Coach Rehab and Rescue Club

[Fashionstar101]

LOL! Yay, I hoped you would answer this one...I'm just being a little chicken about this one...don't know why. The straps have the shiny leather worn down a bit and need edge coat, but the rest of the trim is good. In the sink she goes....Thanks!

Let me first say, that you are very lucky to get so many nice coach prices at decent prices! So jealous! I was also wondering if, when you have the step post the steps you go through in rehabbing a bag! I am new at it and have not always been successful I have many bags I have to fix, from smooth leather nubic, suede, hardware! etc and a variety of different problems to fix! I would love to know some tips! Products you use, how to clean and condition them, what you use (clothes? Brush?) the bath process anything would be great!

And if others want to share that would be great!

Thank you!! And good luck with your rehab process on your latest treasure!!

 

[ZSP]

I was also wondering if, when you have the step post the steps you go through in rehabbing a bag! I am new at it and have not always been successful I have many bags I have to fix, from smooth leather nubic, suede, hardware! etc and a variety of different problems to fix! I would love to know some tips! Products you use, how to clean and condition them, what you use (clothes? Brush?) the bath process anything would be great!

And if others want to share that would be great!

You can start with the first rescue and rehab link...

http://forum.purseblog.com/coach-clubhouse/coach-rehab-and-rescue-club-624452.html

and start reading from page one in this thread you're in, which is a continuation of the link above. LOL Lots of reading, I know, but it's how I learned. Many rehabbers use different products and methods of cleaning/bathing so it's interesting and educational seeing it all.

My very first rehab was a huge success and while I've only rehabbed about a dozen bags, I've been very pleased with all I've learned here. Good luck to you!

 

[JOODLZ]

I'm the dunking enabler. I wouldn't scrub it and neither would you, but coach really seems to make their stuff so durable. I threw one of the little legacy stripe satin top handle pouches with good trim in the washer because it had a little make up on it and the gold wasn't affected at all. The little thing looks like new.

Can't wait to see how it turns out.

I love being enabled...that's why I hang out here, right? She came through the bath just fine...though the water turned kind of purple-ish and I got some grey on my hands. Don't have a clue what that was all about. The amazing part was the lining...truly a feat of fabric engineering. This bag has 2 open compartments, divided by a zipper pocket (see pic). They are ALL - somehow - joined together. It's hard to describe, but when you pull one pocket out of the bag, the others come with it! It was quite a wrestling match in the kitchen sink...water and suds everywhere every time I turned her over. The lining came clean though with a little Soilove - even ink marks. I'll start conditioning today. Reveal in a couple of days.

Let me first say, that you are very lucky to get so many nice coach prices at decent prices! So jealous! I was also wondering if, when you have the step post the steps you go through in rehabbing a bag! I am new at it and have not always been successful I have many bags I have to fix, from smooth leather nubic, suede, hardware! etc and a variety of different problems to fix! I would love to know some tips! Products you use, how to clean and condition them, what you use (clothes? Brush?) the bath process anything would be great!

And if others want to share that would be great!

Thank you!! And good luck with your rehab process on your latest treasure!!

Thanks...it's been a crazy Coach year for me...lots of great bags, most at fabulous prices! It'll be a few days yet before my Peyton is finished, but I'll be happy to post a step-by-step rehab. In the meantime, here's a link to a few oldie-but-goodie rehab guides written by 3 of our most experienced members, MOMTOK and KATEV (where have they gone...miss them both) and one about ink by LEDOBE!

http://forum.purseblog.com/coach/two-70s-80s-made-nyc-bags-going-through-658823.html

http://forum.purseblog.com/coach/coach-rehab-and-rescue-club-624452-8.html#post18465269

http://forum.purseblog.com/coach-clubhouse/coach-rehab-and-rescue-club-624452-95.html#post21501462

And if there's a specific question, you can also try the "search this thread" dropdown at the top of each page. There's a lot to learn, but it's all here...good luck and welcome to the madness!

 

[whateve]

How would I be able to tell if a bag has been treated with shoe polish?

 

[Fashionstar101]

How would I be able to tell if a bag has been treated with shoe polish?

hello, i am not exepert but most shoe polish is thick and oily. made for polishing shoes which is has different leather that purses. also shoe polish is often tinted with color like black or brown, so if the purse looks like a generic color. but that is a hard one. shoes polish- if done right i think could be beneifical if you want to cover up something. but if not rubbed in enough or with the right tool it can be seen. i also think it you give it a good scrub (bath?) it will come off. what does your purse look like?...

 

[whateve]

hello, i am not exepert but most shoe polish is thick and oily. made for polishing shoes which is has different leather that purses. also shoe polish is often tinted with color like black or brown, so if the purse looks like a generic color. but that is a hard one. shoes polish- if done right i think could be beneifical if you want to cover up something. but if not rubbed in enough or with the right tool it can be seen. i also think it you give it a good scrub (bath?) it will come off. what does your purse look like?...

Thanks. I don't have any purse in particular. It's just that I've been collecting vintage for awhile and haven't come across one as far as I know. So I got worried that maybe some of my bags might have been slathered with shoe polish and I wouldn't know. Most of my vintage bags are interesting colors so they are probably fine. I just have to worry about the black, brown and white ones. Most of them have been bathed and I didn't notice anything when I washed them.

 

[Weddell_78]

I found this bag at a thrift store for $6. Had it authenticated on the authentication thread. There really isn't anything wrong with it! It was a little smashed from being stored, but there wasn't even wear or cracking on the bottom corners! It's just over 20 years old.

So far I have given it a sink bath and let it dry with some towels stuffed inside to reshape it. When it was almost dry I did a coat of Lexol. So far I've done more lexol which just soaked right in. I still need to polish the metal, but I don't have any brass cleaner yet.

One question. The bag originally had a nice leather shine. After the bath and Lexol some parts are still shiny but some have a bit of a dull look (mostly places that have seen the most wear). Would black rock give it back that shine? I saw it mentioned here a few times and I'm willing to order some if that will work.

I got my blackrock last night. I ordered it from ebay from a leather care place. I also got a suede eraser for another project. So here is the bag after a soak, stuffed to reshape, lexol, and black rock. I haven't polished the brass yet. It was in a good shape before and it isn't the most exciting bag but it was a good first project! We have snow outside so I'm not going out to take a picture! I took one without a flash by a window and one with a flash.

 

[ledobe]

So here's a little rehab note I thought I'd share. I've recently become obsessed with the clay vachetta color, due to the lucky steal of a clay legacy shoulder bag I stumbled across. I wasn't expecting much from my "coach grey thick leather satchel", for $50. but it was beautiful and it was still the blue grey color like a new bad, not the greenish grey that occurs when a bag yellows.

So anyway, sort of randomly, I won an auction that included a clay frame wallet. I kind of set it aside because I really didn't need it and it was really pretty used, but u eventually dunked it just to see what would happen and I thought I'd share the results

BEFORE;



AFTER:

 

[ledobe]

So I was posting that from my phone, because it's easier to upload the pix that way, but I got tired of typing on my phone and uploaded and thought I'd finish here.

It's kind of hard to tell, because the first picture is kind of dark, but the yellowish cast to the wallet actually seems to have lifted, and it now looks really close to the original blueish grey. The wallet actually looks much better now, I wouldn't be embarrassed to use it.

I still kind of don't need it, but at least now I like it. Anyway, I thought I'd share since I would probably never have had enough nerve to dunk a clay purse this. This makes me think it might actually work.

I've got another guinea pig legacy vachetta dunking coming up.

 

[ledobe]

Here's another random, badly listed vachetta item. This wasn't super dirty, but it had, yes, teeth marks!





I believe this is juniper.

So I dunked it, hoping to fluff the teeth marks a bit. Plus, while it didn't look super dirty, I wasn't invested in it emotionally, so it seemed a good one to test on. And well, it had been in something's mouth, so that's a good reason to dunk it. It was pretty much something I bought because I stumbled across it, love this leather, and it was cheap ($11 shipped).

The green faded into the water quite a bit. It's also the only legacy I've had bleed into the lining. I've only dunked pond and white in the past, so not a complete sample, but it did turn the water pretty darn green.

When it dried the green only showed on the white stripes, and not too badly.

The color came out great. I appled the entire bag, and tried leather honey on the top, I thought I'd take a picture so you can see the difference. I'll use leather honey on the rest because I think it looks nice. It did fluff out the teethmarks a bit too.



Just thought I'd share my experiments in case it helps someone to decide whether or not to take the plunge.

 

[whateve]

So here's a little rehab note I thought I'd share. I've recently become obsessed with the clay vachetta color, due to the lucky steal of a clay legacy shoulder bag I stumbled across. I wasn't expecting much from my "coach grey thick leather satchel", for $50. but it was beautiful and it was still the blue grey color like a new bad, not the greenish grey that occurs when a bag yellows.

So anyway, sort of randomly, I won an auction that included a clay frame wallet. I kind of set it aside because I really didn't need it and it was really pretty used, but u eventually dunked it just to see what would happen and I thought I'd share the results

BEFORE;

View attachment 2427709

AFTER:

View attachment 2427710

Here's another random, badly listed vachetta item. This wasn't super dirty, but it had, yes, teeth marks!

View attachment 2427747

View attachment 2427749

I believe this is juniper.

So I dunked it, hoping to fluff the teeth marks a bit. Plus, while it didn't look super dirty, I wasn't invested in it emotionally, so it seemed a good one to test on. And well, it had been in something's mouth, so that's a good reason to dunk it. It was pretty much something I bought because I stumbled across it, love this leather, and it was cheap ($11 shipped).

The green faded into the water quite a bit. It's also the only legacy I've had bleed into the lining. I've only dunked pond and white in the past, so not a complete sample, but it did turn the water pretty darn green.

When it dried the green only showed on the white stripes, and not too badly. View attachment 2427759

The color came out great. I appled the entire bag, and tried leather honey on the top, I thought I'd take a picture so you can see the difference. I'll use leather honey on the rest because I think it looks nice. It did fluff out the teethmarks a bit too.

View attachment 2427772

Just thought I'd share my experiments in case it helps someone to decide whether or not to take the plunge.

They both came out beautiful. I've avoided the clay color because of the yellowing. It's nice to know it will wash out. I'm starting to use Leather Honey more and more. Once I got over the consistency and figured out that it wasn't difficult to apply with a paint brush, I decided I really like it.

 

[ledobe]

They both came out beautiful. I've avoided the clay color because of the yellowing. It's nice to know it will wash out. I'm starting to use Leather Honey more and more. Once I got over the consistency and figured out that it wasn't difficult to apply with a paint brush, I decided I really like it.

I've been using Leather Honey a lot too. It totally softened my white Ali which was pretty stiff, and it's worked the same on other bags for me too.

I'm really surprised about the clay vachetta. I'd still be a little iffy about doing it on a bag, but now I'd be slightly less afraid. I LOVE LOVE LOVE the clay color when it's new, I like it less when it's yellowed. That wallet was well used so it was easy to experiment on. I expected it to get more yellow after dunking.

The juniper wristlet almost came out too nice...it is perfect for putting my phone in when I go for a run. I listen to music or an audio book so the twistlock is easier for me than the zipper opening if I need to rewind or skip or whatever. But since it came out pretty I'm going to be sad if I get my sweaty little paws all over the vachetta. I didn't buy it for that purpose, but when I received it I realized it would be perfect for that.

I just "won" a Mandy that looks to be pretty dirty. I thought it was whisky, which is my other favorite color-and I felt kind of bad for buying another Whisky Legacy bag, but after I won I noticed the white creed so it's a natural...not that it really makes a difference but maybe I'll feel less guilty for buying another bag I don't need! I got it for $80 shipped and it's hard to tell the condition, the pix are kind of dark, so maybe I'll be pleasantly surprised but unfortunately I'm afraid I won't be. I just figured the chances of me getting a Mandy that cheap again were slim, and I've had pretty good luck and I don't mind weathered, I just hate dirty!

We'll see, of course I'll let y'all know how it all turns out.

 

[chowlover2]

I bought the Leather Honey because a girl on the Bal thread recommended it, glad to hear it works well. Good to know about using a paint brush to apply too.

 

[ledobe]

I got my blackrock last night. I ordered it from ebay from a leather care place. I also got a suede eraser for another project. So here is the bag after a soak, stuffed to reshape, lexol, and black rock. I haven't polished the brass yet. It was in a good shape before and it isn't the most exciting bag but it was a good first project! We have snow outside so I'm not going out to take a picture! I took one without a flash by a window and one with a flash.

That bag came out great! I really like that style.

 

[JOODLZ]

So here's a little rehab note I thought I'd share. I've recently become obsessed with the clay vachetta color, due to the lucky steal of a clay legacy shoulder bag I stumbled across. I wasn't expecting much from my "coach grey thick leather satchel", for $50. but it was beautiful and it was still the blue grey color like a new bad, not the greenish grey that occurs when a bag yellows.

So anyway, sort of randomly, I won an auction that included a clay frame wallet. I kind of set it aside because I really didn't need it and it was really pretty used, but u eventually dunked it just to see what would happen and I thought I'd share the results

BEFORE;

View attachment 2427709

AFTER:

View attachment 2427710

Amazing "after" color...I'd obsess too!

Here's another random, badly listed vachetta item. This wasn't super dirty, but it had, yes, teeth marks!

View attachment 2427747

View attachment 2427749

I believe this is juniper.

So I dunked it, hoping to fluff the teeth marks a bit. Plus, while it didn't look super dirty, I wasn't invested in it emotionally, so it seemed a good one to test on. And well, it had been in something's mouth, so that's a good reason to dunk it. It was pretty much something I bought because I stumbled across it, love this leather, and it was cheap ($11 shipped).

The green faded into the water quite a bit. It's also the only legacy I've had bleed into the lining. I've only dunked pond and white in the past, so not a complete sample, but it did turn the water pretty darn green.

When it dried the green only showed on the white stripes, and not too badly. View attachment 2427759

The color came out great. I appled the entire bag, and tried leather honey on the top, I thought I'd take a picture so you can see the difference. I'll use leather honey on the rest because I think it looks nice. It did fluff out the teethmarks a bit too.

View attachment 2427772

Just thought I'd share my experiments in case it helps someone to decide whether or not to take the plunge.

Beautiful! One of my recent bags had what looked like teeth marks on the hangtag...latest thing in teething ?