The LV Rescue Club

TPF may earn a commission from merchant affiliate
links, including eBay, Amazon, and others

Hi I have a neverfull mm damier ebene and a 4 month old beagle puppy. I always put my bag in my closet when I'm home so that he cannot touch it. When I arrived at work today I realized that one of the side straps had been chewed off. It's the ones that pull. I called LV and the SA said that I need to ship it to them to be looked at and that it would take about a 4-6 week turn around. She also said this is about the 5th dog in a week that she's heard this happen. Does anyone know about how much that replacement costs?
 
Please help! My nan gave me her beautiful rare trousse ronde and the lining is flaky. Im just wondering as I would love to use it as a pencil case as I love art and Louis Vuitton even more!

Many Thanks.
 
has anyone had their small 6 ring key holder rescued? I was thinking of having the piping fixed on a pre loved one, but since it's such a small item I thought maybe it would be better to just buy a new one outright if the cost of fixing the item is too much?
I'd just buy a new one (or pre-loved in good condition). I don't believe that LV will repair piping on small accessories, although I don't believe that key holders have piping. The cost to reglaze the edges (if possible) will be at least $150+. Even for the cost to have a good cobbler make the repair, you're better off using the money for a key holder that isn't in need of repair.
 
Last edited:
Hi I'm waiting for my first Louis that I just ordered of Ebay. It is in pretty bad nick and will need lots off repairing but I am SO chuffed. Its a Vintage Keepall Louis Vuitton 55 Bandoulière. As im not very rich and can only do the minimum I would like your help to find the best way to go about this. I also am looking for a schoulderstrap , would anyone know where to get a worn, vintage , schoulderstrap from? I have had a recommendation for a dry cleaner/resorer in Wigan UK. Does anyone know if they are good/well priced? Thanks a lot



Have you tried eBay for a shoulder strap too? I just scored a Bandouliere 50 on eBay today, but it already came with a shoulder strap. I know good repair shops in Amsterdam but not in UK.
 
I'd just buy a new one (or pre-loved in good condition). I don't believe that LV will repair piping on small accessories, although I don't believe that key holders have piping. The cost to reglaze the edges (if possible) will be at least $150+. Even for the cost to have a good cobbler make the repair, you're better off using the money for a key holder that isn't in need of repair.


Thanks for the info. Still thinking about what to buy so I'll keep an eye out on sites for a good deal while I'm deciding
 
Information given in this thread must have been old as I rescued an Alma this week and just left the LV store close to tears. Vachetta replacement cost $1100.00 and a new Alma is $1410.00 so I am going to return my $300.00 rescue 😡
Mad face/sad face....

That's quite a jump. I sent mine in for repair November of 2013. I can't imagine that it would be almost double in a few months. Is there a different store near you that you could try?
 
Got the tab on my Toiletry Pouch 15 replaced, it was $70!! :shocked: I did get a new box, dustbag and leather ribbon with the repair so I guess I can't be that upset. The tab said made in France before and after the repair. (I was afraid it would be changed to USA).
 
The Extended Petit Bucket project

I had never set out to take a part this bag. I know that the only way it keeps its “value” is to have the repairs done by a Louis Vuitton Shop. I also understand why they will refuse to perform repairs on older products. The canvas of this bag was becoming brittle after 17 years. Extra holes from stitching the new binding definitely weakened the top. I certainly didn’t “save” any money on this project condition. What I did end up with is saving an old bag, giving it a second life and a fun project. Hopefully all you DIY folks out there will learn from my mistakes.

Where it started:
I teach a high school fashion class. When we were discussing the difference between fast fashion which is cheap but lacking quality, as opposed to purchasing something that is designer. I tried to explain that when you purchased designer goods, they would last an extremely long time if you took care of them. When you purchase something of quality, it is worth repair and replacing worn parts rather than replacing it with something much cheaper.


I was on ebay when I saw a Louis Vuitton Petit Bucket listed for $60. The outside was in fairly good condition but like many products with vuittonite lining, the inside was a sticky mess. I decided to purchase it and make a cream coloured leather insert to go over top of the original lining to extend the life of the bag while not altering it. Everyone who rescues an LV dreams of taking it in for refurbishing.


On the purse forum I read about someone who had scrubbed the sticky off the lining using simple green and a brush. I decided to try scrubbing the lining clean but when I didn’t predict that I would get the leather wet and dry it out. Once the leather binding strip at the top of the bag dried, it cracked and crumbled like a potato chip. The same thing happened to the leather around the liner pockets which destroyed the LV Heat Stamp.


WXoOt1k.jpg


I removed the inside liner, made a pattern from it. I bought some cute purple and cream fabric with an adorable pattern on it and recreated the liner. I was able to reuse the original LV zipper (once I cleaned all the sticky off) and reattached the chain with the date stamp. The leather pieces from around the pockets were garbage so I recreated them with the cream leather I had bought to make the insert I had originally planned.


I took the bag with my custom lining to my local leather repair store. Where I ran into a whole new host of problems.
1) They didn’t have leather in the thickness I required.
2) They didn’t have the correct colour or thickness of thread.


They used natural vegetable tanned leather that was slightly lighter than the original vachetta to replace the binding strip. I contacted a thread company and mailed them a sample of the thread from the inside of the bag. They told me what to order and the project was on its way again. From ordering this bag to actually using it, the timeline was about 5 months.



Pros:
Inside lining is completely repaired/replaced with fabric that is durable and personalized. I will get a fair amount of use out of this bag since the outside is durable. I want my students to see and appreciate the quality of a designer label. I also want them to understand that learning how to sew also has value.


Cons:
I spent more money than I had intended to refurbish this bag. If I had planned it better, I could have bought one with the cosmetics bag. Once I had made the lining and damaged the leather I wasn’t sure what to do. The bag has no resale value but I doubt that being in an unusable condition that it was in was much better.
I hope that those of you who are thinking of rescuing a LV Bag on ebay will take a minute to see what is available for double the cost. You can get a far nicer bag you can easily rather than doing the major overall. I wouldn’t have done this if I didn’t sew, It would have cost me at least another $50 to have someone else figured out and replace the lining. Maybe I should sell the replacement pattern I made on ebay?
Anyway, here is a total cost breakdown of this project including shipping and taxes separate. I originally wasn’t going to include them but in my heart I knew I should.

$60 LV Bag from ebay
$10 Cream coloured leather for insert
$10 Thread and Fabric for lining
$ 4 Yellow LV style thread
$40 Leather binding replacement
$124 Subtotal
$ 38 Shipping, Duty and Taxes
$160 Total Cost for the project

If I were to attempt this project again:

1. Make sure the leather binding at the top of the bucket bag is in good condition.

2. Condition all the leather before handling. The leather was dry to begin with and I think that I would have caused less damage if it had been conditioned a couple times before I started handling it.

3. Cut out the original lining, leaving a 1 inch strip to attach the new lining to. Then you can remove the embossed leather pocket openings and LV zipper and use them.

4. For the replacement lining, instead of just serging the raw edge at the top I would have left an extra ½ inch and folded the top over to make it stronger.

5. I would have bought enough fabric to add more pockets in the lining for sunglasses and lipstick.

6.. If I had to remove the leather binding at the top of the purse. I would reinforce the top of the monogrammed canvas all around the inside top with a strip of electrical tape or fusible interfacing to help it hold together and prevent potential cracking (which my leather specialist had problems with.) I would also tell them that I wanted the special thread I had ordered on both the inside and outside stitching. I guess I didn’t specify that I was important.


Thanks for ready my post. Thoughts, comments questions appreciated.

MkS0yQN.jpg


The binding shows lighter in the picture.

ApSTCCy.jpg


FD2PSKD.jpg


I would have taken more photos but Cleocatra decided she would share the spotlight.

zQIt2kt.jpg
 
Hi there, would anyone have a rough idea how much it would cost to have all the leather replaced on an azur galliera PM in UK sterling? I tried calling LV, but they don't provide quotes over the phone and it's difficult to get to a store. I just want a rough estimate to see if it's worthwhile or not. My bag is in beautiful condition inside and out, but I just don't like how much the vachetta has darkened and would just like it the way it was new. Would be helpful to know if anyone with a galliera had had this done and what they thought of the repair. Thanks for your input. :)
 
Top