Smell on vintage bags

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TitaniaWilliams

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Sep 22, 2022
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#1
I recently bought a couple of vintage bags. They are both very old (at least 40 years old) and they smell a little bit. Maybe it's cigarette smell, or just the smell of being in some grandmother's closet for years not being used...

What can I do to solve this problem?

I already tried vinegar (i read it online) and perfume, but it didn't change much.

How can i fix this problem, is there a way to do it?

Thank you.
 
#3
Do not wash any bag that's leather. Leather shouldn't be touched by liquids, not water, alcohol or vinegar. Basically perfume and/or vinegar will just make something smell like perfume and/or vinegar. Spraying perfume certainly won't help, in fact if there's alcohol in the scent you can ruin the bags. If you're going to do something so drastic as to risk ruining them, maybe just give them to a good will store.

It takes time for the smell to go away. If damp (or left in the damp) leave out and use a dehumidifying sachet(s) inside.

Bacteria or mould, once you know what the smell is you can treat it.
 
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#4
Perseverence is key! Wipe inside with a cloth soaked in white vinegar and wrung out. Then make a sachet (or a clean sock), fill with baking soda, and place in the bag. As Elena says, ventilate in fresh air as much as possible. After a few days the smell should disappear.
 
#6
papertiger said:
Do not wash any bag that's leather. Leather shouldn't be touched by liquids, not water, alcohol or vinegar. Basically perfume and/or vinegar will just make something smell like perfume and/or vinegar. Spraying perfume certainly won't help, in fact if there's alcohol in the scent you can ruin the bags. If you're going to do something so drastic as to risk ruining them, maybe just give them to a good will store.

It takes time for the smell to go away. If damp (or left in the damp) leave out and use a dehumidifying sachet(s) inside.

Bacteria or mould, once you know what the smell is you can treat it.
Click to expand...
A lot of bag cleaning products are water-based. Also you need to use water with the sadle soap, which is pretty widely used. I'd say, it depends on the leather and how it was treated before the bad was made. For all my vintage bags, except from exotic leather, I've used sadle soap to clean and I rinse the bag under running water. There was no problems so far at all - if a bag can survive 40 years, it can survive a wash also. I do not believe that a 40 years old bag have never ever seen rain. Also ive tried some really harsh washes and treatments and all bags survived. The problem with vintage bags is not enough conditioned leather, not water. Of course, you try on invisible spot first.

If you want to wash the canvas, simply tie the bag in a plastic bag and ask someone to hold it up. The use an appropriate detergent to wash the canvas.

Also, FYI, all perfumes contain alcohol.
 
#7
You do what works for you.

I would recommend no one wash leather, especially if they don't know what the leather is

Saddle soap and water is only safe on saddle leather.

When drying water evaporation will draw out the natural oils in leather.

It's far better to brush leather, that way dirt, dust, any spores (from mould) or bacterial growth are brushed off.

Stamped leather usually has more water resistance but it can also swell if the water permeates.

Wearing leather builds-up a protective layer if used enough but a 40 year old handbag may not have been worn at all, it just means it's old. Sometimes, if kept in a constant damp warm/very cold atmosphere the leather can actually become more fragile.

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#8
Thanks guys.

I'm not crazy, I won't wash them or put perfume ON them

These two bags have an outside made of canvas, and I won't touch it (and it doesn't even smell that much...)

It's the inside that smells, and I believe it's not that bad, so I think it can be fixed.

The bags are a Fendi and a Gucci.

1) Fendi: on the inside it's a sort of monogram plastic, and it doesn't smell that bad even if I kinda think it's a little bit bad, because the plastic is not in the best shape and the monogram can be barely seen under the plastic. I have only tried perfume and vinegar.

2) Gucci: on the inside it's just white leather, and it smells a little bit worse than the Fendi, so it's probably mould. I tried vinegar and now I'm trying baking soda. We'll se in a couple of days.

Tomorrow I'll try keeping them outside in the sun and (hopefully) wind and, of course, I'll try everything that you suggested

Luckily enough, the weather this year is extremely warm here in Italy even if it's almost November
 
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#9
Good news!
Baking soda is working, but today I need to buy some more because I had nothing left but a small quantity which I tried on the small Gucci pochette for just 24 hours.
Now the bags are outside in the sun with a fan and the results are encouraging.
I don't know if I will be able to get rid of the smell, but I'm already seeing improvements, so this is good for me.
 
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#12
What would happen if I hand washed a Gucci canvas bag?
I have another bag that's not dirty but it kinda smells. It's the classic gucci canvas. I don't like the smell even though it's not bad.
I was thinking about putting it in cold water with some soap to get rid of the smell, rinse and then let it dry outside.
Is it going to ruin the bag?
It shouldn't, I mean, I have Gucci canvas shoes and for sure they've seen rain before :)
 
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#13
Guys, I washed the bag. (classic gucci canvas, with leather)
As I said, it didn't smell bad, but it had a smell which I don't know what it was, and I couldn't stand it.

I used cold water and soap (the classic soap that I use for the washing machine) and it came out just fine. It's perfect and it doesn't smell anymore.

The brown leather released a little bit of brown colour when it was drying (I let it dry outside on a towel for a few hours), but it's still perfect.

***

The Gucci pochette was washed as well, but I believe it has mold in it so it didn't come off in just one try. But for sure it helped, it was a little bit dirty as well and now she's way better. Even baking soda worked a little bit. I didn't try coffee beans yet.
I'll probably insist washing it and see how it goes.
 
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#14
update:
I sold one of the bags, the Fendi blue pochette vintage. It was amazing but it was too vintage for my style at the moment and I couldn't wear it. I sold it very fast making a profit. It was also hard to be cleaned, so it probably needed some extra work that I didn't want to do or pay for (I already have a Fendi baguette and I bought another Fendi that I liked more than that one...)

As for the other one, the Gucci pochette, I washed it several times (4 or 5) and with sun and fresh air (thank God it's sunny this November in Italy) it's way way better and the smell is almost gone.

I'm trying coffee beans for the first time today, but I could already use this bag because it doesn't smell much. It just smells of soap and a little bit of mold still, but just a little bit.

Tomorrow I'm going to use it for the first time.
 
#15
I recently bought a vintage Gucci bag and the inside of the bag (which is made of canvas) has a strange odor, it smells a bit like plastic or moisture? I am not sure what mold/mildew smells like so I don't know if that's what is contributing to the odor. I've also heard many people mention vintage bags have a "musty" odor, but English is not my first language so I am not sure if what I'm smelling is a musty odor. How would you describe the smell of mustiness/mold?
 
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