Okay, so I’ve got this vintage Coach bag, right? It’s a classic, beautiful leather, but it had some serious rust on the hardware. I was bummed because I really wanted to use it, but the rust was making it look pretty rough. So, I decided to tackle it myself. Here’s what I did:
First, I gathered my supplies. I didn’t want to go crazy with a bunch of specialized products, so I kept it simple. I grabbed:
- Baking soda
- White vinegar
- An old toothbrush
- A soft cloth
- Some warm water
The Cleaning Process
I started by making a paste. I mixed a little bit of baking soda with a few drops of white vinegar until it formed a thick, sort of gritty paste. I didn’t measure anything, just eyeballed it.
Then, I took my old toothbrush and dipped it into the paste. I started scrubbing the rusty areas on the bag’s hardware – you know, the buckles, clasps, and rings. I went gently at first, not wanting to scratch the metal. I focused the paste in that area.
I let the paste sit on the rusty spots for about 15-20 minutes. I figured it needed some time to work its magic, you know?
After that, I took a damp, warm cloth and wiped away the paste. And honestly? Most of the rust came right off! There were a few stubborn spots, so I repeated the process with the paste and the toothbrush. A little more scrubbing, a little more waiting, and then another wipe down.
Finally, when all the rust was gone, I took a clean, dry cloth and buffed the hardware to a shine. It looked SO much better. Like, seriously, night and day difference.
I’m really happy with how it turned out. It wasn’t hard at all, and I didn’t need any fancy cleaners. Just stuff I already had in my kitchen! Now I can rock my vintage Coach bag without it looking like it’s been buried in a pirate’s treasure chest.