Monsoon, dry winter, hard summer sun. A short guide to keeping your bag well in every season.
Leather is skin. It dries out, it drinks water, it reacts to heat. Looked after lightly and often, it will outlast most things you own. Here is what we do with our own bags.
Monsoon
Damp is the real risk, more than rain. A bag caught in a shower will recover. A bag left in a closed cupboard for a humid month can grow mildew.
If your bag gets wet, blot it with a cotton cloth. Do not rub. Fill it with plain paper to hold the shape and let it dry in a room with moving air. Keep it away from heaters and hair dryers, which make leather stiff and brittle.
During the wet months, take your bags out of their dust bags once a week and let them breathe. A small sachet of silica gel inside helps.
Winter
Dry air pulls the oils out of leather. This is the season to condition. Use a neutral, wax-based balm. Put a little on a soft cloth and work it in with small circles. Leave it overnight and buff in the morning.
Less is better. Too much balm clogs the grain and attracts dust. Twice a year is enough for most bags.
Summer
Sunlight darkens vegetable-tanned leather. That is part of its charm, but it should happen evenly. Do not leave a bag on a car seat or a sunny window ledge, or one side will tan faster than the other.
Heat also softens edge paint. Avoid leaving a bag pressed against something hot.
All year
Empty your bag every few weeks. Coins, pens and loose make-up do more harm to a lining than anything outside.
Store bags upright, lightly stuffed, in cotton and never in plastic. Hang nothing by its handles for long periods, as they will stretch.
When to ask for help
Ink, oil and deep scratches are best left to us. Send a photograph to the studio before trying a home remedy. Most marks can be eased, and the ones that cannot usually fade into the patina with time.
