Hermes Vintage Bag Nightmares & Hermes Leather Care

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#6,243
Couture Coco said:
Dear Docride
Hope you had a happy and peaceful Thanksgiving!
Seems I'm having to add to the questions here for you - sorry!
Please can you tell if this Dalvy is VN? I'm not certain - the leather is smooth, thick and stiff even for a 1999 stamp. Thank you very much! :flowers::flowers::flowers:
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Yes, Iwe had a wonderful Thanksgiving thank you.
And yes,you have a lovely VN Dalvy there, congrats!
 
#6,244
lv_luva said:
Docride, I would really appreciate your knowledge and insight. I found a gold couchevel birkin that's in great shape and I am considering acquiring it. I am hesitant because it seems like it is one of the few gold couchevel bags for resale that is in good condition. Most of them look like they have been through hell. They have discoloration, color spottiness, color loss, water marks, scratches and excessive corner wear. The incidents of color loss, discoloration, and spottiness are more than I've seen for other vintage leathers. Can I get your opinion on couchevel? Compared to other Hermes leathers, is this leather not resilient and just more susceptible to scratches, wear and tear? I thought couchevel was safe against water stains? How well does it age? Does it not age as well in certain colors, like gold for instance? If so, how to explain all the sad couchevel bags out there? What should I be careful or mindful of to keep it from facing the same fate as the bags that I have seen? Will this leather benefit from your B&O method? Thank you so much for your advice and knowledge! :smile1:
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Courchevel, Is though stiff like many embissed or textured leathers when edges and areas get their curfaces rubbed off it's more noticable than when this occurs on smooth leathers becasue the texture is lost..see?
Lots of well priced very used bags out there, better shaped less trashed bags are priced higher usually, not all older couchevel is beat to death.
Courchevel was popular for many years and was replaced by epsom.
Epsom and courchevel can get water blisters,so it's important to not let water sit on the leather,wipe it off promptly. You can use Blackrocks and then a good neutral polish. Skip the Obenauf's LP. Taking extra care? When using the bag? Don't set it on cement and slide it over with a foot or drag or bump it along areas or items which are abrasive. Good luck.
 
#6,245
kim_mac said:
hi doc, i just purchased both B + O and going to work on my boots, H boots You can work on your Hermes boots if they are smooth box calf leather are they? , H wallets, and H bags (in that order). i am terrified to do anything "at home" and usually leave to the professionals since i am terrible and have ruined many things (latest is shrinking wool sweaters by handwashing). but i am more afraid of my leather goods drying and damaging so i'm going to give it my best shot!
Doc answers>
Your small leather goods and leatehrs in question do not require B or O to keep them nice, I would not say to use those products on what you have on your list. If you have no experience and or you are frightened of messing up stop and take your item to Hermes. In this case after reading yoru post that's my advice.

quick question - i have a blue jean togo birkin that has color loss on the corners. do i need to send to H spa to have them fix the color loss first? i don't really mind the corners but i don't want to ruin the bag by doing the B+O without fixing the corners first. maybe i can B+O for a couple of years and then fix the corners when they really bother me?

doc answers> You don't want Obenauf on Togo. You don't need blackrocks either. Clean with a Lexol Ph leather wipe when needed, let H take care of your corners for you.

second question - do you still recommend the B (and O for waterproofing) every 6 months minimum?

thanks so much! you are so gracious to share your knowledge with all of us.
i'm really excited (and scared) to start when my products arrive!
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Start with learning how to care for something like a pair of older boots ,try cleaning and conditioning and polishing them,you do not want to use uniformly B and or O on all leathers and esp not on small leatehr goods without experience, IMO just do some older boots and send your high dollar items to H for now. Gain some savy first. Good luck
 
#6,246
kim_mac said:
sorry, one more question - i noticed that my white clemence bags have a slight powdery finish (compared to colored clemence) and maybe it's because H "paints" the white...

will the blackrocks change the finish of my white clemence bags? i think i want to keep the same finish...is there something else you'd recommend?

thanks in advance!
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Never use blackrosks on a white finshed leather.....
White bags are tricky and can oxidize and yellow when products are applied and just sitting in a closet, I would leave this to H and not muck with it unless you are very experienced. Just trying to save you from a possible disaster. Good luck.
 
#6,247
bee_bianca said:
Dear Docride,

I have found a Kelly bag I am interested it. It is made out of the Courchevel leather and has some scratches and signs of wear . Here are some pictures. Do you think it can be restored?

Thank you,

B
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You'll need quite a lot of color restoration,more than would be achived with a colored polish applied by Hermes. If you want to have it restored it will require some color dye applied by a professional IMO.
 
#6,248
docride said:
Courchevel, Is though stiff like many embissed or textured leathers when edges and areas get their curfaces rubbed off it's more noticable than when this occurs on smooth leathers becasue the texture is lost..see?
Lots of well priced very used bags out there, better shaped less trashed bags are priced higher usually, not all older couchevel is beat to death.
Courchevel was popular for many years and was replaced by epsom.
Epsom and courchevel can get water blisters,so it's important to not let water sit on the leather,wipe it off promptly. You can use Blackrocks and then a good neutral polish. Skip the Obenauf's LP. Taking extra care? When using the bag? Don't set it on cement and slide it over with a foot or drag or bump it along areas or items which are abrasive. Good luck.
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Thank you docride for taking the time to answer my questions...again!
 
#6,249
docride said:
Yes, Iwe had a wonderful Thanksgiving thank you.
And yes,you have a lovely VN Dalvy there, congrats!
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Yay, thank you so much! So now I'd better treat her. There are few rain spots on the front towards the base so I'm assuming she's untreated. I don't think they would even show up in a close up photo. Should I just go ahead with your method for VN? What about the top part inside that is VN before the lining leather? Thanks again!
 
#6,251
Hi Doc, your help would be greatly appreciated!

Does this smiley look like it could be fixed by spa? Or have the top layers of the leather been rubbed off? Could anything else that spa could do fix this? Including restoring with color?

I am very tempted to buy this bag, but I don't know that I want to stare at a smiley. Thank you so much!!
 

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#6,252
Couture Coco said:
Yay, thank you so much! So now I'd better treat her. There are few rain spots on the front towards the base so I'm assuming she's untreated. I don't think they would even show up in a close up photo. Should I just go ahead with your method for VN? What about the top part inside that is VN before the lining leather? Thanks again!
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Yes, you sure can start B & O and yes the under flap should be VN also...that is if it doesn't look like chevre.
 
#6,253
purselover888 said:
Hi Doc, your help would be greatly appreciated!

Does this smiley look like it could be fixed by spa? Or have the top layers of the leather been rubbed off? Could anything else that spa could do fix this? Including restoring with color?

I am very tempted to buy this bag, but I don't know that I want to stare at a smiley. Thank you so much!!
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Not sure if H spa can sort that smilely out or not. A soft pink eraser gently used might clean it up but I can can't say that's a fact for certain. the smilely does not look too terrible from the photo,but for many a smailely is a deal breaker. Good luck.
 
#6,254
Sorry to re post, I think my question got skipped :shucks:Thank you always for your help!
First of all, hats down to such an outstanding, ongoing thread! This is such a resourceful tool for us "do it ourselves" type of people.
I am doing a home spa for my box calf birkin (2 blackrocks x 2 obenaufs x 2 blackrocks treatment) to protect and condition her. I have done some research and read on a few posts about finishing with a neutral polish. Could you please confirm if this is a necessary or important step to do on box calf. If so, I have Melotonian neutral boot/shoe cream polish. Would this work and may I apply by finger tip like the other products followed by buffing? I thought you had mentioned using a brush to polish, but I am not sure what type of brush and exactly clear how to go about doing this step.
I hope my question comes clear. Thank you for your help and hope you had a Happy Thanksgiving!
 
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