One of the most beautiful things about thrifting is the opportunity to give a loving, second home to items that more than certainly deserve it…while at the same time supporting sustainability. A win-win situation, if you ask me! Which is why in this series of posts, I share my thrifted finds and also how I freshen them up – who knows, you just might be inspired to pick up a piece for yourself!

Today’s Thrift Find highlight goes to this absolutely stunning The Sak Shitake Beaded shoulder bag from their Indio Leather line (style 105785).

This just so happened to be my first encounter with The Sak brand, and I have to say, upon researching it a bit more, I absolutely fell in love with their story and the pieces they make. There will definitely be plenty more The Sak bags showing up here in the future!

But let’s get back to our beauty first…

The Sak Shitake Beaded Bag has a leather body, a beautiful braided handle, and a stunning beaded trim on the front side.

From what I could find out, it released around 2013 and retailed at $149.

I bought it used in very good condition for €8,23.

To be entirely honest, that still blows my mind because the condition the bag actually arrived in was beyond excellent.

The interior was almost as if it hadn’t been used before, the trim pristine, the zipper smooth, and the handle only had one tiny little scuff on the underside that was barely noticeable unless you were specifically looking for it (and something that could be easily fixed with some leather filler and paint).

All in all, the person who owned this bag before me treated it with care.

The single thing that actually needed any sort of attention was the leather itself, because it was very dry and begging for some love.

I started off by cleaning the bag with Leather Honey Leather Cleaner. Then I addressed the scuff on the handle, going in with my Angelus Paintable Repair Filler just to prevent any further damage from occurring. I painted over that with an acrylic marker that was thankfully the right shade and then sealed it with my Angelus No. 600 Acrylic Finisher.

Once that was done, it was time to give the old leather some love!

I used the conditioner by Leather Honey, spreading it nice and even across the entire surface with a cloth. The leather was, however, much drier than I anticipated, so I had to do two more rounds that day – ditching the cloth application and going in with gloved hands to massage the product in instead.

After 24 hours and a gentle wipe-down, The Sak Beaded Shitake bag was shiny, mosturized, and ready for her new life!

This was such a fun and easy project since the all bag truly needed was just some TLC…but still, the difference is incredible and so fulfilling to see! Not only does the bag look so much better with her shiny leather and smoother creases, the leather itself feels so soft and satisfying to the touch!

I am still beyond blown away by this €8 purchase and I just know this bag is going to be a loyal companion for many, many more years to come!

If you would like to see the entire process on video, you can join me over on YouTube by clicking this link or the image below!

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