Wow, I hope this never happens to my copper Alexandra, but I'm glad there is a solution if it does. Now, do you think you will have to worry about carrying her in the rain since acrylic is water soluble? I suppose you can just always keep that side against your body to avoid getting it wet. Great idea! Thanks for sharing!
Using acrylic paint to camouflage damaged metallic leather Pics!
- Thread starter katev
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Acrylic paints are supposed to be permanent after they dry for 24 hours. I use them all the time to touch up the edging on vintage bag straps and I've never had any problems. I've even been able to put conditioner on bags that I've touched up without any issues. I think it should be okay, but if I find out differently I will post the information in TPF.
That's very kind, but as I said it was truly an act of desperation! I first heard about using acrylic paints to repair bags from bebepurse. Before you know it, you'll also be advising new rehabbers!
katev said:
There are plenty of us who get desperate and then hide the bag in a pillow case to deal with later, or even give up... (blush) It is so great when you (and bebepurse) show what is possible.
I just noticed today that the metallic Mia I bought my mum a year or two ago is wearing badly, now I know it can be fixed!!! Thanks!!!
I have a few failed rehab projects hidden in pillow cases too! One nice thing about acrylic paints is that they clean off easily with a damp cloth (when they are still fresh) so if it isn't going well you can remove them quickly with no harm done. Good luck with Mia!
Thanks Happybag, I know that you are a big fan of Zoes! I'm really glad that I was able to save my lovely copper Zoe. She's gorgeous and comfortable to carry and I love the interior design with 2 zipper pockets and 3 slip pockets and a D ring! Zoe really is a great bag!
I have the same exact bag with the same kind of damage! What is the name/color of the paint?? It looks awesome!!
Great Job - you know what they say "necessity is the mother of invention" I wish I had thought of that before returning my antique gold one a few years back.
I'm so sorry to hear that your copper Zoe is also damaged! I knew there had to be other TPFers with the same experience that's why I posted the info! Here are details about the process I used for anyone that is interested:
I took the hangtag with me to JoAnn's Fabrics and Hobbies but I am sure that other hobby and art supply stores carry many acrylic paints. At JoAnn's they had hundreds of small bottles of paints but only about 10 colors of metallic paints. The brand was "DecoArt Dazzling Metallics - Elegant Finish". They have color patches on the lids but you can actually unscrew the caps and look at the paint color under the cap (shake the bottle well first!) Don't depend too strongly on the names of the colors because sometimes they don't match your expectations!
I found 3 shades that were close to the hangtag and since the bottles were less than $2 each I decided to by all 3 - in case I had to mix colors or if they looked different under better light. They were called "Renaissance Brown Metallic Glaze DGM01" "Worn Penny DA287" and "Rich Expresso DA245". You will also need some artist's paintbrushes. I used a wide brush for this project, maybe a quarter inch wide - but they sell packs with several size brushes and that might be the best so you can experiment.
Believe it or not the color "Rich Expresso" was the one closest to copper Zoe and the shade that I used for this repair! It is actually a golden brown and not expresso at all! I tried mixing but wasn't happy with the results so I used the Rich Expresso color straight from the bottle. When it dries it is a bit more "golden" and slightly less "red/brown" than Zoe, so I probably should have kept mixing until I got the best shade - but it is close and it camouflages the damage and I am happy with the results.
I did the repair under strong sunlight (well, as strong as it gets in the midwest in late December!) Before I began I overstuffed Zoe with towels to create a smooth surface. You will need a small shallow dish or bowl for the paint - mix well, and a small bowl of water, and some rags. I usually wear rubber gloves with paints but I actually wound up using my fingers for this job!
I started on the bottom of the bag, where there were a few small areas that had rubbed off. I experimented with the different shades and mixtures until I decided to go with straight Rich Expresso. Use a damp cloth to wipe off the paint when it is still fresh while you are testing. At first I tried using a thin brush and gently painting the spots but I wasn't getting good coverage. I eventually ended up using the wide brush and tapping in on the spots and then using my fingers to blend the edges into the bag.
The bottom wasn't bad and it was fairly easy to over paint the damaged spots, but the back of the purse with extensive damage was a challenge. I finally ended up painting over the entire damaged area because it looked bad when I only worked on the spots. It made the repair much more obvious. After it dried I did a second application to completely cover the spots. Again I used the fingers to blend in the paint along the edges. When I was done my left hand looked like I was auditioning for a part in Goldfinger - but happily acrylic paints clean up easily with soap and water!
As I said, it is not a perfect match and I can see the repair when I examine the bag under strong light - but it is pretty good and looks much better than it did before. I plan to let it dry for a few days and then try conditioning the bag with Apple or Leather CPR before storing it until next year. I hope the repair holds up and it looks as good next fall as it does right now.
Let us know how your repair turns out and if you discover any new tips to improve on the process I used. I am sure there are other sad owners of Copper Zoes out there! Good luck!