SPA SERVICES
CLASSIC SPA TREATMENTS
* Clean & Condition
Each Spa Guest receives a general cleaning & conditioning of all materials as well as a careful hardware polish. It's important for your item to be clean while we work on them, and we also want you to have a beautiful fresh item returned to you. We use gentle cleansers and material specific conditioning products; non-darkening and appropriate for each leather type. Both the interior & exterior are gently cleaned & treated.
*This detailing service is included with each treatment package.
Deep Cleaning
Leaky water bottles, food spills, makeup, ink, melted candy, perfume, cigarette smoke; we've seen it all. We have a range of
comprehensive cleaning products
and techniques so that your item will be hygienic and fresh. Please note that we cannot guarantee
that all types of stains will be removed completely but we will provide you with further details in your quote and assessment.
Deep Conditioning
Leather is one of the most hardwearing materials available, but it can also be delicate. It is prone to scratches, wear, dryness, cracks and even mould with too much humidity. Proper conditioning provides the correct moisture level and improves the look, feel and durability of an item. We have a variety of products suitable for different finishes and leather types, including most exotics. We can also treat items for water resistance and colour transfer going forward if requested. Please note that not all dry leather can be saved; we will explain that in more detail in your quote if needed.
Edge Glazing
Also known as edge glaze or ink, this flexible synthetic costing is used in handbag construction to provide a beautiful finish and durability to raw leather edges. It is very common for this to crack or peel over lime.
We have perfected this multi-step
application over years and utilize
professional grade products provide beautiful new edge.
Gold Plating
When plating starts to chip or wear, it will reveal a base metal of a different shade. We have trained using traditional jeweller's methods to ensure a beautiful result. The 24K service is particular to vintage Chanel; the only way to achieve a rich, buttery tone.
COLOUR & DYE
Colouration
We use a carefully researched combination of professional-grade products to refresh faded colour, hide stubborn stains and correct scuffing. We have the ability to colour match most items, with the exception of some metallics, neons & exotics. Our approach to colouration involves a 'less is more' philosophy to retain the original 'temper' and softness of the leather; taking special care around stitching and hardware.
Ink & Stains
Colour transfer from dark denim, spills, ink and watermarks can all be improved through our various cleaning and conditioning methods. If a stain cannot be removed through cleaning, it can be recoloured and refinished to the original colour to give it a fresh appearance. For ink sepcifically, we use a specialty product to ensure it doesn't 'bleed' through the fresh colour.
Dying & Colour Change
Usually reserved for 'worst case scenarios', which include stains on patent leather, oxidized leather (UV damage), really heavily worn light coloured items, severe ink spills & staining that cannot be lifted, etc. This process is where we change the colour of an item to something darker to help disguise the damage and create wearability. This process can change the texture of the leather, but still has a natural (not painted) look to it. Most often, this technique is reserved for those items with sentimental value or an item that is intended for personal use, rather than resale.
C H A N E L
Simple Stitch
We've perfected the 'simple stitch' that's prone to popping on flap bags. Compared to the official after-care services, we offer a quick turnaround as opposed to months spent without your favourite item. This service is non-invasive and does not 'alter' your item or affect your ability to receive future 'official' spa services from Chanel.
Caviar
Caviar is a textured leather that is made from grained calfskin. If you are looking for more of an every day bag, caviar offers a lot more wear resistance than lambskin. However, it's still susceptible to corner wear and scratches. Some of the best discontinued Chanel bags come in caviar, such as the GST. Preserving and restoring these wonderful pieces is our pleasure.
Woven Chain
We love the iconic details of Chanel and nothing says 'classic' like the beautifully woven leather and chain strap. If the strap has only light wear, we can restore the existing leather with recolouration and conditioning. If it is worn beyond restoration, we can replace this leather with the same type, width, fold and colour to retain an authentic look to your item.
Colouration
As with any leather, careless recolouring will ruin the hand feel of the piece and tiny stitches can fill up with pigment. Chanel bags have very tight stitching and are usually made from soft leathers that can be ruined by incorrect products very easily. We dye and recolour carefully, and build up colour slowly to retain proper temper, even on very vintage pieces.
Lambskin
In the world of delicate luxury handbags, Chanel lambskin is notorious. It has varied in durability over the years but is very soft and supple, prone to scratches, wear and colour loss. The fine grain of the leather means that over conditioning will ruin it, but dryness can be equally destructive. We have the specialty products necessary to retain the fine beauty of these precious pieces.
Hardware
We can source perfectly matched hardware, such as the stud backs on the Boy strap pictured above. The pink strap is original, and the black strap features the replacement backs we sourced to match rhodium hardware. We were able to offer these for less than half the price quoted by Chanel, and these will not alter the bag permanently. We also have chain shorteners, custom chain lengths, and custom grommets.