You probably won’t need this advice if you’re one of those people who have the latest designer handbag every six months – you won’t have time to get it dirty before moving it on (please – don’t tell me that you consign passé handbags to the back of the wardrobe – sell it on!). The rest of us who hang on to our trusty old handbags for ages (no hunting around in unfamiliar pockets trying to remember which compartment has your cellphone and which one has that business card in it). Others of us like to pick up second-hand bags, including the replaced-every-six months designer bags. People in the latter two categories need to know how to clean a leather handbag. The same advice applies to leather belts and leather briefcases, so guys, you can keep reading, too, even if you don’t own a “manbag”.
Start with the inside of the handbag. Turn it inside out and give it a good shake. Lots of dust and fluff, and possibly crumbs, will fall out, and so will loose change (if you’re lucky), paper clips, bits of paper, a bottle top, a fluff-covered raising and half an old bus ticket. Recover any hidden treasures, then vacuum up the fluff, etc. Use the vacuum cleaner to suck up any other bits of loose grime that may be stuck in the seams. While the bag is inside out, see if you can find the care label. Some leather and suede bags should only be drycleaned.