Coach Rehab and Rescue Club

[maramd]

I tried the Wood 'n Stuff Leather Refinish in black and was impressed! Now that I'm hooked, does anyone have advice on which LR colors might match these? Any feedback would be much appreciated! I'll report back if I'm able to wrangle combined shipping.

ETA: LR color chart : http://www.wood-n-stuff.com/leatheraidcolorchartbig.html

Reds:
Chili Carly (maybe Scarlet?)
Hampton demi bag. (Red?)
random non-Coach (Scarlet?)
Prairie (Red?)
Dinky and Basic Bag just for comparison

White:
off-white trim on Spectator City bag (maybe Cream?)

Those bags are beautiful. I would just clean and condition. They don't look like they need any drastic measures!

 

[whateve]

Question: I got a Rambler that has a strange feel to the leather. It is rubbery and sticky. The seller said she conditioned it with Coach conditioner. She also described the leather as "worn smooth from use" which is strange. The color is very uniform, no obvious signs of dye. Wrinkles, veins, pores show.

I tried cleaning the back of the bag with some lexol. Leather looks dull and lifeless. Still feels rubbery but a little less sticky.

Has something horrible been used on it? Should I return it? P.S. smells like she sprayed it with perfume inside to mask a smoke odor too.

Link to the listing:
http://www.ebay.com/itm/Vintage-COA...OHjBpm%2BhqV8VjJooGvI%3D&orig_cvip=true&rt=nc

If it were mine, I would dunk it, but once you do that, you can't return it. Does the inside leather feel the same as the outside? Usually if something was put on it, it would probably be concentrated on the outside. I've never used Coach conditioner so I don't know what it would make it feel like.

 

[catthecurious]

If it were mine, I would dunk it, but once you do that, you can't return it. Does the inside leather feel the same as the outside? Usually if something was put on it, it would probably be concentrated on the outside. I've never used Coach conditioner so I don't know what it would make it feel like.

Coach conditioner feels a bit like Leather CPR, just less concentrated - sort of like a diluted version. It shouldn't feel sticky at all, doesn't give a lot of shine and definitely not rubbery. Basically, it's a very mild product that wouldn't change the look and feel of a very worn-out leather.

 

[maramd]

If it were mine, I would dunk it, but once you do that, you can't return it. Does the inside leather feel the same as the outside? Usually if something was put on it, it would probably be concentrated on the outside. I've never used Coach conditioner so I don't know what it would make it feel like.

Inside leather feels the same as the outside, so does the strap. Feels like 14 years of unabsorbed black rocks. And now that the perfume is wearing off, developing a smoke odor.
It's a crap shoot how well it will rehab. Since this was going to be a rehab and then resell, I think I will just return it. I have my doubts whether it will ever feel like leather again.

Thanks for your input!

Update: Had an idea. Would some sort of extreme waterproofing wax like goop make it feel this way?

 

[Ravvie99]

Those bags are beautiful. I would just clean and condition. They don't look like they need any drastic measures!

Don't you just love reds? Yeah I decided to wait and see on the ones I haven't started and try acrylic for pen marks on the ones I've already cleaned and conditioned. My fantasy was that using LR colors would mean no color mixing - sigh.

Wish I knew something helpful for your rubbery bag.

 

[Ravvie99]

One last post for today.

With all the new members and new products everyone is trying, is there anything that will clean marks, scuffs, etc... on patent leather?

I have one in my rehab pile (white) that I am afraid to even look at, perfect in condition with no worn out corners or the straps, clean inside, no make up, ink... but marks all over on the outside. Do I even try? Thanks!

Just stumbled on this post - someone used their fingernail and a little alcohol to remove marks from a patent bag. It was crinkle patent though. And Whateve immediately cautioned the alcohol could remove the shine! http://forum.purseblog.com/showpost.php?p=27918444&postcount=7772

Also remember seeing some crazy Docride makeover on a Hermes where she removed the patent layer entirely and refinished the leather. I'm tired just thinking about that but it looked phenomenal.

Good luck!

 

[Zealous]

Inside leather feels the same as the outside, so does the strap. Feels like 14 years of unabsorbed black rocks. And now that the perfume is wearing off, developing a smoke odor.
It's a crap shoot how well it will rehab. Since this was going to be a rehab and then resell, I think I will just return it. I have my doubts whether it will ever feel like leather again.

Thanks for your input!

Update: Had an idea. Would some sort of extreme waterproofing wax like goop make it feel this way?

Hi, maramd. Is it shoe polish? (Not sure if that's already been suggested.) I've been dealing with cleaning up some. I think initially the conditioner I used mixed with it & made a bigger mess. I also believe the polish can change the suede side's texture.

 

[Belicious]

If it were mine, I would dunk it, but once you do that, you can't return it. Does the inside leather feel the same as the outside? Usually if something was put on it, it would probably be concentrated on the outside. I've never used Coach conditioner so I don't know what it would make it feel like.

I would dunk it too if it were mine. I would be too curious to see if whatever it was washes off. I have found sometimes smelly bags get smellier after a wash though!

This is the worst thing about buying bags off ebay. They look fine in the picture but when you get them obvious problems appear. The last couple of things I bought there turned out disasterous. One bag was dyed really really badly, no mention of it by seller and you can't tell in the pictures.. but she was sweet enough to refund me the whole payment. Now I'm wondering what on earth to do with the bag. I did try and removed whatever the color was a ruined the edges by soaking it for too long/too hot/too many chemicals ;(

I have 2 bags arriving from ebay today and instead of being excited I'm a little terrified to see what's wrong with them that I didn't see in photos.

 

[Almmac]

Inside leather feels the same as the outside, so does the strap. Feels like 14 years of unabsorbed black rocks. And now that the perfume is wearing off, developing a smoke odor.
It's a crap shoot how well it will rehab. Since this was going to be a rehab and then resell, I think I will just return it. I have my doubts whether it will ever feel like leather again.

Thanks for your input!

Update: Had an idea. Would some sort of extreme waterproofing wax like goop make it feel this way?

That could be what it is! I've never applied enough Obenauf's to make a bag feel that way but I imagine if enough was applied it could get to that point. It was made for firemen "to protect leather against caustic fire retardant chemicals, heat, water, and abrasion. Natural oils are gradually released into the fibers as a long term lubrication. Heat or continued flexing causes oils to be released faster." You may have a hard time getting it off. Dooney and Bourke's All Weather Leather feels kind of rubbery in a cool way. I like it.

 

[Catbird9]

Hi, maramd. Is it shoe polish? (Not sure if that's already been suggested.) I've been dealing with cleaning up some. I think initially the conditioner I used mixed with it & made a bigger mess. I also believe the polish can change the suede side's texture.

I was thinking shoe polish too.

 

[Almmac]

Once I sent something in and it came back after 2 months with a letter saying they couldn't repair it. I didn't get a 40% off letter either. What I had was a NYC basic bag with a broken zipper. I didn't get a call. Another thing came back partially repaired and the third thing I sent in was repaired perfectly.

whateve, If I go by your statistics, I have about a 50/50 chance of them repairing it (I've already been turned down once). Better odds than I thought. It's not even a broken zipper. The pull just fell off and was lost. I'm sure they have a ton of random zipper pulls lying around. I even found a generic zipper pull replacement but I ended up not carrying the bag because I didn't like it.

 

[killua_estee]

Hello! This is not coach bag but I'd like to tap on the expertise of the members here! So I bought this vintage bally bag and when i received it I saw that the handle was torn! Any ideas how to repair it? I tried gluing it down but it doesn't work.

Also, there are some discolouration throughout the bag, and dry spots.

Is there a way to remove the discolouration - is dyeing the only way? I'm hesitant about dunking it because it's fully lined in leather.

I used leather condition on the dry spots but after a few days the leather feels dry again. . Am I doing something wrong?

TIA!

 

[Belicious]

Hello! This is not coach bag but I'd like to tap on the expertise of the members here! So I bought this vintage bally bag and when i received it I saw that the handle was torn! Any ideas how to repair it? I tried gluing it down but it doesn't work.

Also, there are some discolouration throughout the bag, and dry spots.

Is there a way to remove the discolouration - is dyeing the only way? I'm hesitant about dunking it because it's fully lined in leather.

I used leather condition on the dry spots but after a few days the leather feels dry again. . Am I doing something wrong?

TIA!

I would probably carefully use superglue on that handle because you need heavy duty hold.. it will dry hard though but in that spot I'm not sure that would matter.

Have you tried a heavy duty oil type conditioner such as Obenaufs oil? It might look worse when you first put it on but give it a week to soak in and it may even the color a bit, and also darken it. I have no experience with that type of bag though.

 

[Ravvie99]

Hello! This is not coach bag but I'd like to tap on the expertise of the members here! So I bought this vintage bally bag and when i received it I saw that the handle was torn! Any ideas how to repair it? I tried gluing it down but it doesn't work.

Also, there are some discolouration throughout the bag, and dry spots.

Is there a way to remove the discolouration - is dyeing the only way? I'm hesitant about dunking it because it's fully lined in leather.

I used leather condition on the dry spots but after a few days the leather feels dry again. . Am I doing something wrong?

TIA!

Nice bag! I'd glue it, too. I had a tear in a similarly dicey place on a non-Coach and glued it with E6000. Not the prettiest but seems to be holding. The few things I've glued have turned out better when I first press the two pieces together for a minute or two then clamp it until cured, putting some extra cloth (or whatever) between the clamp jaws and the leather to avoid denting it. Hope this helps you decide what to do (or not do!)

ETA: sorry that pic is ginormous from my iPad!

 

[killua_estee]

Glued and also tried applying saphir renovateur on half of the bag to see the effect, it darkens the leather but it did feels softer! Hope it stays soft and I'll apply the renovateur on the whole bag.

I would probably carefully use superglue on that handle because you need heavy duty hold.. it will dry hard though but in that spot I'm not sure that would matter.

Have you tried a heavy duty oil type conditioner such as Obenaufs oil? It might look worse when you first put it on but give it a week to soak in and it may even the color a bit, and also darken it. I have no experience with that type of bag though.

Thanks for your advice!
I don't have any obenaufs oil and it takes 3 weeks to ship in to Singapore with a hefty shipping fee [emoji32]

Nice bag! I'd glue it, too. I had a tear in a similarly dicey place on a non-Coach and glued it with E6000. Not the prettiest but seems to be holding. The few things I've glued have turned out better when I first press the two pieces together for a minute or two then clamp it until cured, putting some extra cloth (or whatever) between the clamp jaws and the leather to avoid denting it. Hope this helps you decide what to do (or not do!)

ETA: sorry that pic is ginormous from my iPad!

Thanks for the advice! I tried glueing it! I can't find in Singapore so I bought a shoe sole glue instead.. it dried clear but looks tacky..
Are you planning to apply any edge kote or something to cover the glue marks?