Hermes Vintage Bag Nightmares & Hermes Leather Care

[am2022]

Hello again doc!!

Im so liking the toile hermes bags and ready to jump on a bolide epsom/ toile:

Is there a way I can just waterproof the whole darn thing that can offer protection against the elements including water / rain/ splashes etc?

I know toile is not good with water but is epsom water resistant?

If epsom is water resistant... can i have the toile part treated by a leather specialist maybe? or anything i can buy to do it myself?
thanks again!

 

[docride]

Hi, does anyone know if it's even possible to remove the black alcohol-based marker from the leather. Not sure what kind of leather it is... it's smooth like box, but not as shiny, more matt. Thanks!!!

If you mean sharpie permanent marker then no this will stay on the elatehr and generally will not come off/out even with an ink killer. Even so when you attempt to lift off out ink the area will be left with missing color and usually will need to be addressed with recoloring. IMO this is not for a novice and should be sent to a trusted professional.

 

[docride]

Hello again doc!!

Im so liking the toile hermes bags and ready to jump on a bolide epsom/ toile:

Is there a way I can just waterproof the whole darn thing that can offer protection against the elements including water / rain/ splashes etc?

I know toile is not good with water but is epsom water resistant?

If epsom is water resistant... can i have the toile part treated by a leather specialist maybe? or anything i can buy to do it myself?
thanks again!

Epsom is water resistant to some degree already it can be protected further with a good neutral polish,the toile can be treated with stain guard and water gaurd type products by a dry cleaner or trusted professional they can use products which are similar to Scotch Guard and Obenauf's Water Shield ..i find this sort of thing is messy requiring masking off of the leather parts first. This sort of thing is best handled by a trusted professional.

 

[docride]

Hi Docride;

Need your help on my new to me box calf burgundy Kelly backpack, there seem to have small discoloration spots all over the bag, what can I use to darken the spots and condition the leather? Doc's answer> You won't get perfect results you can try using a Lincoln Stain polish in Red And any product to rain prove it? There is extensive Box Calf weather protection information written in this thread already which you can search for. Good polish can help weather protect Box Calf.

View attachment 1913077

My clemence cobalt blue Kelly corners have some wear on one of the corners, is there any products to darken or color it? Docride's answer> Tarrago makes color dyes which can be used to replace missing color.you can use Lexol PH leather wipes to clean and condition this leather. And any product to clean and condition it?

View attachment 1913079
I have answered your many questions above^^^ Please in future, ask a single question about a single leather type per post and do a search in advance to see if I haven't already answered such a question already. Thank you and good luck.

 

[julietta_jolie]

If you mean sharpie permanent marker then no this will stay on the elatehr and generally will not come off/out even with an ink killer. Even so when you attempt to lift off out ink the area will be left with missing color and usually will need to be addressed with recoloring. IMO this is not for a novice and should be sent to a trusted professional.

Thank you for the response, Docride. I was hoping there was a magic trick to it, but I guess I'll just have to live with it(((. The leather is dark brown, so it's not too noticeable...

 

[ysbooey]

Thanks docride will do as advised.

 

[Fabfashion]

Hi Doc,

I just got a new So Kelly in orange/moutarde clemence leather this week. Didn't even have a chance to do a reveal yet and it already has a scratch. On the second day of use, I hung the bag on the back of a chair at a restaurant and it fell and rubbed along a concrete wall and left a scratch mark about 3/4" long at the front along the bottom. I'm so upset! It wasn't even 48 hours old. I stopped by the Hermes store and the SA tried to buff it lightly with a cloth to no avail. We couldn't see the scratch/groove in the leather but the white mark wouldn't come out. She suggested trying using an eraser at home and also using a blow dryer on the spot lightly then buff off. Well, I tried but nothing worked!

I was wondering if you may have a suggestion that I can try. If I send it back to the boutique, she'll send it to Paris for an evaluation and it'll take 2-3 months to come back. I can also stop by this leather repair shop that all the other boutiques use (Gucci, Prada, etc. use) and see what they can do. I'd greatly appreciate any suggestion. I'm hoping there's something I can do without having to send it away for months. Thanks in advance!

 

[xtine74]

Hello Doc, and all, I've been reading this thread whilst looking out for my first 'refurb' project, what an invaluable thread!!! I've just got my hands on this gorgeous little vintage strapless Sandrine but am a bit wary of were/how to start clean her up. Can you tell by the pictures if it is box leather, and maybe reassure me her flaws aren't too bad for a newbie like me to tackle? I'm in the UK so not sure which products i can get here that will suit best :/. Thank you so much for any advice you can offer.

 

[docride]

Hi Doc,

I just got a new So Kelly in orange/moutarde clemence leather this week. Didn't even have a chance to do a reveal yet and it already has a scratch. On the second day of use, I hung the bag on the back of a chair at a restaurant and it fell and rubbed along a concrete wall and left a scratch mark about 3/4" long at the front along the bottom. I'm so upset! It wasn't even 48 hours old. I stopped by the Hermes store and the SA tried to buff it lightly with a cloth to no avail. We couldn't see the scratch/groove in the leather but the white mark wouldn't come out. She suggested trying using an eraser at home and also using a blow dryer on the spot lightly then buff off. Well, I tried but nothing worked!

I was wondering if you may have a suggestion that I can try. If I send it back to the boutique, she'll send it to Paris for an evaluation and it'll take 2-3 months to come back. I can also stop by this leather repair shop that all the other boutiques use (Gucci, Prada, etc. use) and see what they can do. I'd greatly appreciate any suggestion. I'm hoping there's something I can do without having to send it away for months. Thanks in advance!

If you don't want to send the bag to Hermes .

You can try using a Lexol PH Leather Wipe and a tiny brush in very small circles over the mark with very little presure; you have to be careful that you don't lose the grains of the leather by applying too much pressure.

If that doesn't work you can allow it to dry and then try small amount of neutral polish and see if the white mark lifts off.

It doesn't look like a real scrape from here it looks like a chalky cement line ..I do not see broken topskin ..do you?

If this doesn't work

You can bring it to a truely trusted leather professional to fix it for you.

 

[Fabfashion]

If you don't want to send the bag to Hermes .

You can try using a Lexol PH Leather Wipe and a tiny brush in very small circles over the mark with very little presure; you have to be careful that you don't lose the grains of the leather by applying too much pressure.

If that doesn't work you can allow it to dry and then try small amount of neutral polish and see if the white mark lifts off.

It doesn't look like a real scrape from here it looks like a chalky cement line ..I do not see broken topskin ..do you?

If this doesn't work

You can bring it to a truely trusted leather professional to fix it for you.

Firstly, a big THANK YOU to Doc for your advice. I spent most of Sunday afternoon gently using Q-tips to clean the mark (seemed to be some kind of paint/cement transfer) and I'm happy to report that the mark is hugely improved. I've included pics below of the before/after.

I didn't have the products you mentioned but I started off by using Tana leather cleaner. After gently rubbing with Q-tip in circular motion along the mark, I saw only about 10% improvement. I was a bit disheartened. I waited for the spot to dry and used a soft brush to lightly brush the spot--may be another 10% improvement. By then I was rather discouraged. I used Kiwi neutral polish (read somewhere that it's from the same company as Meltonian) on a Q-tip and lightly rub over the spot. I was so afraid that the leather in the surrounding area would discolor. Well, the mark seemed to lift a bit especially where it was thinner/lighter. I kept at it and after rotating with another round of cleaner and polish, the mark is about 75% better than when I first started. I stopped at this point since some of the paint is embedded in the leather cracks and no amount of rubbing made a difference.

I'm very very happy with the result. It took DH nearly 5 minutes to find the spot even though he knew where it was. It's at the front towards the bottom so I'm fine with it as is. If I'm ever near the expert leather repair shop downtown, I may stop by and see what they say but for now I'm very happy with it.

Again thank you, Doc, for your help. You have now saved 2 of my bags.

Mark now:

Bag before:

Bag after:

 

[VnSoie]

Hi, Doc,

New pair of black box Jumping boots. Wore them once, no disasters, then started the Doc treatment. One light Blackrock, then did two Obenauf's. Rested overnight between each. Tonight, as a test, I expected the waterproofing to be complete, so to test dripped a bit of water on one. Got a little blister. Did another layer of Obenauf's. I don't really want them to be shiny, so wasn't planning to do the final Blackrock's; I would like the patina to develop naturally. Any thoughts/suggestions? Thank you--

VnSoie

 

[Miskin]

Dear Docride, I would like to thank you once again for your time and great advice! THANK YOU!!!

 

[docride]

Firstly, a big THANK YOU to Doc for your advice. I spent most of Sunday afternoon gently using Q-tips to clean the mark (seemed to be some kind of paint/cement transfer) and I'm happy to report that the mark is hugely improved. I've included pics below of the before/after.

I didn't have the products you mentioned but I started off by using Tana leather cleaner. After gently rubbing with Q-tip in circular motion along the mark, I saw only about 10% improvement. I was a bit disheartened. I waited for the spot to dry and used a soft brush to lightly brush the spot--may be another 10% improvement. By then I was rather discouraged. I used Kiwi neutral polish (read somewhere that it's from the same company as Meltonian) on a Q-tip and lightly rub over the spot. I was so afraid that the leather in the surrounding area would discolor. Well, the mark seemed to lift a bit especially where it was thinner/lighter. I kept at it and after rotating with another round of cleaner and polish, the mark is about 75% better than when I first started. I stopped at this point since some of the paint is embedded in the leather cracks and no amount of rubbing made a difference.

I'm very very happy with the result. It took DH nearly 5 minutes to find the spot even though he knew where it was. It's at the front towards the bottom so I'm fine with it as is. If I'm ever near the expert leather repair shop downtown, I may stop by and see what they say but for now I'm very happy with it.

Again thank you, Doc, for your help. You have now saved 2 of my bags.

Mark now:

Bag before:

Bag after:

Fantastic job! Congrats!

 

[docride]

Hi, Doc,

New pair of black box Jumping boots. Wore them once, no disasters, then started the Doc treatment. One light Blackrock, then did two Obenauf's. Rested overnight between each. Tonight, as a test, I expected the waterproofing to be complete, so to test dripped a bit of water on one. Got a little blister. Did another layer of Obenauf's. I don't really want them to be shiny, so wasn't planning to do the final Blackrock's; I would like the patina to develop naturally. Any thoughts/suggestions? Thank you--

VnSoie

No need to go strictly with just light applications of Blackrocks's Leather n Rich and Obenauf's LP on boots that will see plenty of wear and weather. Another good round of Obenauf's LP Heavy Duty and you should be good to go Take care to massage it into the leather evenly and remove the excess. Good luck.

 

[VnSoie]

No need to go strictly with just light applications of Blackrocks's Leather n Rich and Obenauf's LP on boots that will see plenty of wear and weather. Another good round of Obenauf's LP Heavy Duty and you should be good to go Take care to massage it into the leather evenly and remove the excess. Good luck.

Well, Doc, THANK YOU for your excellent advice. I went ahead and applied a third round of Obenauf's and dared to wear the boots on a day when rain was forecast. It didn't rain--but I spilled my chocolate milk-based breakfast drink and it splashed on both of my boots. I thought I moved my arm fast enough, so I didn't notice right away that I'd gotten it on my boots until I was in the washroom a few hours later. I took a barely damp cloth to the boots and thought I got it all off. WHEW. Got home that night and found more. Got out the Blackrock to clean the vamps properly and evenly, and they look just fine--no blistering at all. Thank you, thank you, thank you, dear Doc!