I was very suprised to find this tiny
Coach bag at the Salvation Army store recently for only $2; and I was even more surprised to find her dust bag in another area of the store for just 90 cents!
Hyacinth authenticated her as Gracie 4413. She was made in Italy in 1994, the color is called Beechnut and she cost $242 in the 1995 Holiday catalog.
Apparently this Gracie wasn't stored in her dustbag because she had areas of caked-on dirt, while the dustbag was pristine and looked like it had been carefully stored in a drawer for the last 16 years! Gracie's interior was very clean, I am happy to say.
DemRam advised me just to gently wipe her with a damp cloth because of the delicate, pebbled leather surface that had been "specially treated" to retain new appearance over time, according to the creed patch.
So that's what I did and it worked great! I was necessary to "use some elbow grease" on the dirtiest areas, but little Gracie is tougher than she looks! There are still some slight dirty marks but I was afraid to keep cleaning and perhaps damage the delicate surface that Hyacinth described as "caviar". I also carefully shined up the hardware with a little brasso.
Sadly, the long strap is missing and I would love to replace it with a suitable substitute but that will be difficult to find. I actually went back to the SA store the next day in the (slim) hope that the snap-closure strap might have been mistakenly been put with the belts, but no such luck.
I may try for a contrasting color strap or perhaps a brushed brass chain, if I can find something that looks nice. In the meantime Gracie will live happily in her dustbag in my closet as a top-handle pouch. I am looking to carrying her, she is such a little cutie!
Here are some before pics:
