Rehabbing Legacy Stripe Sateen and Gold Metalic Leather

[katev]

I am documenting my rehab of a Framed Kisslock Slim Envelope Wallet 40242 B4 MC that was originally released in 2007 for $248.


This wallet is made of Legacy striped sateen fabric and gold metallic leather. I've always thought that these materials were delicate and very difficult to rehab, but my experience with this wallet has been just the opposite, so I wanted to post the information in case someone else might find it useful.


This rehab did not require much skill so please don't praise my meager talents. It did require some labor but that was my own fault because I didn't research and authenticate the item here on TPF before I bid on it. It is authentic but it was in bad shape. The problem was that I was surfing ebay while drinking white wine - a dangerous combination!


If I had done my research first I wouldn't have bid on the item at all because Whateve and BeenBurned would have told me that this vendor has a bad reputation for altering and misrepresenting Coach products. And Noshoepolish would have advised me to demand clear photos because this wallet has a history of rubbing damage to the metallic leather and for easily becoming soiled.


But I was sipping wine and in the mood to buy something (and I have always loved the 65th Anniversary Legacy line) so even though the auction pictures were fuzzy - I accepted the vendor's description of the condition as "very good" and entered a bid. I was thrilled when I was the high bidder at $81! Woe is me!


Don't get me wrong, now that the rehab is done and successful I love the wallet, but I think that $81 plus S&H was a lot of money for a "fixer upper" that was actually in terrible condition!


Here is a stock photo of the wallet and I will post some "Before" pics of my wallet next.

 

[katev]

You can't really see how dirty the wallet was in these pics but it was filthy. It was spotted and dirty and the white stripes on the sateen fabric were dingy gray. But the biggest problem was the damage to the gold metallic leather. It was rubbed away on almost every surface of the wallet, inside and out, and it was almost completely gone on the kisslock frame. The pink fabric lining the inside of the wallet had dirty gray streaks and the hardware was very tarnished and scratched.


I considered filing a Significantly Not As Described (SNAD) claim with ebay because of the vendor's description of "very good condition" but I had bought the wallet "as is" and "no returns" and when I looked carefully (and soberly!) at the fuzzy auction pictures the wear and damage were apparent; so I decided to try and rehab it.


Here are some "Before" pics but it was much more dirty and nasty IRL than it looks.

 

[katev]

I have never been brave enough to give a bath to a Legacy striped sateen item. I have successfully used no-alcohol baby wipes to clean this fabric in the past but I've been unwilling to dunk it - but not this wallet - I couldn't get it into the suds fast enough! There was no way I would ever carry this item unless I felt comfortable that it was completely clean, inside and out.


I dumped it into the sink with warm water and Dawn dish soap, and when it handled that well - I added some Clorox Bleach just to make sure it was really clean! I then used a soft toothbrush to scrub every inch of the wallet.


After it dried I was pleased that the fabric looked nice and bright but the leather damage was still an issue.


The leather at the corners of the frame seemed very thin and worn, so first I rubbed in some leather glue to stabilize them.


After the glue dried I decided to tackle the leather in earnest. I have had good luck in the past using acrylic metallic paint to camouflage spot damage on metallic leather but this was a much bigger job and first I had to protect the fabric.


I used Scotch disappearing "Magic" tape to cover any fabric adjacent to the leather. That was the most tedious part of this rehab project.


Then I used an artist's paint brush to apply "Glorious Gold" metallic acrylic paint to all of the leather surfaces. It covered well with one application. I kept the nail of the index finger of my left hand up against the leather as I brushed on the paint, to prevent any paint from soaking in to the fabric.


After the paint dried, the Scotch came off easily without damage. I then used Wenol metal polish on the hardware. The 65th Anniversary Legacy items usually had "antique gold" colored hardware but I had to really polish it until it was bright and shiny gold in order to remove all the tarnish and scratches.


Anyway, here are the after pics. I have nicknamed this wallet "Kate's Folly" but I am very happy with the results and looking forward to carrying this pretty item. It will never be pristine but I think that it is still beautiful and I have learned some valuable lessons from this rehab!


Again, it didn't require much skill, just a lot of nerve and patience. Thanks for looking!

 

[Jesabella]

That's amazing! I don't know that I would have been quite so brave. Kudos to you!

 

[whateve]

Wow, it looks great! I would never have thought to use bleach. I also would never have thought the brass would recover that well. I think that every time I've tried to polish Legacy brass it always looks worse! Did you have any problem with the fabric pilling or snagging?

 

[ZSP]

Bravo! It turned out beautiful...what a great rehab. I must admit when I got to the Clorox part I cringed just a little. lol

 

[AnieB]

Great job! She's beautiful again!!!

 

[honkers]

Great work! I am awaiting a legacy striped wristlet that has some highlighter on it. Not sure how I will remove the mark but enjoyed reading about your rehab!

 

[katev]

Great work! I am awaiting a legacy striped wristlet that has some highlighter on it. Not sure how I will remove the mark but enjoyed reading about your rehab!

Thanks! You might try some baby wipes first and see how that works, good luck; let us know how it comes out.

 

[katev]

Wow, it looks great! I would never have thought to use bleach. I also would never have thought the brass would recover that well. I think that every time I've tried to polish Legacy brass it always looks worse! Did you have any problem with the fabric pilling or snagging?

thanks! I resorted to the bleach to try and brighten the dingy grayed white stripes; I was in a reckless mood! I knew that it would be "all or nothing" to get this one cleaned.


The hardware took a lot of effort, I just kept rubbing in the wenol and it finally started to shine. I used Jessi's trick of covering the area around the hardware with Glad Press N Seal and that helped a lot. Below is a close-up of the turnlock plate but the pic is a little fuzzy.


There was already little pilling of the fabric and a small snag on the back of the wallet before I started the rehab - you can see it a bit in the second "Before" picture above. The fabric actually tightened up and looked better after the bath.


One thing I regret, but there was no way to avoid it, there was hot pink thread stitching running through the gold leather but I had to cover it to camouflage the leather damage.

 

[katev]

That's amazing! I don't know that I would have been quite so brave. Kudos to you!

Great job! She's beautiful again!!!

Thank you, I am rueful that it took so much work to make her pretty again (I have bought brand, new FP delete wallets at the outlet for less than $80!) but I am very happy it worked out.

 

[BeenBurned]

Wow, you are talented, patient and brave. I would have found SNAD to be a lot easier!

Enjoy your now-new wallet!

 

[Mariquel]

The patience of Job -- I think that's the main component of why your rehabs always come out so well! The Legacy stripes are so pretty, I'm so glad you were able to make them look good again.

I didn't realize that that style had so many card slots, I need that!

 

[katev]

Wow, you are talented, patient and brave. I would have found SNAD to be a lot easier! Enjoy your now-new wallet!

The patience of Job -- I think that's the main component of why your rehabs always come out so well! The Legacy stripes are so pretty, I'm so glad you were able to make them look good again. I didn't realize that that style had so many card slots, I need that!

Thank you, I love a challenge!


The hardest part about this rehab was taping the fabric to protect it from paint, that part was tedious; but I am glad it worked out.

 

[happibug]

What a difference! Thank you for the detailed explanations --- it's very helpful. Your patience and work on this are admirable --- your wallet looks wonderful!