How to Care For Your Bags: Leather Care Tips

Leather is known for its durability and can last a lifetime is taken proper care of. It is necessary to maintain the beauty and other desired qualities of leather. A proper care of leather makes it protected from excessive dryness and prevents it from moisture that may cause it to swell or mildew. The following things need to be done to make your leather handbag a lifetime utility accessory.

• The leather bags should not be stored in plastic bags or other nonporous covers as they encourages the growth of mildew and bacteria that ruin the leather.
• In a dry environment, regularly condition the leather in order to prevent it from drying out and cracking.
• Caustic household chemicals should never be used to clean leather and leather preparations that contain alcohol should also be avoided.
• Turpentine and mineral spirits must be avoided as they can pull color.
• No waxes or silicone should be used on soft leather as they gum up the pores, making it impossible to oil and condition.
• Fresh stains of blood or food items can be cleaned up with a damp cloth. While those from oil or grease can be cleaned by grinding ordinary blackboard chalk, sprinkling the area and leaving the powder on for a twenty-four hour period.
• A dampened cheesecloth and a leather conditioning cream should be used thrice or four times a year. This facilitates the durability, shine With and increases the beauty of the leather bags.

How to store your bags:

• Opt for not hanging your purses on a hook or a hanger. Depending on the strap of the handbag, a hook or hanger can distort the shape of it. Instead, store your purses in an open basket in a clean, dry spot in your home. Make sure that the basket has a piece of fabric or cloth on the bottom of it.
• Keep tissue paper stuffed into it. It will help to keep the bag in a nice shape when you’re not using it. If the purse has no flap or zipper on it, the tissue paper will also prevent dust from flying into it. Since most purses already come with big wads of it, use that instead of having to buy some.
• Have a few micro fiber cloths in the basket. They are soft cloths that make daily maintenance easy. It will shine up the hardware on the purse without scratching it and will also easily wipe off any dust that is on the outside. No need to wet the cloth, it will work perfectly when dry.
• Make sure to store the basket that contains the purses off of the floor. Not only are they a magnet for pet fur, they are also susceptible if your dog or cat has an accident or decides to sleep on them.
• Keep them stored out of direct sunlight. The light can distort the color of the purses and ruin them. It is best to keep them on a shelf in your closet where you can reach them but they are out of the way from anything that can ruin them.
• Put any purses that you don’t use often in a piece of your luggage. It will keep them clean so you won’t have to dust them, you can save space by putting them in empty luggage, and you don’t have to worry about them getting damaged.

How To Spot A Fake Louis Vuitton Bag.

Fake fashion is a $450 billion dollar business. The bigger the brand name, the bigger the payoff for counterfeiters such as fake Louis Vuitton bags. Its signature series of canvas monogram bags is a prime target for knock-off artists and manufacturers. Many of these counterfeit Louis Vuitton bags are so convincing, they easily fool the average consumer. If you are in the market for the real deal, here's how to make sure you're not getting gypped

Step 1: The Price Is Wrong

Louis Vuitton monogram canvas bags run from $375 and up, with the majority of the bags selling for over $1000. If you're buying a brand new Louis Vuitton bag for less than $300, you're not getting a deal, you're getting a fake.

Step 2: What's In A Name?

If there is an "LV" anywhere on the bag that is crooked or on a stitch or seam, it is not the real thing. The "LV" on a real Louis Vuitton purse will be carefully placed on the bag so that it's not cut off by a seam or snap. Besides the famous initials being monogrammed onto the bag itself, the zipper pull and purse snaps will all be branded as well. The zipper pull should also be brass hardware and heavy to the touch. Many imitators pay attention to the details so make sure you're paying even closer attention. If the seams are uneven or the monogram is the slightest bit off, it's a fake. Louis Vuitton bags are all hand crafted and each one is perfectly assembled. Spend some time on the manufacturer's website to study the details that make the bag authentic.

Step 3: Material Matters

The Louis Vuitton monogram bags are made of canvas but the handles and piping are natural cowhide leather. The color of the leather should be a light tan, with the edge dyed red and the stitching in yellow. After a few weeks of handling your bag, the leather handles will oxidize and fade to a darker brown. If your leather handles don't change color, it's a fake.

Step 4: Location

Louis Vuitton doesn't have any authorized street resellers so resist these so called "deals" they are trying to sell you. Also be careful when buying bags online, although you can find authentic Louis Vuitton bags, there are also a plethora of fakes. Pay attention to the seller credibility and ask about buyer protection, bag repair warranty and the return policy.

Step 5: Trust Your Gut

When it comes down to it, go with your gut. If you feel funny about where or how much you're paying, walk away. For more information about how to tell the authenticity of a Louis Vuitton bag, visit a Louis Vuitton Boutique.

I'm going to teach you how to look at Louis Vuitton patch!

Notice the subtle differences. The authentic Louis Vuitton Judy Blame Limited Edition Denim Cabas Raye Pleaty patch pictured above has:
really rounded, even embossed font- the o's, a's and e's are circular, not oval in shape
even and regular stitching. The same stitch count on every bag: thirteen stitches across the top and bottom and eight stitches down each side!

• tall "d" in the word "Edition"- it's slightly taller than the capital E
• tall "l" in the word "Blame- it's slightly taller than the capital B
• notice that in this font, the letter "u" has no tail

Compare these features to the patch in a replica Judy Blame Cabas Raye Pleaty:

It differs from the authentic patch in that:
the font is too large on a patch that is too small for the bag
the o's, a's and e's are too oval in shape- should be circular
the stitch count is off... ten stitches by seven instead of thirteen by eight
the "itt" in Vuitton should be closer together
the spacing is off, and uneven- see "Louis"- the "Lou" are spaced wider than the "uis", the "P" in "Paris" is too far from the "aris"
the "u"s should have no tail- the font in this patch has a tail on the u
the R in ® should be larger in relation to the circle.