Restoring And Customising A Briefcase

[my63]

It is here

Exactly as described in very good condition for its age

 

IMG_7968 by my0771, on Flickr

 

Some areas are very dry and flaky

 

IMG_7972 by my0771, on Flickr

 

After unpacking I washed the whole bag with water and then washed it again with saddle soap.

The next stage was to apply some mink oil Half a tin so far and I expect to apply the other half tomorrow and possibly another tin next week

 

IMG_7975 by my0771, on Flickr

 

The thread may have originally been brown but it is now a redish brown.

 

The project is to take an old bag and make it serviceable again by reconditioning the leather and replacing all of the stitching.

The interior will be transformed into a luxurious home for IT gear pens notebooks keys etc using fine suede and leather.

I will be adding as many pockets and securing straps as possible to the inside

 

This is a commission the owner has been involved in all of the decisions so far and will be along at some point to participate.

 

As always your participation is welcome and any ideas will be appreciated

 

Thanks for looking

 

Michael

 

 

[Kosmic-kowgirl]

awesome!!!

[Tiffanyhenschel]

This will be interesting to watch!

[luminesce]

This will be interesting to watch!

 

I agree! Looking forward to see how you get on

[my63]

Life is funny at times I made what I considered a silly offer on the first bag never thinking I would win it, and I did.

At the same time I made a bid on another bag again not really thinking I would win well I won that one too.

 

So I guess I will be restoring another bag.

 

2 bag 1 by my0771, on Flickr.

 

I have started the restoration process cleaning first then feeding the next stage will be to take it all apart.

 

Yesterday

 

IMG_7972 by my0771, on Flickr

 

Today

 

IMG_7978 by my0771, on Flickr

 

It may seem a little odd to clean and feed the leather and then take it apart but the leather was very dry and can be brittle when it is dry this leather may not have been treated for decades. So I have fed the leather with natural oils and fats to make it soft and supple again.

I will continue this process until the leather will not absorb anymore feed.

 

Thanks for looking

 

Michael

Edited July 19, 2014 by my63

[my63]

Things tend to come in threes so here is number three

 

Basket case I think this case is very close to being scrap but I will wait until it arrives before I decide

 

3 bag 1 by my0771, on Flickr

 

3 bag 2 by my0771, on Flickr

 

3 bag 3 by my0771, on Flickr

 

I don't think the tape is original I will need to either buy brass corners or make leather ones.

 

Briefcase number one is having another coat of mink oil today.

 

Thanks for looking

 

Michael

[Kosmic-kowgirl]

Im beginning to think there isnt anything you cant do!

[stonezebra]

You do the most amazing things! Brass corners for your squared off case sounds good (sort of like campaign desks) but then I have no idea what leather corners would look like.... hmmm, maybe in a contrasting color. I don't believe I've ever seen anything quite like the square case. Can't wait to see what you do next with the other cases!

[my63]

Thanks Kate there are so many things that I cant do, I am now 10 years from the accident that changed my life and one of the most important lessons I have learnt since then is not to dwell on the things that I cant do but to focus my efforts on the things I can do.

 

Stonezebra

Here is a treat for you

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fWcqaLdWrTE

 

Martin Ashworth is a leather craftsman I intend to repair the stationary box in the same way that he restores the barristers case which he starts towards the end of this video

 

Michael

[my63]

I have only just noticed that the case in Martins video above is actually the same as the one I have bought.

[my63]

As I now have two briefcases I feel it is only right to offer a choice to the client of which case they would prefer so until that decision is made I have just continued to apply oils to soften the leather.

 

I do have a little bit of room for storage however I now have a one in one out policy for large items I am aware that I could easily dispose of a writing slope or three, (we all know that is never going to happen) so the pretty bag and stationary case will need to find new homes or go back whence they came (auction site)

 

Thanks

 

Michael

[Kosmic-kowgirl]

lol dang about rehoming a writing slope but I totally understand

[my63]

OK decision made the dark bag has been chosen the outside has been coated in mink oil and is softening up nicely

 

IMG_8152_1 by my0771, on Flickr

 

Please engage your imagination

 

IMG_8155 by my0771, on Flickr

 

This bag has a metal frame around the top and the leather is folded over this frame and stitched together I intend to unpick this joint and add in my suede lining and sew it back together, on all four sides and the bottom of the bag

I will make three fluted pockets

Edited July 29, 2014 by my63

[my63]

The overriding idea with anything I restore is to only do enough to make the item useable and that is exactly what I plan to do.

 

IMG_8161_1 by my0771, on Flickr

 

IMG_8159 by my0771, on Flickr

 

As you can see I have removed the inside pieces the old dividers are not high enough to support the larger pockets so I will be replacing them.

 

While removing the dividers I discovered that the thread that looked fine was in fact rotten and when pressure was applied it snapped.

Linen thread does not last forever so I am now cutting out all of the stitching and will start to replace it when I am ready to re assemble

 

Thanks

 

Michael

[77kath]

This is fascinating!

[my63]

This is the new starting point almost all of the old thread has been remover only the bottom thread is left and I will remove that as I sew.

 

IMG_8165_1 by my0771, on Flickr

 

More to follow soon

[my63]

This is the bottom of the case and it has had the same treatment as the rest of the case washed with saddle soap conditioned with mink oil and finally polished with carnauba wax
The old thread has been cut out and replaced with red waxed linen thread

IMG_8229_1 by my0771, on Flickr

The inside has also been cleaned and dried and is now ready for its lining

IMG_8231_1 by my0771, on Flickr

The two pieces of suede that make up the lining have been glued and sewn together it will be fixed in place when the dividers and the rest of the case are sewn together

IMG_8235_1 by my0771, on Flickr

Thanks for looking

Michael

[my63]

In the previous post I showed the bottom piece with its suede lining which will be sewn in place the sides however need to be fixed.

 

IMG_8243 by my0771, on Flickr

 

This is the front the lock mechanism showed through the original lining so I added a piece of card in between the original lining and the suede.

 

Suede is expensive so a real deep breath is required before taking it near contact adhesive on a very hot day in the UK once it touched it was stuck fast.

 

I have started cutting some sheet kydex to make the new dividers which will support the pockets for the tech gear.

 

Thanks for looking

 

Michael

[Kosmic-kowgirl]

lol no need for deep breaths, you've got this down to an art

[my63]

I am not so sure about that but thanks anyway.

 

I was going to be clever and hang the hide for the inside of this case outside so you could see how much there is but it is raining heavily here today.

 

IMG_8280 by my0771, on Flickr

 

So instead here is the after picture a very sharp knife and a number of rulers and a steady (well as steady as I can)

 

There is enough here to wrap the two dividers and make all of the pockets (I hope)

 

The next step is to dye all of the pieces and it is raining today so that is on hold.

 

Thanks for looking