The most important reason why we wear handbags is for them to hold our essentials. Wearing a handbag however is way more than for holding essentials, it is more to make a style statement among fashion lovers.
A modern woman craves the best of the best and also do everything possible to buy the best of the best. In other words, women love bags, we love to buy them and we can’t stop buying them.
It is not enough to buy the best of the best , knowing how to care for the them is more important. There is no point in spending so much money on a bag you can’t care for or you don’t know how to care for.
Today, I will share with you TIPS on how to care for your leather handbags.
We have to have in mind that this post is focused only towards caring for the LEATHER bags. In my video on TIPS to look out for when investing in good bags, I featured some other bags made from other types of fabrics. See it below…….
TIP NUMBER ONE | ENSURE TO KEEP BAG DRY AT ALL TIMES
To get longevity from your leather bags, it is very important to ensure that they are kept dry at all time.
Even though we can’t control nature and can’t determine when it is going to rain, ensure to air dry your bag if you are lucky enough to enjoy natures showers of blessings (rain). So ensure to air dry your bag if it ever gets damp.
Never dry your bag by a radiator/heater. Heat will stretch your leather bag and heat can also cause your leather bag to crack.
You can use spray protectant to prevent penetration of water on your leather goods when in the rain. Always read your leather manual before spraying anything on your leather handbags especially the luxury ones.
TIP NUMBER TWO ::: STORAGE
I am not sure if I am the only one who has a bag I call the knock about. The knock about bag is simply the bag I grab and go whether running errands or working, it is always my go to bag. Do you have any bags like that ?
Aside your go to or your knock about bag you leave by the hall way for easy access. It is important to store your bag with soft tissue paper or stuffing.
Whenever you buy a new bag especially high end bags, they stuff the inside with soft tissue papers. They do that so the bag can keep its natural shape while transporting them and they leave the tissue in also for storage.
When storing your bag, stuff those soft tissues in your bag to keep its original shape, always leave the silica gel that came with your bag in it when storing and then put your bag in its original dust bag and place your bag in the space your have provided for it.
Silica gel will help prevent the build up of mould on your bag. Mould is a type of fungi known to grow on wet surfaces like leather.
Follow the above storage guidelines and your bag will come out new every time you reach for it/them.
The coloured mini bag above is about 4 years old and every time I wear it, it looks like new.
TIP NUMBER THREE | KEEP AWAY FROM DIRECT SUNSHINE
Leather has the natural tendency to change colour especially as they get older. Obviously coloured leather is more susceptible/likely to change colour easily than the classic black leather so ensure to keep your bags away from direct sunlight.
When you keep your bag too close to where there is direct sunlight, your bag is likely to change its natural colour quicker than the natural changing process of the leather.
TIP NUMBER FOUR | CLEANING & CONDITIONING
Cleaning your bag is another way to care for your bag. Cleaning your bag is not too different from having a shower. Once you feel like you need a wash, you have a wash.
Your bag also needs cleaning but never with soap and water.
Only wipe your leather handbags with soft dry cloth. You do not need water, alcohol, vinegar, abrasives and anything that could scratch the surface of your leather.
Some bags you can clean with damp clothes like some Louis Vitton Damier but never use damp clothes on your leather goods especially luxury goods you have worked really hard to acquire.
You can also condition your bag with conditioning oil like neatsfoot oil. Use a little on a dry cloth and rub it all over your leather bag, leave it for about 10-15 minutes and air dry. Never dry your bag close to any kind of heat.
Conditioning your bag will help you retain the shine of your leather bag. You can do this as often as you need to.
TIPS for caring for any kinds of leather is the same whether the leather is real or faux. The bag I have in the picture below is made from faux leather and it is in a very good condition. It is the bag I gravitate towards the most for work. It keeps all my essentials and it is super stylish.
Just like any other thing, it is not really how much you pay for a particular thing, it is how well you care for the thing. I got the bag for 59.99 euros from Zara and I have worn it so many times I can’t even count.
Those are my TIPS for caring for your leather handbags. I hope you find them helpful. Please let me know in the comments below.
Thank you so much for stopping by today. I am always very happy to see you.
Wishing you a fantastic day filled with lots of beautiful bags.
Much Love, Mojisola
Featured bags in order of appearance blue is Sophie Hulme (high end) // Orange is DKNY (high end) // Black is from Zara(high street)
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16 comments
Great pictures and great post! One of my biggest pet peeves is going to a public bathroom, and seeing women put their handbags on the floor! SO GROSS! Especially the expensive designer ones! I totally baby my bags and shoes, so this is a post that’s close to my heart! Thanks for sharing! xo
Thanks for reading beautiful. I totally agree with you. Hope you are doing well.
Much Love
Mojisola
Love the tips! I am hoping to finally start getting things into my newly painted and updated closet at the new house tonight. I have to make a trip to the store before I do that to get some tissue for storage!
Thanks for reading Sarah. Much Love.
I was in need of this! So many of my bags are detoriating 🙁
Agnes x
http://www.blvckbee.com
Thanks Agnes for reading. I am so glad your found it helpful.
Mojisola
Great tips. I treasure my bags too much to rough handle them so I can relate with all you have said.
Thank you so much for reading Stellz and yes I know you love your bags. You have the best selection. Take care of you.
Great tips Mojisola!! Thanks for sharing 🙂
Thank you so much for Linda for reading.
Cheers.
So many great tips here. I love all my leather bags and I always stuff my bags when they are not in use. Oh and I never put them on the floor, I’m always shocked when I see women putting their bags on the floor. Crazy! Thanks for sharing your tips!
xo, Jackie
stylemydreams.com
Thank you for reading Jackie. You are ever so kind. Cheers.
This is such a very helpful post. Great tips♥♥
chocolateandsunset.com
Thanks for reading and for your kind comments
Cheers.
Great tips Mojisola! I have a couple leather bags and need to be better about storing them properly. I also have a knock about bag. ?
http://laceandpearlsblog.com
Tank you so much Moji for sharing the tips, most of the time i never remember to clean my bags, we clean our clothes and shoes more often.
http://mystylebykartia.blogspot.ca/