Coach Purse Clean Up │ Vintage 1995 Coach Willis Handbag Purse


At an estate sale last week, I found a beautiful vintage Coach purse for a fabulous price ($10). She is the "Willis" style with a strap and top handle.

She had seen years of wear (is from 1995) and didn't look like she'd ever had a good cleaning or conditioning. I've had many people ask me how I clean my bags, or what my process is, so, I took her home, and here's what I did:

Vintage Coach Purse

Here is the beautiful "after" photo because I want you to see how pretty she is.
But keep scrolling to see the steps I took to get her this way.

Vintage Coach Purse

Here is the before photo. The two "dots" on the left are from my wet hands, ha.
So ignore that, but this is how I found her. A little lighter than her "after" photo, she had fading and marks, and scars. And a big ink stain on the back. She was looking for some TLC for sure.

Vintage Coach Purse

I started by using a classic perennial saddle soap by Fiebings. It's available here and isn't expensive, and will last for many uses. One basin can last for years. (They also have
a black saddle soap, which is great for black, dark brown, or blue bags.) All you have to do is mix it with water, and it will create a rich lather with your choice of horsehair brush. Once you lather a section, wipe it off with a towel. Do one section at a time.

Vintage Coach Purse

This is the dark spot on the back of the purse. It ended up being an ink stain, which is quite common. I pretreated it for a few extra minutes with the cleaner and dabbed at it with a cloth, without spreading it into the leather. It will probably be there forever, but such is life with a vintage purse. There will always be patina! Which is lovely, in my humble opinion ...

Vintage Coach Purse

Here I am lathering the soap onto the back of the bag, trying not to lather the ink spot. I don't want it bleeding into the rest of the bag! It's like waking a sleeping dragon... leave it well enough alone, if you can. Besides, this stain is on the back of the purse. I'm the only one who's going to see it!

Vintage Coach Purse

Here is the wipe down of the soap and water mixture on the back of the bag. It may seem easier to clean the whole bag at once, then wipe it down all at once, but this is not recommended. It's best to clean the bag one section at a time. So, clean the front, then wipe it down; the side, wipe down; the back, wipe down ... etc. I use a basic micro-fiber cloth, and they're perfect for the job.

Vintage Coach Purse

Here's the lovely "creed," as it is called, which is the patch on the inside of the purse that lists where it was made and its serial number. This is telling me it was manufactured in the United States in August of 1995.

Vintage Coach Purse

The inside was very clean, so I didn't even have to treat it other than dust it and make sure all debris was wiped out. If I needed to clean the suede, I have a suede cleaner by Leather Honey that works fabulously. You can find it here.

Vintage Coach Purse

While the bag is drying, I stuff it with newspaper to restore it to its original shape - a shape that will hold once the bag is dry.

Vintage Coach Purse

Here is the ink spot... still drying here in the photo, but believe it or not, it is actually lighter than it was. It would take many, many treatments to get this to fade even more, so I probably won't do anything else to it other than love it just the way it is. This battle scars gives this purse all of its character.


Coach Purse

Here is one of my favorite parts: conditioning! This is a wonderful conditioner called Leather CPR. (Many Coach and leather bag lovers swear by it, and I can see why!) It is not too greasy, dries well, and gives your dry purse a good drink of conditioning to last for decades more. I swear by this too and can't live without it now. I also use it on all of my leather boots! It's available here.

Coach Purse

I use a horsehair brush to buff out the leather conditioner. After letting it sit for a minute, that brush buffs out the residual remains and works them into the leather. I love it. I was able to get a set of horsehair brushes inexpensively, and it comes with the smaller brush that I use to apply the cleaner. You can get them right here.

Vintage Coach Purse

Here she is! A touch darker (this happens to lighter colored leather bags), but it's the drink of water she's needed for years. What a lovely bag in the British tan color. She still has a few marks and small stains, but as I said before, what's a good purse without a few battle scars? Just like we humans, the more stress, the stronger we become. And to me, the better we become.


So, I really only use six products for all of the leather purses I buy for myself, and for those I buy and sell in my Etsy shop. All of these items cost about $60 and will last for years. I clean and condition one or two bags a month, and have had this latest set of products for at least six months. The containers are still nearly full.

Here they are again: 

Saddle Soap
Black Saddle Soap

Suede Cleaner
Leather Conditioner
Microfiber Cloths
Horsehair Brushes

Thank you for checking out my Coach purse clean-up!
Hope you enjoyed it.♥




(Items listed are incentivized by Amazon)



Fifteenth Year of Perennial Vintage on Etsy Sale

Loving the latest color palette finds...

In celebration of Perennial Vintage being on Etsy for fifteen years, I'm going to do one sale a month at 15% off (and free US Shipping!) through the rest of the year. Woohoo!

I owe it to all of my customers for my continued success. I truly do.

It's been a joy to treasure hunt and preserve vintage for the next person - YOU! Giving new life to old merchandise is like prolonging the life of something that was deemed too old to use. And with vintage clothing, it's all about fixing, repairing, and making whole again clothing of the past that's so rewarding. 

I get to do this every day! It's the love and nurturing and making better the vintage clothing that makes this job full of happiness and hence, not a job at all.

April's sale of 15% off begins today and goes through the weekend

For those of you curious about future sales dates, I like holding the sale mid-month. It gives people a chance to see what they want with all the new merchandise coming in. This discount is a way to say both "thank you" and "I know it's going to a good home."

After doing this for 15 years, I couldn't think of a better way to give back to those who have so generously bought from me over the years (my repeat customers are some of my favorite people.)

Have a great week and enjoy the sale.♥


Pyrex Haul

It goes in waves. The Pyrex, that is.

About a week and a half ago, I thrifted a pink bowl in the Gooseberry pattern, the largest bowl in the Cinderella shape (the pour spout shape), after about two months of not finding a piece. Two months! Now, I realize I have a lot of Pyrex, so the pieces I need are becoming few and far between. As they should.

But two months was a long time for someone who thrifts all the time.

So I found this amazing pink bowl, and then at a different thrift store a couple hours later, I found a beautiful yellow and white Gooseberry bowl set. (Scroll down to see more photos. Also, the yellow and white, and pink were $13 each.)

So not only do I find the same pattern in different colors, but I also find a rare pattern. Very rare. These are patterns from the 1950s so finding them seventy years later is already a miracle. Finding them in nearly excellent condition is another one. And that's what happened all on the same day.

Then, a few days later, I found this beautiful blue and white Butterprint pattern, also from the 1950s. These were about $12 each. Then I found the small bowl for the chip and dip Balloon pattern. This is the rarest of all the patterns I found that week! My finds just kept getting better and better.

As I said, if you're a Pyrex collector who thrifts a lot, you understand what I'm talking about. It's feast or famine sometimes. And I feasted like a queen last week!

The prices were very, very fair for rare Pyrex. 

I had to share my finds and one of these days, I'll have all that I'm looking for. But until that happens, every time I thrift a piece of Pyrex, I know how miraculous it is. It seems like everyone is collecting it, so finding them at great prices feels like I've struck gold. Eureka!

Happy Pyrex hunting...


Stack of Pyrex
Isn't she beautiful? Set of three.

Pyrex bowl
In ridiculously good condition. The Balloon pattern.

pyrex chip and dip
A picture of the set from the book "Pyrex Passion." Buy it here.

Pyrex Display
Part of my Pyrex collection.

Gooseberry Pyrex
Yellow and White Gooseberry. Just missing the third bowl.♥

Gooseberry Bowl
Pink Gooseberry.

Gooseberry Nesting
Voila. Already had the other two, now to find the smallest one.

Pyrex Collection
My collection after only four years of ONLY thrifting Pyrex.
March 2021-2025
Anything is possible...




Reference Book: Pyrex Passion


Vintage Haul Flat Lay / March 2025

Vintage flat lay

I haven't done one of these for a while and thought this latest haul from last week was fun. Look at those browns, rust red, and bright oranges. Love how they coordinate unintentionally.

This haul was a little bit of everything:

  • vintage '70s military shooting shirt (first time sourcing this piece ever)
  • vintage '50s blond mink fur stole
  • vintage '80s Harris Tweed Hat
  • vintage '70s women's leather vest
  • vintage '60s men's mid-century "bowling" shirt
  • vintage '60s Hawaiian Liberty House dress
Thanks for checking out my latest finds. Everything is headed to the shop this week.♥
-Heather

Vintage ‘40s Dresses in Perennial Vintage on Etsy

Some exquisite 1940s dresses just hit the shop this week!

Several are from my collection that I've been waiting to wear, but never got around to it, or realized I didn't fit. A couple needed repairs and cleaning.

But finally, I've listed all four of them just this week, and they are beautifully coordinated together with their pastel spring colors. Easter dresses are here.♥

Visit the shop for all the details or click on the pictures to take you to each dress. 

Vintage 40s Dress

Vintage 40s Dress

Vintage 40s Dress

Vintage Gingham 1940s Dress

Vintage 40s Dress

Vintage 40s Dress Label

Vintage 40s Dress

Vintage 40s Floral Dress




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