Stewardess - To Dye For

 I had too high of expectations for this Stewardess bag when I started working on it.  Here are the before shots.

I washed it, but the staining was very bad.  It also had lots of very bad scuffing and scratches.  It was a very light chocolate brown color, and even with a couple coats of Leather Therapy, I didn't feel like I'd be able to get this bag to a condition where I'd want to carry it without drastic intervention.

I decided to try my hand at redying my first bag.  I used deglazer to prep the bag, then applied chocolate brown colored dye using a cotton cloth.  I touched up the next day using a q-tip and applied a second light coat to ensure good coverage.  I then waited a couple days and applied two light coats of acrylic resolene mixed 50/50 with water.  I'm hoping it is waterproof.  

Here are the after pictures:

It looks like a brand new bag.  I've worn it a few times, and so far so good.  We will see how it holds up over time.  

Vintage Coach Saddlery Bag Restoration

I found this old saddlery bag that need a little bit of love.  It had an old ink stain on the bottom.  Some ink was also visible on the back.  

I tried to see if I could get the ink to come out of the bag, but I did not have any luck.  Instead, I used EdgeKote mixed with conditioner to cover the stain.  In real life, the ink is barely noticeable.  There are a couple very small spots on the leather above the turnlock that are slightly discolored, but overall an excellent result.

   

The British Tan Musette that Wasn't British Tan

In getting started with learning how to restore leather, and in particular seeing the work of several people who have been working on Coach leather bags for sometime, I couldn't help but fall in love with the Musette.  The Musette is the classic 1970s Coach leather bag.  It's made of high-qualify glove-tanned leather, and the style is timelessly fashionable.  (Coach just brought back the style in their Legacy line.)  Size-wise, it is smaller than a typical briefcase, but large enough for a few files, an iPad, and all the stuff I would normally carry in my bag to work.

I really wanted to find a British Tan Musette to restore and started looking for one.  I saw one on eBay, but was outbid by someone willing to pay more than I was.  I shortly thereafter found one on Etsy in my price range.  I haven't been doing this long, so when I saw the pictures online and when I received it, I just assumed it would be British Tan.

It was very, very dirty, and very, very dry.  So dry that parts of the bag almost felt like suede.  I was actually a little worried about how dry it was.  This bag hadn't seen a conditioning in years.

   
I immediately bathed it, and immediately realized this bag was definitely not British Tan.  The bag released quite a bit of very dark dye, and it was obvious the bag was a much darker color. 

The restoration process was quite lengthy.  Through much of the process I wasn't sure if the bag would be more red or a dark brown chocolate color.  Here's a picture midway through the restoration:

I used so many coats of Leather Therapy that I lost track.  Eventually, the natural oils of the leather were restored, and the bag turned into a beautiful, deep reddish brown tobacco color.  

I polished the brass and tacked down some loose pieces in the bottom, and it is now almost-new.  The leather is super soft.  There is one place where the piping is worn through near one of the buckles, but the bag is in overall great shape.   

I'm still looking for a British Tan to restore.  I think my wardrobe can handle multiple Musettes.