One more question. If the tiny black marks on the outside of the bag are ink (I'm not sure) with they bleed in the bath process? Also I don't think there are any ink marks inside the bag (I don't have it in front of me
) but I'll check! Thanks
Coach Rehab and Rescue Club
- Thread starter greenpixie
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) but I'll check! Thanks
You can leave it in the bath 10 to 30 minutes. I've forgotten and left bags in the water over an hour with no harm done. You can start conditioning it before it is completely dry. If you allow it to dry too much, sometimes the leather gets stiff. You'll want to stuff it when it's drying to ensure it dries in the correct shape. You can remove the stuffing once it is mostly dry.
If it is ink, it could bleed. The marks could spread and become bigger. But the water could also fade them. Generally if the marks are tiny, there isn't much risk. When you find a spot that looks like a pen drained onto the bag, you could have a real problem.One more question. If the tiny black marks on the outside of the bag are ink (I'm not sure) with they bleed in the bath process? Also I don't think there are any ink marks inside the bag (I don't have it in front of me
The toughest thing about rehabbing for me is expectations. Sometimes a bag is greatly improved by giving it a bath...other times not so much. In some instances I've messed up and created more issues than I had to begin with! IMO here are just NO GUARANTEES. Every rehab is a gamble (IMO) because every bag and its issues are different. We have no way of knowing what caused a mark or stain...and how old it is...therefore not knowing whether it can be fixed.
In the case of your (beautiful) orange bag...if it were mine, I probably wouldn't do a thing...right now. I would encourage you to find a few cheap, practice bags and get a little more experience, before taking the chance on the orange one.
The orange bag I rehabbed is a 1997 Abbie that I bought at a Goodwill Bargain Barn for $1.00 in 2010. In July of 2012 I did the rehab with fairly un-remarkable results. I washed her in the kitchen sink in warm water with a couple of squirts of Dawn Extra Strength to make suds. Once the leather is completely wet I use a regular toothbrush and gently scrub inside and out. (I really don't let my bags soak a long time, unless there are dents or creases. If there are, I use warmer water and maybe let them soak a half-hour or so.) I keep a journal of my rehabs and don't see anything there about color bleeding. I rinse bags in warm running water until I don't see any more soap bubbles. On unlined bags, I rinse until the inside suede feels "squeaky clean" like your hair after a shampoo. I stuff my bags with terry cloth towels of various sizes and recently I've learned to not overstuff. I stuff enough to restore the shape. When still damp, I generously applied Leather CPR and let it sink in. A day later I applied Leather CPR again and let it sit another day. Then I applied Blackrocks, according to the directions on the jar. Let that sit a day and repeated it. In the end, I usually use a horsehair blend brush to buff...sometimes a microfiber cloth.
Rehabbing for me is about refreshing the leather and restoring a bag's shape. Simply washing and conditioning a bag is usually a huge improvement in appearance. Will all the flaws magically disappear...highly unlikely...but I think in most cases you can improve a bag and make it usable.
I hope this info helps you...Remember, this is just how I rehab. Others here have their own techniques. Keep reading, keep asking questions and you'll figure out what's best for you...Good Luck!
I agree, I think it will come out ok with a bath. Ive washed bags with contrasting leather like that and never had a problem. Worst case scenario is the leather overall will fade, but the colors shouldn't bleed.
Keep in mind that the ink just might not come out, and too much scrubbing will leave a lighter spot with ink in the middle. Use your best judgment.
Those are great bags, I purchased one once but had to return due to undisclosed smoke odor.
I thought I'd post a quick picture of my legacy Gigi, even though I'm undecided on if I'll be doing more work or not. Ti be honest, she looks the same as the last picture. I originally washed and used tarrago self shining dye. I wasn't real happy with the texture, but it looked really nice. So, glutton for punishment that I am, I stripped the tarrago and ordered some woodnstuff leather refinisher. The leather is slightly more matte finished now, and maybe softer.
So I'm undecided how to progress. I like this collection for the awesome leather, and right now it feels too coated. So I decided to carry it a little bit to get a feel for how I like it.
I want to use it about a week before I decide. If after some use I'm not happy, I may strip the leather and try a penetrating dye. However that will be a bit more transparent. And I will probably have to go with a different darker color.
Sigh...I was bemoaning my lack of a real
Project bag before I stumbled on this. Lol.
So I'm undecided how to progress. I like this collection for the awesome leather, and right now it feels too coated. So I decided to carry it a little bit to get a feel for how I like it.
I want to use it about a week before I decide. If after some use I'm not happy, I may strip the leather and try a penetrating dye. However that will be a bit more transparent. And I will probably have to go with a different darker color.
Sigh...I was bemoaning my lack of a real
Project bag before I stumbled on this. Lol.
It looks very nice. It is hard to believe it is the same bag.
I need to buy some dye for my slim tote but I can't decide which kind will give the most natural look. I'm thinking the leather refinisher might be the best because it is opaque and will give it a leather-like feel, since the texture needs some smoothing out. But I have my heart set on an olive color and they don't have one. I'm afraid to mix because it might not mix evenly.
ETA: is that the grey color #122?
Yes it's #122. I mixed two shades of white for my Ali and they mixed well. You might email the owner about mixing. I know I've seen with some dyes they recommend that you shouldn't mix certain colors, but there is nothing on that page about it.
This one needed one more coat and the edging touched up before I consider it finished, but since I wasn't sure this was the way I was going I took a little break. It definitely looks nice, and the yummy legacy leather smell is back. I just want to see how it breaks in before I make a final decision.
The site says you can mix colors. I'm considering getting avocado and GM beige. The grey looks a little blue on the website and also in your pictures. Would you say it has a blue-gray look IRL?
I also have a lime Emmie that is covered with ink. The only lime they have is fluorescent. So I'm thinking about maybe going with a different color, like maybe yellow or turquoise, but the suede on the inside will still be lime so I'm not sure. I don't think there are any colors I can mix to get the right color of lime. I couldn't ever mix craft paints to match the color. I'm not very good at figuring out the correct proportions to mix to get the color I want.
I'm no good at mixing either. I just dumped the two shades of white together and crossed my fingers. I knew the original color was somewhere between the two. It turned out a pretty good match.
I think the picture I took came out pretty true. It's a darker blue grey. Their color chart isn't the greatest but strangely enough it's always turned out pretty true for me.
I have a lime emmie too and it's darn near fluorescent so I'd be tempted to try it.
Maybe I'll order a sample of the fluorescent. I can't imagine have a purse that glows in the dark!
I think she's lovely...I've used my "wood-n-stuff-pinto-now-black" Watson a few times an it seems to be wearing well. Hope yours does too...keep us posted!
What did you use for a stripper?
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You'll probably use less than half of the sample even if you choose to use that color.
The tarrago comes with a leather preparer that pretty much removes all color. In this case it took the tarrago off and left it pretty much as before. I don't think this bag had much of the clay color left
Which brings me to something I've been meaning to mention. I dunked both this bag and a clay wallet. Both actually returned to the blueish grey clay color during a stage if the drying process. Some parts turned blackish as they dried. It was a roller coaster of emotion! And they took days to dry!
I know we talked about this back a page or two. But I duque end how to take a better pic of the dirt on the orange bag... Does this dirt look pretty minimal? And removable? One more look! Thank you! For answering all my questions! Plmk!
Also don't worry I'm not using the coach stuff! For some I just have that sitting there ready to be put away! As you can see I'm using leather CPR!
Also looking at the photo from my phone, this photo is not the best either but if you look at the bottom left you can see a mark and over the coarse of the middle.. thanks for the help!
Also don't worry I'm not using the coach stuff! For some I just have that sitting there ready to be put away! As you can see I'm using leather CPR!
Also looking at the photo from my phone, this photo is not the best either
but if you look at the bottom left you can see a mark and over the coarse of the middle.. thanks for the help!Attachments
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