At one time, only pricier or designer bags came with dustbags. You know those fabric bags emblazoned with the name of the brand on it that new bags come in? Did you know some people collect those things? 😛 These days, most bags come with dustbags. What are you supposed to do with these dustbags?
Use them to store your bags when they are not in use of course!
There is a reason why its called a “dustbag” – its primary use is to keep dust and dirt off your bags while being stored. Its secondary use is to protect your bags from scratches or from getting stained (or in the case of the picture above, to prevent inquisitive lion cubs from peering into your bag 😛 ). Leather or fabric can sometimes be stained by coming into contact with metals, or darker colours and the dustbag stops this from happening when you store them in your closet.
What if your bag did not come with a dustbag?
So, what if your bag did not come with a dustbag? An old Coach bag I own did not. Do you run out and buy one? Nope – that’ll be a waste of money. Just use an old clean pillow case 😀 That is what I used to do with some older bags or bags that did not come with a dustbag.
Do not use plastic bags to store handbags
Whatever you do, do not use a plastic bag to store your bags. Plastic bags do not allow air circulation so your bags cannot “breathe”. This can encourage the growth of mould, bacteria or mildew on leather bags which ruins them.
No matter the price of your bag, you do not want it ruined through lack of care.
Bonus Tip: Stuff your bags to retain their shape
If you have a structured or semi-structured bag, stuff it with acid free paper or tissue paper in plain light colors e.g. white. This helps your bags keep their shape and stops them from creasing. You will notice that new bags usually come stuffed with white paper – white does not transfer colour unlike newspaper or printed or coloured paper. If you don’t have paper on hand, use an old light colored T-shirt as how I do it 🙂
Do you practice storing your bags in dustbags? If you don’t, it might be time to do so!
Paris B
Morning Paris!
Hello yes I do keep my bags in their home as soon as I decide to change one.
My Tod’s is heavily stained and I was reading on of your post, I went to Coach and tried to get the leather cleaner and conditioner, however I was advised by the staff not to use it on my bag 🙁
So, i only use baby wipes/clean water to give it a wipe, then use some creme de la mer to condition it…it is kinda weird but leather used to be skin (of animals), no?
I hope you had a great week! I was pretty happy with my haul in the Dior sales (as I was staying around that area last week), even though I was told by the staff, some good stuff (skin flash and iconic) were gone at around 10ish!
xxx
Oh my! CDLM on your bags! Perhaps the Coach cleaner works best on cow leather. I take a risk and use it on most of my bags but I do test it first 🙂 Which Tod’s do you have ? 😀 And yeah I managed to snag one last Skinflash! Can’t wait to try it out – picked up some good stuff I’ve been wanting to try too. Glad you managed to hit up the sales and pick up some good stuff 🙂
Hey, it is just because I bought that cream for my mum, she thought it was too thick and she never used it any more. I can’t use it myself so I thought, I might as well use it on the bags…
Oh, the bag is a Tod’s Softy Messenger. The leather is very buttery but the downside is, I always wear it really rough and with jeans, it stained like there is no tomorrow.
Would you please write an entry about your Dior haul? I am highly interested in what you got!
I have to thank you for the information. Even I wasn’t practically ‘at home’ but I read your blog everyday. Thanks again. xxx
thanks for sharing this info! i always through away the papers stuffed inside the bags i just bought because i hate keeping bulky stuff inside my cupboard (i have some problems stacking my bags due to the critically limited space as the number of bags seem to be growing haha). a burberry leather bag i had (and stored for some time) has lost its shape and i really do not know what i should do. gosh… it’s so clear to me now… i should have kept those paper *damn*
what was i thinking… it’s “throw” not “through” *duh*
Try stuffing your bag with an old t shirt and see if the shape returns. It won’t be 100% but its better than nothing 🙂
I was just thinking about it this morning. I’ve my LV pochette laying on my computer desk for weeks now (the dustbag is somewhere but I don’t know where!), my Coach tote bag laying on another desk in the craftroom, another Coach hanging on the door handle. I’m a very untidy person… I know it takes less than a min to put them in the dustbag but I’m really lazy!
psst I have bags lying all over my house too! The better ones are kept immediately but the not so pricey ones tend to lie around until I get my butt moving to keep them 😛
Hi. How often should I air out my bags? I usually keep them in my wardrobe but I found out that was not the best – I’ve lost 2 already because of the heat…
To be honest, I don’t air them out. I just take them out to use whenever I like and thus far, nothing has happened to them. Perhaps if its really hot and humid, using one of those dehumidifier things will help.