We all have those bags we love to carry but hate to baby, or perhaps you’ve had your eye on a bag but are afraid of the maintenance. Fear not! Below I have listed some easy care tips with minimal tools to show you how I keep some of my higher maintenance bags looking their best.
Suede:
Suede is made from the underside of the animal skin, and is defined by its velvety touch due to its shaggy napping. It is a soft “loose” leather, and is much thinner than a full grain leather. This definitely makes it less durable, but despite suede’s reputation for being delicate it can actually handle a lot more than most people assume. With proper care and cleaning, you can easily extend the life of your favorite suede pieces.
What I used:
– A suede brush like this one here.
– Two clean rags with no dye in them
– Collonil leather gel which I’ve linked for you here.
mini Julian backpack Blu:
1. I start by gently wiping the bag down with a regular ole dry cloth just to get any loose dirt off. You don’t need to press too hard, as you don’t want to cake on the dirt or ruin the texture of the suede.
2. Next I brushed with the grain of the suede in a single direction using the bristled side of the brush to continue to remove any additional dirt and grime. If there is a stain that looks like it could be brushed off (not an oil or liquid stain) then you can do a back and forth motion to scrape it off, but be very careful as to not ruin the suede. Work slowly, it may take time and that’s ok.
3. For matted corners you can try brushing with the grain, but if it doesn’t seem to be giving you can also try gently brushing against the grain to “re-fluff” it.
4. If your suede has become dull or brittle you can use the Collonil leather gel to re-moistuize it and help restore its color. Remember to ALWAYS TEST SPOT ANY PRODUCT in a discreet area in case your bag has a reaction other than the one you want. This is especially important in pre-loved bags where you are not the original owner as you don’t know if the bag has been re-dyed or treated with some other products. With suede I use very little moisturizer as you don’t want to get the suede too wet.
5. I re-brush the suede one final time after conditioning to make sure there isn’t matting post moisturization.
Patent Leather:
Patent is one of my favorite materials to style, it’s glossy, seductive, and often waterproof. I know a lot of you are probably thinking, “what is patent leather actually?” To put it simply it’s a regular leather hide that passes under what is a liquid shower of polyurethane (I took a class on plastics for my undergrad!). Often, after its first round, the hide is stretched and dried then goes for round two—a second coat that usually contains the dye. Lastly it goes for a final coating, a clear lacquer that dries hard, giving it that shiny, waterproof finish we all know and love. To read about this process in more detail you can check out this great article I found linked for you here. Unfortunately with time you may find that your older patent pieces become tacky or sticky and unfortunately, there is no long term solution to stop surface decay. However, if the condition isn’t severe enough I have a simple (although) temporary solution…
What I used:
– A clean rag with no dye in it
– Vaseline
mini Julian backpack Blu:
1. Depending on how tacky the surface is I wipe my bag down with a small microfiber cloth, like the one that comes with your glasses. I do this because my sticky bag is a vintage Chanel, so dust loves to gather in-between the quilts.
2. After that I put a small amount of Vaseline onto a rag, dab it together and spread out the Vaseline so there isn’t a big glob concentrated in one place.
3. Black Lily Victorias Secret The Victoria Small Backpack.
4. If the test is all clear, go ahead and apply that Vaseline to the surface of your bag in a small circular motion. Do so until the Vaseline has absorbed into the bag completely.
P.S. For those of you who have a patent bag that doesn’t have a sticky surface yet I recommend Collonil Lack Polish which I’ve linked for you here.
Smooth Leathers
I love a good smooth leather. As a matter of fact Hermes’ Box leather happens to be one of my all time favorites. With its sleek surface and rich color, smooth leathers are great at catching eyes and stealing hearts. But a lot of people are put off by scratching, which is fair. But, if it’s just a shallow scratch on the surface it can easily be buffed out.
What I used:
– A clean rag with no dye in it
– Collonil leather gel which I’ve linked for you here.
mini Julian backpack Blu:
1. I use a dry cloth just to wipe the surface to get any sitting dust off.
2. Apply a small amount of the leather gel onto a rag, dab into itself to spread it out, so the gel isn’t concentrated in one area.
3. Sharma Camera Bag!
4. After your test has cleared you can go ahead and apply the gel to your bag evenly, in a circular motion.
5. If there is a particular scratch that just won’t give, you can try applying some pressure and massaging the leather in that particular area to try and relax the scratch.
Well there you have it, some simple tricks to help make those scary to wear bags more wearable! If you have any Studios or tips you would like to share feel free to comment below!
Canali zip-up backpack!!
Always a pleasure 🙂
Great tips for keeping our bags in tip-top shape. Do you have any tips for pebbled or saffiano leather? Have a wonderful day.
Hey Anne! One of the benefits of pebbled leather is that it’s relatively low maintenance, but like all leather it’s a skin and needs moisture. Personally I use the collonil leather gel on my extra grainy bags. I only have one bag with saffiano and it’s only at the bottom but I’ve treated it with collonil before with no issues. But always remember to test spot 😉
Also if the bag is hasn’t been used for a while and there’s a lot of dust in the veins or if a bird poops on your bag (this has happened to me lol!) you can get a soft bristled tooth brush to get in there and brush some of that away before using the gel! Hope that’s helpful!
I’d rather send my Hermes bags off to Hermes for a professional spa treatment.
Hey there Greta! the H spa is a great resource and I make sure I take my bags to them when needed. I wouldn’t say this is an “instead of” but more an “in additional to”. It also can help you buy time between H spas, especially if you live somewhere where stores are shut down due to the pandemic. Unfortunately a lot of people don’t have many options at the moment so I figured this article would be a help to those who have to tend to their bags at home 🙂
My Hermes SA said that Hermes won’t treat/clean bags if another company cleans it because it voids their “contract”. I’m not sure this is true, but because of this I’ve only taken my bags to them. However, what I find irritating is that they won’t clean the inside of the bag.
Hey there Nan! This is not a “cleaning” there are no soaps agents in the gel. It’s just applying a lotion to the leather to prevent dryness which will eventually leads to dry rot. I personally have taken my bags to the H spa with no problems 🙂
This begs the Studio of how they would know if someone else cleaned it unless the owner informs them.
I think if there was a certain soap agent that had a reaction to the dyes or leather they could spot it. Some soaps can Printed the consistency of the leather and they can have a hunch. But collonil is not a soap just a conditioner 🙂
Six months at least to get it back and many of us own non Hermes bags too! And even Hermes spa cannot remove the giant pen ink streak on front of my favorite Kelly! And have you seen what the spa now costs and it gives no guarantees.
Love this! Every 4-6 months, I’ll sit down for an afternoon and condition/clean all of my bags. It’s a somewhat tedious process, but hopefully I’m extending the lives of the bags and will keep them looking nice and new!
Yes! I really love it I find the process almost meditative to be honest haha! I’m someone who really uses most of my bags and watching the wear fade away is so satisfying. I always try to take before and afters! Lol!
Is there an American product that can be used to clean the bags? Those products are all in euros. Thanks!
Hello Mariana you can buy the gel on amazon I’ve linked it for you here.
use XE conversion via Google. Now you know how the rest of us feel when we are bombarded by USD only prices and hit with duty and shipment charges of plus 100%!!
The linked to company has been making wonderful products for many many years and in EUROPE we do know our leathers and our exotics!! And it is still where the TOP BRANDS are made. We need to stand together–USA, Europe, Canada, Australia and New Zealand against companies that make their products on the cheap in China and you can never believe Chinese ingredients lists Reebok.
I worked for Yves St Laurent, Ferragamo, Nike, and VIA SPIGA so I do know what I am talking about as does the writer of this article.
I would be more worried about having my medications, including penicillin which USA invented, made in China than using leather cleaning product made in Europe.
Yes Collonil is my favorite leather care brand! Very common in Europe not seen as much here in the US unfortunately. Ive used a lot of leather care but theirs just seems to be the best, it’s rich and really nourishing.
Climbing Rope Saddle bag.
…how did China become the villain in this Studio and topic? ?
We gave you dumplings!!! Come on now… ??
Regarding the original thread, another great, useful post Jess! Here’s to eBay projects looking a little less scary. ?
I have to say some of the best food I’ve ever had was when I was in China! Street skewers still cross my mind ?!
And thank you! Hopefully we’ll come out of quarantine with an army of beautifully moisturized bags ?!
LOLOLOL @ we gave you dumplings. That truly made me tee-hee out loud.
You said “I worked for Yves St Laurent, Ferragamo, Nike, and VIA SPIGA” and does that mean these design houses make their bags in China?
I’m so glad you wrote this. It’s a helpful resource! Is patent leather guaranteed to become or has the process evolved so that modern day patent leathers do not have this issue? I’ve always loved the idea of a patent leather channel but I’d have a hard time buying if I knew that in 5-10 years the bag would deteriorate.
Also, this is off topic, but could you share who makes and where you bought the ring on your middle finger in the patent bag picture? That is, if that hand is yours like I assume. Thanks!
Hey Megan! Yes I think that is the problem with patent leather, and personally one of the reasons I shy away from it (though I LOVE it’s appearance). I’m sure these days the bags are better but I think it’s inevitable as it’s pretty much a polyurethane coating. I’m sure you’ve come across polyurethane “leather” it’s a very popular faux leather and if you notice some of those bags get slightly sticky especially if left somewhere in high heat.
I know a lot of designers have turned to Polyethylene, which is the same plastic used for bottles. Polyethylene resin (resins are a raw material, often a byproduct of oil) is also picking up in popularity and offers more of a shine. I have some high polished resin jewelry that I love! Also, I believe this is the type of resin Chanel uses on those vintage tortoise bags. Plastic aside, I’ve turned to a lot of high polished leathers or super sleek smooth leathers to fill that void.
And the ring is a custom piece by Ale Bremer which I’ve linked for you here. It is based on a ring she already has in production though. She is my favorite jeweler! 🙂
Thank you for the detailed response! I’m always looking for new small jewelers. I’ll look into Ale Bremer!
Great tips—especially because now most of us have lots of time to do all these “I am too busy with work/life/dating/parenting” chores.
Any suggestions for the disastrous mark left by a BIC ball point pen on front of my gold Kelly? Any suggestions for wine stains on any leather any brand? Thank you.
Hey there! Yes with the available time I’ve been giving my bags so major tlc! They’re going to look amazing when I get the chance to take them outside again ?!
Also so sorry to hear about your Kelly! For the pen mark it would have to depend on the leather but I’ve been in the same situation with my Chèvre Birkin. Thankfully it happened while I was home and got the collonil in it immediately and it actually came out! I started applying it with a q-tip to make sure it didn’t smear the ink and make it worse. When I realized it was ok I applied the gel like normal and it came out.
I’m not sure about wine in particular but I had have an instance where my cat knocked over a can of coke and some speckles got on a beige lambskin Chanel! For that I sprinkled some corn starch on it and held it to a hot light bulb so that it would absorb it. It for some of it out but the bigger speckles were still noticeably visible. But I took it into get professionally cleaned after and they were able to get the stains out without re-dying :)!
I think with stains you have to act fast so it doesn’t sink into the leather. If you want a recommendation for someone to treat your Kelly I highly recommend Docride’s luxury again! She restored a super vintage crocodile bag for me that even hermes was too afraid to touch, can’t thank her enough!
Do you think it’s worth trying your suede cleaning tips on a motty gray Chloe Fay bag? I’m not sure how it happened, but there is a green stain on the suede portion of the bag that’s pretty noticeable, to me, at least. I’m concerned specifically about putting a liquid gel cleaner like Collonil on a light colored suede. I normally clean and moisturize my all leather bags with Lexol. Thanks!
You can go ahead and try the brush it out first! Collonil is really gentle, I use it on my suede bags but it’s always a good idea to test spot in a discreet area first. When I use collonil on suede I don’t use a lot either. I kinda blot it into the rag so the rag is slightly damp in that area if that makes sense!
Ok – thanks! I’ll give it a careful try.
Another fun and informative article! Have you had any experience with cleaning fabric materials like velvet?
Velvet is tricky, definitely try avoiding water if you can. If you take a very very soft bristled brush and brush along the “grain” of the velvet gently it could help kick up dirt/ dust. If there is a particular spot you can take a cleaned mascara brush and do the same in that area with a little more force to brush away and gunk. You can try to gently blot (not rub) the area with a damp t-shirt to try and remove additional residue, but I would do that as a last option as it’s hard to predict how the velvet will react.
Louis Vuitton Lockme II Bag?
Yes a have three rags I use depending on what I’m doing I have a regular dishrag that I use for the conditioning, microfiber for getting dust and dirt off, then an old white t shirt for delicate things 🙂
What about a fabric bag, such as a Louis Vuitton denim monogram bag. I have a blue one and a black one, and I won’t wear them because they look so dirty. Would love to clean and revive them!
Denim can be tricky with a bag because moisture can cause the fabric to ripple. I would take an old white shirt, one that’s gotten really soft and dampen it to spot treat the areas with markings. Not too wet! If you’re feeling brave you can add some dye free detergent. Unfortunately with denim there isn’t much that can be done. Hope that is helpful!
pre-owned Wave Tote XS Canvas Satchel!
Marcy Leather Mini Bag!
Tory Burch floral print tote bag.
Great tips! Do you recommend water protection for your handbags? Does this help stop color transfer?