hi, I recently "laundered" the gross grain bow on my Vara mini bag. I covered the surrounding leather with plastic wrap to protect that area. I also put a piece of plastic wrap over the brass plate on the bow. Okay, now only the gross grain is exposed on my Vara mini in Macaron. I then sprayed the bow with a laundry pre-treatment and as per the directions, let it sit for 15 minutes. After the prep treatment, I used a mild dw detergent with a soft, non abrasive cloth, to work up a lather on the bow and then used another soft cloth to rinse the suds. I then stuffed the interior of the bow loops with more clean plastic wrap and allowed to dry. Much better = but could be improved upon. I did another laundry stain pre treatment spray, 15 minutes, then a thorough rinse. More stuffing into the bow loops, mainly to "block" the bows so they wouldn't be wrinkled. Two days later, completely dry and the bow looked brand new. No difference in appearance between the top of the bow and the underside which is never touched or exposed to the elements. I was really impressed with how the bow worked out so I'll do the same to my ivory Vara shoes. Really freshened up my bag, looks brand new. Important to use a soft cloth because you don't want to wear the fibres on the bow.
