Coach Rehab and Rescue Club

[LadaZuri]

I’m hanging my head in shame…I made it worse!

I can no longer bear to work on this bag (imminent new job means I have less time to spare), I even bought a leather “Happy” patch to cover up that awful front damage but have lost my mojo completely.

Proof that my learning journey continues…

Zoe xx

Please don't feel so badly, Zoe. I'm seriously not sure that there was any viable solution for this kind of ink damage other than dyeing the bag. Dyeing, or painting it, a darker colour (black?) would be beautiful! The Station looks to be in great shape aside from the ink!

 

[Dragonflyzoe]

Please don't feel so badly, Zoe. I'm seriously not sure that there was any viable solution for this kind of ink damage other than dyeing the bag. Dyeing, or painting it, a darker colour (black?) would be beautiful! The Station looks to be in great shape aside from the ink!

@LadaZuri I think you’re right. She’ll be a lovely project for someone with more skills than me…though now I’m wondering how easy it could be to dye her navy blue? Hmmm…
xx

 

[LadaZuri]

@LadaZuri I think you’re right. She’ll be a lovely project for someone with more skills than me…though now I’m wondering how easy it could be to dye her navy blue? Hmmm…
xx

That would be the perfect solution, especially as she may be hard to sell/rehome in this state. There are many posts on dyeing to help you. Let us know how you do!!!

 

[Narnanz]

I think seeing rehabs that havent gone well is a good learning experience....we have all had them...we should own them. I have bags I havent used because Im not happy with the results...but cant sell them on because of the results.

 

[MrsGAM]

Finished 2 rehabs this week. Here’s my lavender Wendie. She got a regular bath and conditioning.
Before:

After:

 

[whateve]

I’m hanging my head in shame…I made it worse!

I can no longer bear to work on this bag (imminent new job means I have less time to spare), I even bought a leather “Happy” patch to cover up that awful front damage but have lost my mojo completely.

Proof that my learning journey continues…

Zoe xx

I'm so sorry! When there is so much ink, it is nearly impossible to make it go away. I hope you try to dye it. I hate giving up on bags, even if it takes me years to get the energy to keep working on them.

 

[MrsGAM]

Also finished my Currant Tribeca Shopper! This one also only needed a regular bath and conditioning.
Before:

After:

With my Currant Rambler’s Legacy:

 

[MrsGAM]

@LadaZuri I think you’re right. She’ll be a lovely project for someone with more skills than me…though now I’m wondering how easy it could be to dye her navy blue? Hmmm…
xx

Definitely a possibility to dye it! I’d look into the more professional dyes so you can get a good, smooth color. Seems like all the dyes I’ve tried (Fiebing’s and Angelus) have had streaky results; those seem to be better for color refreshing rather than completely changing a color.

 

[shannastory]

How addicted am I??

I’ve referred to myself as the worlds slowest rehabber, haha. The last few weeks I’ve been super involved finishing up somewhat more complicated rehabs (replacing stitching, color refreshes, leather repairs like torn piping and deep scratches, super dry leather, etc.) on larger/darker/heavier bags I’ve been chipping away at since the still-cool part of spring. And I’ve been looking longingly at a sweet little Court Spectator that’s preppy and summery, hoping I’d get to it before a little beach trip with the fam. But...I didn’t.

So I brought it with me to rehab on vacation!

It’s my first Costa Rica bag, and the leather is soft and soooo smooshy. Other than some light scuffing and color loss, it’s in beautiful shape, other than what looks like some scratching just under the turn lock. (If anyone has ideas/suggestions for improving that area, I’m all ears!) It was made in 2001, so true vintage this year. And I found my first “Inspected By” tag in the pocket while cleaning it up!

View attachment 5103210View attachment 5103211View attachment 5103213View attachment 5103214

Drying post-dunk, alongside a bonus City key fob:
View attachment 5103215

Post-vacation update: Unfortunately I didn’t finish the Court Spectator in time to actually use it while I was at the beach. But…it’s basically done now (when is a rehab ever REALLY finished??) and I did enjoy working on just one (ok two, if you count the bonus City key fob!) bag here and there throughout the week. Suffice to say I’m rethinking my approach to rehabbing en masse!

For those thinking of rehabbing on the go…I left my house with the bag, a bottle of CPR, one “bunch” of extra fine steel wool, Cape Cod polishing cloths, and my trusty mini butter knife that I use to remove/replace hardware. On a rainy day I went to a craft store and picked up 2 bottles of acrylic paint, color matched closely to the bag (which I brought into the store), and a small angled paintbrush. Everything else I figured I could either find a replacement, wait til I was home, or do without!

I’ve only ever done color refreshes and touching up color loss on darker bags, so it ended up being more involved than I expected to restore the two lighter colors of this bag, and to keep the lines crisp. The raw edges of leather on the strap and the top handle were especially in need of good coverage, as was the scratching and wear under the flap and just below the turn lock. I struggled with the ratios of CPR to acrylic paint quite a bit at first, and eventually broke my own rule about going slowly and lightly with the acrylic.

I could keep noodling with the color coverage for weeks, the “white” especially…but I’m cutting myself off! Leather isn’t perfect, and I plan on actually using this bag, haha. I still plan to do a gentle once-over with Blackrocks once I’m sure my last coat of CPR/paint is totally dry and settled, but otherwise I’m ready to move in!

Here she is:


And here is her little bonus friend:

 

[whateve]

Post-vacation update: Unfortunately I didn’t finish the Court Spectator in time to actually use it while I was at the beach. But…it’s basically done now (when is a rehab ever REALLY finished??) and I did enjoy working on just one (ok two, if you count the bonus City key fob!) bag here and there throughout the week. Suffice to say I’m rethinking my approach to rehabbing en masse!

For those thinking of rehabbing on the go…I left my house with the bag, a bottle of CPR, one “bunch” of extra fine steel wool, Cape Cod polishing cloths, and my trusty mini butter knife that I use to remove/replace hardware. On a rainy day I went to a craft store and picked up 2 bottles of acrylic paint, color matched closely to the bag (which I brought into the store), and a small angled paintbrush. Everything else I figured I could either find a replacement, wait til I was home, or do without!

I’ve only ever done color refreshes and touching up color loss on lighter bags, so it ended up being more involved than I expected to restore the two lighter colors of this bag, and to keep the lines crisp. The raw edges of leather on the strap and the top handle were especially in need of good coverage, as was the scratching and wear under the flap and just below the turn lock. I struggled with the ratios of CPR to acrylic paint quite a bit at first, and eventually broke my own rule about going slowly and lightly with the acrylic.

I could keep noodling with the color coverage for weeks, the “white” especially…but I’m cutting myself off! Leather isn’t perfect, and I plan on actually using this bag, haha. I still plan to do a gentle once-over with Blackrocks once I’m sure my last coat of CPR/paint is totally dry and settled, but otherwise I’m ready to move in!

Here she is:
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And here is her little bonus friend:
View attachment 5109423

It looks great! I once tried to repaint the trim on a spectator. It drove me crazy!

 

[shannastory]

It looks great! I once tried to repaint the trim on a spectator. It drove me crazy!

Thank you! I definitely underestimated how much attention I was going to need to invest in the color refresh with a spectator. The dunk probably made it worse, too - although it was clean, the once-white thread definitely picked up the tan of the bag!

I have a very well-loved navy/tabac spectator waiting in my rehab pile, and now I’m not sure when I’ll be mentally ready to tackle it

 

[Narnanz]

Also finished my Currant Tribeca Shopper! This one also only needed a regular bath and conditioning.
Before:
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After:
View attachment 5109347View attachment 5109349View attachment 5109348View attachment 5109350
With my Currant Rambler’s Legacy:
View attachment 5109351

Now I want a Tribeca shopper.

 

[LadaZuri]

Also finished my Currant Tribeca Shopper! This one also only needed a regular bath and conditioning.
Before:
View attachment 5109345View attachment 5109346
After:
View attachment 5109347View attachment 5109349View attachment 5109348View attachment 5109350
With my Currant Rambler’s Legacy:
View attachment 5109351

Absolutely stunning!

Now I want a Tribeca shopper.

Me, too!!!! I've restored a Toffee and a Loden for my sisters, bought one in ink a couple of days ago, but must find a currant now!!!

Post-vacation update: Unfortunately I didn’t finish the Court Spectator in time to actually use it while I was at the beach. But…it’s basically done now (when is a rehab ever REALLY finished??) and I did enjoy working on just one (ok two, if you count the bonus City key fob!) bag here and there throughout the week. Suffice to say I’m rethinking my approach to rehabbing en masse!

For those thinking of rehabbing on the go…I left my house with the bag, a bottle of CPR, one “bunch” of extra fine steel wool, Cape Cod polishing cloths, and my trusty mini butter knife that I use to remove/replace hardware. On a rainy day I went to a craft store and picked up 2 bottles of acrylic paint, color matched closely to the bag (which I brought into the store), and a small angled paintbrush. Everything else I figured I could either find a replacement, wait til I was home, or do without!

I’ve only ever done color refreshes and touching up color loss on darker bags, so it ended up being more involved than I expected to restore the two lighter colors of this bag, and to keep the lines crisp. The raw edges of leather on the strap and the top handle were especially in need of good coverage, as was the scratching and wear under the flap and just below the turn lock. I struggled with the ratios of CPR to acrylic paint quite a bit at first, and eventually broke my own rule about going slowly and lightly with the acrylic.

I could keep noodling with the color coverage for weeks, the “white” especially…but I’m cutting myself off! Leather isn’t perfect, and I plan on actually using this bag, haha. I still plan to do a gentle once-over with Blackrocks once I’m sure my last coat of CPR/paint is totally dry and settled, but otherwise I’m ready to move in!

Here she is:
View attachment 5109417View attachment 5109418View attachment 5109419View attachment 5109420View attachment 5109422View attachment 5109421

And here is her little bonus friend:
View attachment 5109423

What a gorgeous result!!!

 

[LadaZuri]

Finished 2 rehabs this week. Here’s my lavender Wendie. She got a regular bath and conditioning.
Before:
View attachment 5109338View attachment 5109339
After:View attachment 5109341View attachment 5109342View attachment 5109343

So pretty!!!!

 

[katev]

Post-vacation update: Unfortunately I didn’t finish the Court Spectator in time to actually use it while I was at the beach. But…it’s basically done now (when is a rehab ever REALLY finished??) and I did enjoy working on just one (ok two, if you count the bonus City key fob!) bag here and there throughout the week. Suffice to say I’m rethinking my approach to rehabbing en masse!

For those thinking of rehabbing on the go…I left my house with the bag, a bottle of CPR, one “bunch” of extra fine steel wool, Cape Cod polishing cloths, and my trusty mini butter knife that I use to remove/replace hardware. On a rainy day I went to a craft store and picked up 2 bottles of acrylic paint, color matched closely to the bag (which I brought into the store), and a small angled paintbrush. Everything else I figured I could either find a replacement, wait til I was home, or do without!

I’ve only ever done color refreshes and touching up color loss on darker bags, so it ended up being more involved than I expected to restore the two lighter colors of this bag, and to keep the lines crisp. The raw edges of leather on the strap and the top handle were especially in need of good coverage, as was the scratching and wear under the flap and just below the turn lock. I struggled with the ratios of CPR to acrylic paint quite a bit at first, and eventually broke my own rule about going slowly and lightly with the acrylic.

I could keep noodling with the color coverage for weeks, the “white” especially…but I’m cutting myself off! Leather isn’t perfect, and I plan on actually using this bag, haha. I still plan to do a gentle once-over with Blackrocks once I’m sure my last coat of CPR/paint is totally dry and settled, but otherwise I’m ready to move in!

Here she is:
View attachment 5109417View attachment 5109418View attachment 5109419View attachment 5109420View attachment 5109422View attachment 5109421

And here is her little bonus friend:
View attachment 5109423

You did a fantastic job, it looks great!