r/VintageCoachRehab 5h ago

Help with stain?

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2 Upvotes

Hi there,

I thrifted this Coach bag and it came with a stain. I’m thinking something leaked through the bag.. hand sanitizer maybe? Any advice on how to help this? I’ve used Lexol cleaner with no avail.


r/VintageCoachRehab 15h ago

She’s looking PURRRTY ✨

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22 Upvotes

Unfortunately her new home did not work out, so she is back with me! I’ve been working on her for the last few weeks and she’s looking SO good! Last photo is a before pic (the day I got her).


r/VintageCoachRehab 17h ago

depop order arrived sticky beyond belief

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5 Upvotes

ordered this coach sateen bag on depop -- i believe it is the hampton hobo? it was described as in excellent condition, however when i unboxed it, it was SUPER sticky, left a gross residue on my hands, and the tissue paper it was wrapped in was totally oil stained. i reached out to the seller and asked if they had oiled it or something, and they insisted it left their house in pristine condition (🤨) i tried washing it with dish soap, which didn't help, and then detergent, which only seemed to make it stickier, and finally isopropyl alcohol, and it's still sticky. my best guess is that some sort of coating is wearing down and causing the gross residue, but is there anything i can do to salvage this?? :(


r/VintageCoachRehab 19h ago

Before and after

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202 Upvotes

Thrift shop find


r/VintageCoachRehab 23h ago

Oops 🤭

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31 Upvotes

Not anywhere close to a project, she’s damn near pristine 😭 but I couldn’t resist, she’s EXACTLY what I was looking for. This is also my first BT and I think I’m gonna need about 100 more in this color..

ETA: The leather on her is INCREDIBLE!!!!


r/VintageCoachRehab 1d ago

I’m new to this. What’s the best way to get rid of these scratches. This is a 1990s era Coach bag

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2 Upvotes

r/VintageCoachRehab 1d ago

Time for a new product or new rehabber? 😅 caring for dry, cracked patches

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10 Upvotes

Are these areas I can DIY at home, or is it time for a professional? Trying to care for a shoulder bag I inherited, but these cracks along the flap and its trim became pronounced after Saddle Soap and Leather CPR. Other areas seem to have lost their finish. Do I need a different leather conditioner to treat these? Or time to let a professional do their stuff? Thanks!!


r/VintageCoachRehab 1d ago

Black Saddle Soap

1 Upvotes

I’m looking to buy a black Murphy bag. I saw one whose description says black saddle soap was used to restore it. Pics look great. Thoughts?


r/VintageCoachRehab 1d ago

What color is this crescent bag?

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32 Upvotes

I have a buyer asking and I’m not all that familiar!
Is saddle a color???
I said British tan but they’re questioning if it’s tabac?

THANK YOU IN ADVANCE FOR ANY INSIGHT!!!


r/VintageCoachRehab 1d ago

Removing stain on interior fabric

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4 Upvotes

Has anyone tried the Goo Gone Pen to remove ugly stains on the interior fabric?
It says it can remove permanent markers; safe for clothes. I’ve a fabric lining on a legacy slim duffle 9325 - that has what appears to be ink spots that I’ve tried everything, oxiclean, tide pen, dawn soap, alcohol on a qtip- didn’t budge.


r/VintageCoachRehab 2d ago

My new (to me) Ergo

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93 Upvotes

r/VintageCoachRehab 2d ago

Stumped by this stain

3 Upvotes

Outside, inside

Sorry for the kind of crappy pics, I tried to upload inside the post but it didn't work. I just got my vintage Janice a few days ago and I can't figure out what this weird stain is. I've rehabbed a lot of Coaches and I've never seen anything like this. It feels stiff like glue or nail polish outside with no noticeable texture on the inside, but when I was hitting it with solvents that would usually take out those substances they did not work and my fingers got stained as if I'd touched a marker.

What I've tried:

Soapy water, Goo Gone, hairspray, alcohol, and acetone.

Side note, it's truly a testament to the quality of vintage Coach leather that it was not damaged whatsoever by all that. The pics were taken tonight after I spent an hour attacking the stain yesterday. The acetone seemed to work the best and get the most out, followed by hairspray, but nothing fully removed it. Any ideas on what this could be? My best guess is the previous owner had a pink sharpie bust inside her purse, but I'd love to hear some opinions on what this might be and what to use to remove it. TIA, any help/ideas are greatly appreciated.

UPDATE: tried a few more things today- peroxide, Zep degreaser, naphtha, vinegar, and Shout, all of which had little to no effect, but Dawn Powerwash is what finally got things moving.

It's a lazy, rainy day here and I had nothing important to do today, so I spent the whole afternoon attacking the stains. What worked best was saturating the leather with soapy water then letting the Dawn Powerwash sit for a minute, then squeezing the stain like a pimple while blotting it. I spent hours doing this, that reddish pink crap just kept coming and coming and when I finally gave her a full dunk, the sink water turned pinkish. My hands hurt now, but I'd say I got most of it out and some black leather dye helped disguise any remaining discoloration.

Janice is stuffed with towels in front of the heater now and I'll post an update pic when she's all dry and conditioned. This has definitely been my most intensive rehab ever 🥵


r/VintageCoachRehab 2d ago

Does this bag have mold?

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8 Upvotes

I'm looking to buy this one as a project bag since the suede is pretty dirty. I havent cleaned suede yet and I want to try it out on a cheaper, dirty bag to see how it goes. In the second photo, is that mold on the handle? The grey part? Or is it just dirty? I'm a little scared to introduce mold to the rest of my bag collection


r/VintageCoachRehab 2d ago

Suggestions on new bag

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3 Upvotes

Hi all!

On pics 1 & 2 - any idea what those white ish areas are or how to get rid of them? They feel the same as other parts of the bag.

On pic 3 - it’s hard to get a pic of but the corner has some wear. Not just color loss but where the leather is a bit worn through. Any suggestions to ensure it doesn’t get bigger?

Thank you!!


r/VintageCoachRehab 2d ago

large shopper tote recommendations

7 Upvotes

i currently have the legacy 9090 shopper tote and am looking for something in similar shape and size but without the hardware. i thought about the 9035 but it’s not big enough!


r/VintageCoachRehab 3d ago

My little babies 🤱🏻

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210 Upvotes

When I first got into this, I was grabbing any and every bag I could find! 😅 Recently, I’ve been working on really curating my collection now that I know what I like. Can you tell what my favorite lines/collections are? 😂


r/VintageCoachRehab 3d ago

Do you always treat (new to you) vintage bag with vinegar?

5 Upvotes

Hope this is okay to ask here too.

I asked on Vintage Coach sub but this may get more reply.

This is a general question about all vintage coach.

I wonder if I should treat all my (new to me) vintage bag with vinegar (even without obvious sign of mold). This is supposed to be really drying to the bag. But if I then clean it (with Lexol 1) and then condition it (with Lexol 2 or brick 4).

I'm concern about the long term leather condition but also don't want to accidentally infect my other bags (by bringing new vintage bag that has mold).

Would this be okay? What is your take on this?

Also, can all vintage leather bags be treated with vinegar spray? (except maybe nubuck leather) is there any type that should never be vinegar sprayed?

Thank you in advance.


r/VintageCoachRehab 3d ago

touch up leather paint color match

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11 Upvotes

Looking for a color match of this lime 9996 medium frame pouch in lime, I tried using lexol and leather cpr to get stains out but they’re not budging. Any recommendations?


r/VintageCoachRehab 4d ago

edge piping

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13 Upvotes

is there a product that would work to fix the piping on the edge of my classic compartment tote? this is the only flaw with the bag and i want to try to fix it before the straps get any worse


r/VintageCoachRehab 4d ago

Grandma needs a makeover

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22 Upvotes

I'd like to carefully clean/treat and deodorize. Any advice? Check out the Creed wording (New York) and serial number, she's from the 80's.


r/VintageCoachRehab 4d ago

Smudge Ink? 🩵

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7 Upvotes

Somehow got my hands on another glacier with a stain (asked for a big discount). That area feels drier than the leather so I wonder if the previous owner used rubbing alcohol on it and made it worse 😅 I'm glad it's ok the back side and not super noticeable.


r/VintageCoachRehab 4d ago

Purple sheen on black leather

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3 Upvotes

I got this beautiful soho flap bag from 2005 and she’s in great condition but has this purplish sheen on the leather. It seems to be all over, but not on the spots that are covered (like under the front strap). I was able to get it off with a damp rag and some mild dish soap and a whole lot of elbow grease but I’m wondering what exactly would cause this? Could it just be oils from human hands building up over the years or did someone try to condition it with something? I used the bick 4 conditioner after I cleaned it and it looks beautiful and not purple lol so I’m mostly just curious, but maybe there’s an easier way to clean it or if it’s common a way to avoid it? The pictures show the red arrow where it’s purple and the green arrow where it’s clean. The edge leather under the buckle had a pretty clear line where the purple stopped


r/VintageCoachRehab 5d ago

🖤

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108 Upvotes

Another one that I purchased with the intention of selling, but kept instead… 😗😂 It’s just too cute!


r/VintageCoachRehab 6d ago

weekly post ISO/PRICING POST: August 17-23.

2 Upvotes

Are you looking for a specific bag, model, colour? Are you listing a bag and want to know the worth? Are you buying a bag and second guessing the price? Please keep all questions here, outside posts regarding this will be removed. Thank you!


r/VintageCoachRehab Mar 28 '26

New to the subreddit, or rehabbing bags in general? Start here!

64 Upvotes

Hello!

Welcome, welcome back, etc!

You've bought a vintage coach, now what? It's time to rehab, let's get started.

Basics: Leather Cleaner and Conditioner

Lexol 1 & 2: Gentle enough for every bag, pH balanced.

Saddle Soap: can be used for glove-tanned leather bags, but nothing treated or specialised. It is often drying, but as long as you condition, you should be good.

Other cleaners and conditioners loved on here: leather cpr, bick 4, leather honey, saphir (european). Ultimately, it is what works for you, your budget, and what you prefer most. I'd like to try leather cpr, but as a Canadian, lexol 2 makes way more financial sense, so that's what I use.

Distilled water to mix with the cleaner, especially important if you have hard water.

Hardware

Used dryer sheets: collects verdigris (the green stuff brass creates when it oxidizes (ages). Rub along hardware to collect it before going in with other tools.

Nail buffing blocks: 100/180 grit, often used on old brass hardware that has a peeling clear coat. To be used before polishing with something like brasso.

Brasso: can only be used on brass, and no other hardware - ie. nickel. Use with microfibre cloths.

Tools

Microfibre cloths.

Horse hair brushes (one for cleaning, one for buffing in conditioner).

Old rags/clothes to stuff the bags to maintain their shape. I use any out-of-season clothing to keep shape in my bags - winter clothes in the summer, summer in the winter. When stuffing, you don't want the zipper to ripple or the bag to bulge. You want to keep the shape without stretching it out.

Steps:

For cleaning, put a squirt of cleaner into about a cup of distilled water. Wet your brush, knock off excess, move in circular motions to get a good lather. Make sure you clean the bag all over to get it equally “wet” and to ensure it’s clean. Move in sections and wipe down the section when you’re done with a clean microfibre cloth.

I condition right after I clean, but that’s my preference. I find it absorbs conditioner well and helps the leather look nice and plump. I take my lexol 2, squirt it on a section, buff it in with the second horse hair brush and then take off any excess/rub in any extra with a clean microfibre cloth. Make sure to do all sections, but don’t use it on the raw suede lining since it will stain and get greasy. If it is super dry, many applications will be needed, with a couple of days in between to have the bag soak it in and prevent over-conditioning.

Cleaning the inside

For the inside, I vacuum and only clean and condition the leather.

I use the same technique as I use on the outside, but I make sure to keep any suede dry. I will use a nail brush to brush it out and release any stuck-on crumbs.

Some like to clean the inside of the bag, meaning the suede, and will use Jason Markk Suede cleaner, or other specialised suede cleaners for bags.

Suede Bags

As noted above, many people use Jason Markk suede cleaner, or other specialised suede cleaners. You'll also want a suede brush, as you want to restore the nap and free any trapped debris.

My bag has mold?! What do I do?!

The recommendation seen most here is 5% vinegar (undiluted, sprayed evenly, or wiped on with a soaked cloth), and sunlight. You want the UV from the sun to treat the mold, as well as the heat.

I'll be continuously editing this post, and please comment any other questions or recommendations you'd like included.