Don't Know How to Handle This Bag

August 15, 2024 6:55 AM

I recently bought a cute little brown suede handbag at a thrift shop for $5.99. The bag itself is in pristine condition inside and out, but the handles are quite worn-looking. How can I remedy that?

I know I could just replace the old handles with a new commercially made pair, but that would involve me having to rip out and then redo the topstitching on the outside of the bag, and I'm not sure I could replicate it exactly. So what I'm looking for here are suggestions for fixing or relacing the existing handles that won't involve ripping out that top stitching.

Ideas I've considered:

-- touching up the existing handles with leather dye (don't know if this will work given that I doubt they're genuine leather)
-- stripping down the old handles and recovering them in some way (what material and technique would I use for this?)
-- cutting the old handles, pulling them out of the casing, then making some sort of new handles that I can insert, join, then rotate so that the join is hidden under the casing (in which case what could I make the new handles from that would make them stiff enough to hold a circular shape?).

Your thoughts?

posted by orange swan to Grab Bag (13 answers total)

If you're committed to replacing the handles, then what I'd do is cut the material around the handle carefully and find out what that lacing is built over. You might be able to just pull off the old material and re-wrap whatever is underneath (probably stiff wire or plastic.) the braid itself might very well be the join, or there may be a seam you can cut and re-glue. Do the handles spin freely?
posted by restless_nomad at 7:11 AM on August 15

Yes, I can rotate the existing handles, and there's a seam for the lacing on each one.
posted by orange swan at 7:14 AM on August 15

Folks over at r/handbags might have suggestions. People regularly ask about how to restore a thrift store bag or bag inherited from an older relative.
posted by needled at 7:18 AM on August 15

Remember in elementary school when the cool girls used to wrap hair and pens in embroidery floss? That's what I would want to do here, in fun and exciting colors. Like a friendship bracelet for your bag.
posted by phunniemee at 7:20 AM on August 15

I would try those ideas in order, hoping to get away with a quick easy fix, But I'm lazy like that and not very picky. A little bit of brown marker (a mix of shades is good) covered with leather conditioner or mink oil might be all it takes. If you don't like that, I'd cut it off and wrap it with leather lacing. If you don't know how to do the lacing, ask again and we can help. I don't know what I'd do to replace but I might try embroidery hoops, wrapped with leather or some other cordage.
posted by SaltySalticid at 7:22 AM on August 15

Another simple thing to try is what auto detailer do to old steering wheels. Exceptionally fine grit sand paper and just give it a very light even sanding. It will remove a consistent top layer and feel kind of like soft sueded for a few days and then humidity and hand oils etc will smooth it out (or you can use some neutral oil, very very small amount, to oil it after sanding). It's a super simple super easy process.
posted by chasles at 7:54 AM on August 15

I don't think those handles are more than a fraction of a millimeter of leather over a cloth backing. I would generally assume that they're unrecoverable unless you are ok with dyeing them and having the texture and shine be uneven (which is fine! That'd be the cheap and easy fix.) I really like the idea of doing a leather lace or embroidery floss wrap over whatever the interior handle is. (There may be a layer of foam padding that's probably quite worn, if the handles have any squish to them, but that'd also be cheap to replace.)
posted by restless_nomad at 7:57 AM on August 15

My concern with embroidery floss is wear and tear. One snag and you would have to redo the whole handle again. I would think about plastic lacing or leather cording. I would also look around craft and hardware stores for other interesting things in circular shapes that come apart.

If you are okay with a floppier handle, you might find some pvc or similar tubing that could fit inside the channel, and then use a braided rope that you tie together and put the knot inside the tubing.
posted by soelo at 8:03 AM on August 15

Instead of embroidery floss I would use a paracord wrap. It uses a thicker rope used on handles and equipment. People also make bracelets out of it. There are a few different wraps and lots of videos on youtube.
posted by ljesse at 8:49 AM on August 15

You could get some thin gold beading wire and braid it over the handles for a really luxe look.
posted by effluvia at 9:41 AM on August 15

Perhaps the simplest option would be to wrap two (matching?) scarves around the handles?
posted by mdonley at 2:51 PM on August 15

You could wrap them in bar tape.

You could buy ribbon or leather straps and do a new round braid over it.

You could paint it with textile acrylic.
posted by oneirodynia at 5:49 PM on August 15

You could buy twill tape from a sewing notions store to wrap around the handles. I’d dab it with glue in few places to keep it from sliding around. Old ties from a thrift store would look cool. If you didn’t care about rigid handles, you could replace them with narrow belts cut down to fit.
posted by TWinbrook8 at 5:35 AM on August 16