What actually happens if you get your bag in the rain

[Heidi_x]

I see a lot of recommendations from people not to take bags in the rain as it can 'damage' or 'ruin' the bag, but how so? Does it stain/discolour the leather, ruin the texture...etc? I spilled champagne on my vintage black lambskin at dinner recently. I was mortified, but it seems fine - though I did wipe it up straight away.

What are peoples experiences?

 

[papertiger]

You did the right thing. Just wipe over lightly ASAP to get the majority of water off and leave to dry naturally. When 100% dry, just polish over with a clean duster to restore lustre (no sprays).

Caviar (like most pressed leather) you can usually get wet with no concerns, but make sure it dries to its original shape if it's been in a really heavy down pour.

Because most of my Chanel lamb are black I can't testify to darker marks on colours but I have seen that on others. Water damage can take off the sheen and makes the bag look dull. Severe water damage can shrink or misshape the leather once dried. NOT Chanel, but I restored one of my BV Cervo (deer) leather hobos with reg. Nivea when a bottle of water spilled in my bag after it shrunk and hardened and bounced bag like a miracle.

There's more danger to lamb/calf bags that are new and haven't been continually rubbed/brushed/polished as the leather 'pores' are more open. Rubbing during normal usage actually naturally waterproofs the leather.

The worst is when you don't notice a major droplet, as the water makes the leather swell and cause a blister.

 

[ItsPurseonal]

There's more danger to lamb/calf bags that are new and haven't been continually rubbed/brushed/polished as the leather 'pores' are more open. Rubbing during normal usage actually naturally waterproofs the leather.

I had never thought about this but that makes a ton of sense!

Personally I have never had an issue with caviar in the rain but I never let it get soaked. I would put it under my shirt or jacket even if I look crazy. My DH did that with my kelly a few months ago when we got caught in unexpected rain - he gets it and has no qualms about odd stares

 

[sparklywacky]

When it rains or snows, I use my nylon, denim or fabric bags. I check the weather before leaving home everyday and if it’s predicted to rain, I’ll switch to the aforementioned bags. That’s why it pays off to get Chanel’s seasonal bags made of denim, fabric or nylon from time to time - they are much more low maintenance compared to leather.

 

[hijulisa]

When it rains or snows, I use my nylon, denim or fabric bags. I check the weather before leaving home everyday and if it’s predicted to rain, I’ll switch to the aforementioned bags. That’s why it pays off to get Chanel’s seasonal bags made of denim, fabric or nylon from time to time - they are much more low maintenance compared to leather.

Have you had an issue with denim developing any stains or smells with being repeatedly damp from the rain? I have a denim bag but am hesitant to use it in any type of precipitation because I don't want it to develop any smells.

 

[sparklywacky]

Have you had an issue with denim developing any stains or smells with being repeatedly damp from the rain? I have a denim bag but am hesitant to use it in any type of precipitation because I don't want it to develop any smells.

Not at all. My denim bags are still in great condition. However, I don’t allow them to get completely drenched in the rain - they get drizzled on depending on the umbrella coverage, but not drenched. But yeah, for these instances, it’s safer to carry a fabric bag vs a leather bag.

 

[BettyLouboo]

I usually check the daily weather in the mornings so if I know it's raining, out of habit though, I generally don't take leather bags out with me and switch out to canvas bags. I supposed it's the smell of wet leather that puts me off lol

But Chanel caviar is almost indestructible. My sister had white paint spilled on her black caviar classic flap accidentally by a contractor when her house was being renovated. We thought the bag was done for. I had an anxiety attack just looking at it but then she had the crazy idea of trying to wipe off the white paint with acetone. Low and behold, we were absolutely stunned. Not only did the acetone remove the white paint entirely, the black caviar didn't go dull or fade. It was completely back to normal She did smooth it over with leather conditioner just in case and even now when she uses it, you'd never believe it was covered in white wall paint lol

 

[KittyKat65]

I have a navy GST that got wet, totally saturated, when my son's water bottle leaked in it. Literally an inch of water at the bottom of the bag. I emptied it, grabbed paper towel and got the water out and let it dry naturally out of the sun. Within a day the swelling of the leather was less noticeable and within a week it was perfect. It is a dark navy so there are no water stains, but I can't speak to how a lighter colour would stand in this situation.

 

[wimp]

I got caught with my caviar woc in sudden downpour (during typhoon season in Japan) and I also spilled a chai latte on it once and it still looks as good as new. That's one of the things I love about caviar is that you don't have to baby it at all. That said, I wouldn't intentionally take it out into the rain and do try to cover it when I get caught in the rain.

 

[axlm]

It's great to hear how durable caviar actually is! I had a momentary scare when my nail scraped against my new caviar classic as I was putting it in the dust bag

 

[Heidi_x]

Thanks for the advice everyone x

 

[honeybunch]

I live in the very rainy north-west of England and have been caught many times in downpours even with my lambskin items. In fact my lambskin purse got completely soaked when some water got knocked over it. When it dried it was fine. I used to own a red lambskin woc and I got caught in the rain with that once. There were lots of water spots all over it when it rained but as soon as it dried they disappeared completely.

 

[gwendo25]

My Chanel lambskin wallet seems to have lost its lustre. I hardly ever wear it. Any tips on how to revive it. I tried leather conditioner but it doesn’t seem to work. It still appears dull to me.