What do you get when you scrape off the shoe polish? A beautiful bag! Rehab reveal!

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katev

katev

"The Bag Whisperer!"
O.G.
Dec 18, 2009
17,401
19,045
#1
Earlier this month I found a mahagony brown briefcase at the Salvation Army store for $25. The bag was clean inside and basically intact but the exterior surface was in really bad shape.

Hyacinth and DemRam told me that it was a Lexington Brief 5265 that was made in the Dominican Republic in 2000.

I knew that the surface of the bag has some kind of coating on it, and it had dried and cracked, but I wasn't sure what it was. There was also a white, pasty substance dried inside one of the pockets.

This poor bag really needed to be rescued and rehabbed! Here are the before pics, I will show pics taken during the rehab next.
 

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#4
I gave the bag a bath in the sink but it was difficult to get that coating off of it. I have seen bags that have been polished with liquid shoe polish and they usually just bleed color when I give them a bath, but this stuff was hard to remove.

Whatever the white stuff in the pocket was, it dissolved and came right off. I think that it was Liquid Paper (White Out).

I eventually decided that the brown coating was multiple layers of paste shoe polish and I finally resorted to scrubbing it off with rubbing alcohol and an abrasive sponge! I was afraid of harming the surface but I couldn't budge it any other way!

After that rough treatment it was much better but it still had some polish on it, so I put it in a net laundry bag and gave it a trip through the washer! That helped a lot but when it started to dry I could see the actual surface of the bag and it had some problems - scuffs, scraps, and faded, worn areas. I figured out why the original owners tried to polish it, but his method was flawed!

Here are some pics of the poor bag during rehab, I will show after photos next.
 

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#5
Here are the after pics, it was a tough rehab but all it needed was a lot of cleaning, conditioning and polishing. I gave it to my husband and he is really pleased with it.

The bag was pretty much intact when I bought it but it was missing the Shoulder Comfort Pad on the strap so I bought a replacement from Silver Coach on ebay that cost $11 including shipping. So the total investment in this pretty briefcase is around $36.

The bag still has some flaws but I think it looks nice and has a lot more wear left in it!
 

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#6
This is going to be a gem, you do great work. Is there a recipient in mind for this one or does it go into 'stock' for the next gift giving occasion?

ETA - Your hubby is a lucky man. Looks great (as usual). Congrats on another successful rescue mission.
 
#9
tannedsilk said:
This is going to be a gem, you do great work. Is there a recipient in mind for this one or does it go into 'stock' for the next gift giving occasion?

ETA - Your hubby is a lucky man. Looks great (as usual). Congrats on another successful rescue mission.
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I didn't know if my husband would like it but he needs a new briefcase; he has been carrying the same beat-up microfiber case for years. He was really pleased when I told him I was rehabbing it for him and he seems thrilled with it.

But this is a heavy case, I think it is better for a guy than a girl!
 
#11
katev said:
I didn't know if my husband would like it but he needs a new briefcase; he has been carrying the same beat-up microfiber case for years. He was really pleased when I told him I was rehabbing it for him and he seems thrilled with it.

But this is a heavy case, I think it is better for a guy than a girl!
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I'm not surprised it's heavy, looks like quite a substantial piece.
 
#12
that is amazing, can you post a before and after pic in the same post? I had no words for the initial bag, all that came to mind were bad words, mostly starting with F. That bag had been to hell and back. Twice. It looks excellent after. This can go in the hall of fame :) Good Job!
 
#13
Just 1 More said:
this is gonna be good - I just know it! very classy briefcase, katev - even w/ the flaws.
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CA-Anonymous said:
I've been waiting to see the outcome of your re-hab wizardry on this gorgeous briefcase Kate! I'll keep hitting F5....Don't keep us in suspense too long!!
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Nekolassa said:
"Wow" is all I can say for this one. What an amazing job! You work miracles woman!
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Galaxygrrl said:
Wow, that is awesome. Nice job.
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Thank you! I am glad that it came out well because the poor bag has been through a lot in its life!
 
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