked was a black Gramercy Zip. It was misshapen, scuffed, and the suede lining and cloth pocket were very dirty. First I tried all the surface cleaning techniques and it improved the bag a little but not good enough to wear - so I gave her a bath. That made a big difference and the pocket and suede lining got very clean and I was lucky because they weren't stretched. There were still a few scuffed areas on the outside of the bag after bathing, but leather therapy & restorer brought back the shine. If you feel that giving it a bath is necessary, then I vote for giving it a bath!

I noticed that your gramercy needs a new hangtag and I am sure that any gold hangtag would be fine, but when I was rehabbing the Black Zip Gramercy I took a photo showing the differences between its hangtag and the standard gold hangtag. The gramercy hangtag is shorter, thicker, and the shape is a little differen.

Also below are before and after pics of my black gramercy zip - a bath can be a good thing IMO, even for a vintage Italian bag.

View attachment 4653567

View attachment 4653574

View attachment 4653576
Click to expand...

whateve said:
I rehabbed the same bag! Mine was in even worse shape than yours to begin with. View attachment 4653578 View attachment 4653579 View attachment 4653581 View attachment 4653582
Click to expand...

Ladies you have no idea how much I appriciate all the encouragement and advice.
Katev I did notice the difference in the tag I hope you don't mind I downloaded your picture of the tags to my pc for further reference when I go tag hunting for the Gramercy.
Whateve I will order some white puffy paint from amazon do you think it would be ok to mix with with renapur to achive the color that I need for those edges?
 
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#25,302
Splatnext said:
Ladies you have no idea how much I appriciate all the encouragement and advice.
Katev I did notice the difference in the tag I hope you don't mind I downloaded your picture of the tags to my pc for further reference when I go tag hunting for the Gramercy.
Whateve I will order some white puffy paint from amazon do you think it would be ok to mix with with renapur to achive the color that I need for those edges?
Click to expand...

I don't mind at all, that's why I posted it!
 
#25,303
Did you guys who rehabbed these made-in-Italy bags use the same leather CPR/Blackrocks combo as with the vintage glove-tanned leather bags, or do you use different products? I read @katev that you used leather therapy and restorer, is there a particular reason? I’m currently eyeing some whether I should pull the trigger and buy but they aren’t in good condition.
 
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#25,304
CPSE said:
Did you guys who rehabbed these made-in-Italy bags use the same leather CPR/Blackrocks combo as with the vintage glove-tanned leather bags, or do you use different products? I read @katev that you used leather therapy and restorer, is there a particular reason? I’m currently eyeing some whether I should pull the trigger and buy but they aren’t in good condition.
Click to expand...

I haven't used any white, creamy leather conditioners like Leather CPR on the Vintage Italian Coach bags because they are textured and I was worried that the conditioner might cake up a bit between the bumps on the Madison bags or in the crosshatches on the Gramercy bag, but if you use a light touch and wipe off excess immediately it is probably okay.

The vintage Italian Coach have been "specially treated to maintain a new appearance over time" and that means that they have a sleek, shiny, textured surface. I have preferred to use light, clear conditioners to try and preserve that surface. If the bag is in great shape I usually just use Lexol conditioner but if it is in rougher shape then I have used Leather Therapy & Restorer; but I am sure that other rehabbers also have their favorite products.
 
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#25,305
CPSE said:
Did you guys who rehabbed these made-in-Italy bags use the same leather CPR/Blackrocks combo as with the vintage glove-tanned leather bags, or do you use different products? I read @katev that you used leather therapy and restorer, is there a particular reason? I’m currently eyeing some whether I should pull the trigger and buy but they aren’t in good condition.
Click to expand...

katev said:
I haven't used any white, creamy leather conditioners like Leather CPR on the Vintage Italian Coach bags because they are textured and I was worried that the conditioner might cake up a bit between the bumps on the Madison bags or in the crosshatches on the Gramercy bag, but if you use a light touch and wipe off excess immediately it is probably okay.

The vintage Italian Coach have been "specially treated to maintain a new appearance over time" and that means that they have a sleek, shiny, textured surface. I have preferred to use light, clear conditioners to try and preserve that surface. If the bag is in great shape I usually just use Lexol conditioner but if it is in rougher shape then I have used Leather Therapy & Restorer; but I am sure that other rehabbers also have their favorite products.
Click to expand...

CPSE, I have used very small amounts of Cpr on the Madisons, much less then I would use on a normal leather bag.

Owning seven Italien Coach bags all of a sudden I will invest in Leather Therapy as katev suggested and I'm pretty sure the Sheridans will benefit from that as well.
 
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