Coach Rehab and Rescue Club

[Justin392]

I agree there is something off, that looks yellow. Was the bag redyed?

I don't believe that it was redyed.

 

[whateve]

I don't believe that it was redyed.

Maybe the yellow is residue from conditioner? I've never used Meltonian but once when I was thinking about buying it at a shoe repair, the owner told me it wasn't a good idea. It is basically a shoe polish, not the best thing for purse leather. He said it would rub off on my clothes.
I've never used Obenauf's oil, but it doesn't have any color in it so it would work the same as any deep conditioner, like Blackrocks. If you already have it, I would try that first. It is always preferable to try to fix a problem with conditioner alone before using color.

I don't think there is much difference between using leather dye or acrylic paint mixed with conditioner except that the paint can probably be cleaned off easier if it doesn't give the desirable results. Also the paint is cheaper. However if you use too high a concentration of paint, the texture and sheen will be wrong, while I would assume the leather dye would have the right texture no matter what. But then I've heard that some leather dyes have more of a shine than natural Coach leather. I'm pretty sure that eco-flo was the dye I was looking at Tandy - the SA told me that all their dyes were shiny and there was no way to reduce the shine.

 

[Two.time.bags]

What is the best method to use to touch up color loss? I've been told to use acrylic paint mixed with conditioner, Eco Flow dye mixed with conditioner, Meltonian and Obenauf's oil. Is one of these methods better than the other, or does it just come down to a matter of personal preference?

I have attached photos of the City Bag from the early 1990s that I am currently rehabbing where there is color loss that I would like to touch up. The color loss has occurred along the crease of the flap. View attachment 2941212View attachment 2941213

Have you dunked it? It could be residue from saddle soap or similar as whateve suggested.

 

[Two.time.bags]

What is the best method to use to touch up color loss? I've been told to use acrylic paint mixed with conditioner, Eco Flow dye mixed with conditioner, Meltonian and Obenauf's oil. Is one of these methods better than the other, or does it just come down to a matter of personal preference?

I have attached photos of the City Bag from the early 1990s that I am currently rehabbing where there is color loss that I would like to touch up. The color loss has occurred along the crease of the flap. View attachment 2941212View attachment 2941213

Have you dunked it? It could be residue from saddle soap or similar as whateve suggested. It's never a good idea to use saddle soap on bags as it does leave a residue. If it is saddle soap it will lather up quite a bit when you dunk it so you will need to rub it off and rinse it really well until the water runs clear. Then condition. After that you will have a better idea of the extent of colour loss, if any.

 

[honkers]

Two questions - Saw a nice wallet at a thrift shop but they had the security pin stuck right through the leather. When they took it off at the cash register, there was a puncture mark in the leather. I didn't buy it but wondering if that is repairable?

Second question - many of the thrift bags are pretty squished. Will they take back their proper form once dunked and dry?
Thanks!

 

[whateve]

Two questions - Saw a nice wallet at a thrift shop but they had the security pin stuck right through the leather. When they took it off at the cash register, there was a puncture mark in the leather. I didn't buy it but wondering if that is repairable?

Second question - many of the thrift bags are pretty squished. Will they take back their proper form once dunked and dry?
Thanks!

The pin hole isn't repairable. At least, I never could repair mine, but I didn't have leather cement then. I filled a divot in a leather bag with leather cement and you can't even find it. If I ever bought another wallet with a hole, I'd try that.

Washing fixes squishing usually. But creases may not come out. It depends on how soft the bag was to begin with and how deep the creases are.

 

[carinas]

I have a Madison Pierre bag that has what looks to me like white paint spot. Is there anything I can do to remove it or it will remove the original dye as well? Should I try to cover it with acrylic paint with conditioner instead?
Has anybody washed Madison vintage leather before with good outcome? Thank You

 

[lonesomeoctober]

Maybe the yellow is residue from conditioner? I've never used Meltonian but once when I was thinking about buying it at a shoe repair, the owner told me it wasn't a good idea. It is basically a shoe polish, not the best thing for purse leather. He said it would rub off on my clothes.
I've never used Obenauf's oil, but it doesn't have any color in it so it would work the same as any deep conditioner, like Blackrocks. If you already have it, I would try that first. It is always preferable to try to fix a problem with conditioner alone before using color.

I don't think there is much difference between using leather dye or acrylic paint mixed with conditioner except that the paint can probably be cleaned off easier if it doesn't give the desirable results. Also the paint is cheaper. However if you use too high a concentration of paint, the texture and sheen will be wrong, while I would assume the leather dye would have the right texture no matter what. But then I've heard that some leather dyes have more of a shine than natural Coach leather. I'm pretty sure that eco-flo was the dye I was looking at Tandy - the SA told me that all their dyes were shiny and there was no way to reduce the shine.

The tarrago dye which I've used leaves a shiny finish, not what was wanted. Have also tried Tandy and fieblings with similar results.

But i was coloring entire bags, which i'll never do again. Would likely work well used as Whateve and TTB suggest.

Some folks have had success coloring bals. Maybe those bags have a shinier finish to begin with?

Shiny just doesn't go with vintage coach, imo.

 

[whateve]

I have a Madison Pierre bag that has what looks to me like white paint spot. Is there anything I can do to remove it or it will remove the original dye as well? Should I try to cover it with acrylic paint with conditioner instead?
Has anybody washed Madison vintage leather before with good outcome? Thank You

Someone gave a tip awhile back about using a crayon on this type of leather, and holding a iron over it so it would melt. I think several people have washed Madisons.

 

[Two.time.bags]

I have a Madison Pierre bag that has what looks to me like white paint spot. Is there anything I can do to remove it or it will remove the original dye as well? Should I try to cover it with acrylic paint with conditioner instead?
Has anybody washed Madison vintage leather before with good outcome? Thank You

I've washed a few Madisons with no problems. It helps with re-shaping. They dry a lot quicker than the classic leather bags.You could use acetone to remove the white paint, but you would have to do it really carefully with a Q tip and steady hand so you only apply it to the white paint. It won't remove the dye but it could take off the finish. If the spots where the paint were look a little dull after, and conditioner makes no difference, you could try the process whateve described with the melted wax crayon.

 

[carinas]

Someone gave a tip awhile back about using a crayon on this type of leather, and holding a iron over it so it would melt. I think several people have washed Madisons.

Thank You! I just washed it and will try to find exact same shade of crayon and try this method after the bag is all dry.

I've washed a few Madisons with no problems. It helps with re-shaping. They dry a lot quicker than the classic leather bags.You could use acetone to remove the white paint, but you would have to do it really carefully with a Q tip and steady hand so you only apply it to the white paint. It won't remove the dye but it could take off the finish. If the spots where the paint were look a little dull after, and conditioner makes no difference, you could try the process whateve described with the melted wax crayon.

Thank You! I used q-tip saturated with acetone, it took some of white off but I saw a lot of green on q-tip so I stopped immediately. It cam out of bath looking much better and outside is already dry. When it's totally dry, I will try crayon method which Whatever suggested. I will update!

 

[Justin392]

Have you dunked it? It could be residue from saddle soap or similar as whateve suggested. It's never a good idea to use saddle soap on bags as it does leave a residue. If it is saddle soap it will lather up quite a bit when you dunk it so you will need to rub it off and rinse it really well until the water runs clear. Then condition. After that you will have a better idea of the extent of colour loss, if any.

I did dunk it. It was the first bag that I've ever dunked. The bag was just so gross inside that I felt as if dunking it would be the only way to truly get it clean. I don't believe there was any saddle soap on the bag as there was no lather on the bag when dunking it. The bag is now completely dry after its dunk two days ago and I have conditioned it. There is still color loss on the bag. I should also mention that these are cracks in the leather where the color is gone, I'm not sure if that was evident in the photos.

 

[Justin392]

The tarrago dye which I've used leaves a shiny finish, not what was wanted. Have also tried Tandy and fieblings with similar results.

But i was coloring entire bags, which i'll never do again. Would likely work well used as Whateve and TTB suggest.

Some folks have had success coloring bals. Maybe those bags have a shinier finish to begin with?

Shiny just doesn't go with vintage coach, imo.

I agree, I definitely do not want to have a shiny finish.

 

[Two.time.bags]

I did dunk it. It was the first bag that I've ever dunked. The bag was just so gross inside that I felt as if dunking it would be the only way to truly get it clean. I don't believe there was any saddle soap on the bag as there was no lather on the bag when dunking it. The bag is now completely dry after its dunk two days ago and I have conditioned it. There is still color loss on the bag. I should also mention that these are cracks in the leather where the color is gone, I'm not sure if that was evident in the photos.

It looks really dry. Do you have Obenauf's? It's great for really dry leather. I apply it after a couple coats of Leather Therapy with a day in between coat. Apply it by massaging in with your fingers, then if you can, leave it in the sun or warm it gently with a hair dryer. Leave for 24 hours and buff it and decide if it needs another coat. You do need to need to buff it a lot. Finish with Black Rock.

 

[Justin392]

It looks really dry. Do you have Obenauf's? It's great for really dry leather. I apply it after a couple coats of Leather Therapy with a day in between coat. Apply it by massaging in with your fingers, then if you can, leave it in the sun or warm it gently with a hair dryer. Leave for 24 hours and buff it and decide if it needs another coat. You do need to need to buff it a lot. Finish with Black Rock.

I ordered some Obenauf's after being told about it on a vintage Coach group on Facebook, it should be here in a day or two. How long do you wait between the coats of Leather Therapy?