Help! Removing shoe polish from aniline leather bag

[chrisash]

Might well be a stupid answer, but how about pressure washing it with water, with the lance held at a angle so the pressure is not directly into the leather but at  say 45-60 degrees. Might do less damage than other means

[americandreaming]

On 5/1/2021 at 1:46 AM, fredk said:

Just another thought; if the cobblers can't do the job, try turpentine. Real turps, not the turps substitute you can buy cheaply. As a beekeeper I used to make beeswax polishes and I used real turps in the mix. Real turps would strip my polishes off things.

edit to ask; is this bag worth the effort? or is it one of those projects we just don't want to be beaten by?

 

On 5/1/2021 at 7:50 PM, fredk said:

That and the dull finish makes me think its a dubbin type polish which might be removed with turpentine

Thanks Fred - that makes sense.  I'll keep that in mind should the cobbler not be able to save it, although if he can't save it it's probably closer to a total loss and I'll probably sand the top layer off and recolour it.  The pores would still be clogged but at least the bulk would be gone.

That's a very good question - I guess a bit of both!  It's a a 27 year old amazing quality bag (full grain full aniline leather, unlined, solid brass/nickel hardware) in the colour I've wanted for a long time and to dodge multiple shoe-polished one to finally still end up with one frustrates me to no end as well as the fact that someone out there bought it and decided to ruin it with whatever they put on it.  

I currently have a few others in my possession (see attached) and eight on the way or waiting to be rehabbed, so it's a style dear to my heart.  None of my 'modern' bags beat vintage Coach!

[Wizcrafts]

The following suggestion was sent in by a guest who cannot post here.

It looks like they painted the purse not shoe polish. Shoe polish would have come off with the saphir stuff you used.