How to Care for The Row Leather, Suede and Raffia Bags

Buy one of these bags and what is absent registers fast. There is no logo plaque to protect, no coated canvas asking to be wiped down, no weight of hardware absorbing the knocks. The trade is exposed surface: calfskin showing its grain, lambskin linings, suede that marks at the smallest provocation, and a summer raffia weave with no seal on it. The care burden of The Row bags sits almost entirely on the material rather than on any finish laid over it. Simple to look after, unforgiving when you get it wrong.

The organising principle is material, because that is how the decisions actually break down. Opposite treatment goes to a grained calfskin tote and a suede top handle from the same season, with a sisal bag different again.

First, an honest caveat about care instructions

The Row publishes no public care protocol for its bags. There is neither a manual nor a published cleaning chart, and no brand-approved products are sold with them. Treat all of it as material-appropriate general guidance, drawn from how calfskin, lambskin, suede, canvas and raffia behave rather than from instructions issued by the label. A good leather specialist would be cautious, conservative and biased toward doing less, and so should you. A definitive brand-issued cleaning routine for these bags does not exist, so anyone who presents one is filling a gap rather than quoting a source. On a piece you care about, ask a professional before applying anything at all.

Why habits outrank products

Everyday handling is where most damage to a good bag starts, so the fixes are behavioural. Overfilling distorts a soft silhouette faster than anything else, and it is the mistake owners make most often with the Margaux and the Park Tote. Adjusting the shape is what the belted side gussets on the Soft Margaux are for, not making room for more. Leather is dried and faded by sun, row-fashion.com with radiators and car dashboards accelerating both. Rain does more harm than people assume on unfinished surfaces, and neither suede nor raffia has much defence against it. Keeping a bag out of sun, heat and water achieves more than any product on a shelf.

• Before storage, empty the bag completely, receipts and anything that can transfer colour included.
• Never leave a soft bag hanging by its handles for long, because the drop will stretch.
• Keep pens, keys and cosmetics in a pouch rather than letting them sit loose against the lining.
• Handle pale calfskin and untreated suede only with washed hands.

Calfskin in its four forms: smooth, grained, saddle and polished

Calfskin is the backbone of the line and it is the most forgiving material in it. Scuffs and shine both show on smooth calfskin, matte grained calfskin conceals them well, and polished saddle leather sits between the two. A soft dry cloth after use is the whole of routine care, used with the grain and concentrated on the corners and base where dirt collects. Sparingly and infrequently are the operative words for a neutral conditioner, provided you test it on a hidden panel first. Over-conditioning darkens hide unevenly, produces a tacky surface and softens structure you meant to keep. Because pale calfskin picks up dye from dark denim, light bags belong away from indigo, and a transferred mark should never be scrubbed, because scrubbing spreads it.

Nappa and lambskin: linings more than exteriors

These two turn up more often as linings than as exteriors, which changes how you protect them. Lambskin lines the Margaux Shoulder; the Bourse Clutch has a calfskin exterior and a nappa lining — which puts the softest material in the bag right where your keys sit. Both mark easily, both are exceptionally soft, and neither rewards any attempt to work on it. Dry soft cloth only is the correct answer, used lightly and rarely. Because the hides are supple as they are, avoid conditioner completely: over-treatment leaves a greasy sheen that will not come out. The real protection is a pouch inside the bag rather than a product applied to it.

Suede: the most demanding material in the line

A consistent premium attaches to suede at this label and calls for a matching increase in care. Look at observed 2026 market prices and the gap is obvious: India 10.00 is $3,850 in leather and $5,370 in suede, while Agnes 15 goes $5,000 in leather against $5,800 in suede. For the premium you get a nap that flattens, soaks up and stains faster than any finished hide. Caring for suede is mechanical, not chemical, which is the thing most owners miss. A dedicated suede brush covers most routine wear on its own, used gently in one direction to lift the nap and clear surface dust. Anything wetter goes to a professional.

1. A light brush along the nap after each wear, not a scrub across it.
2. Let a wet bag dry naturally at room temperature, well away from radiators and hairdryers, then brush it once it has dried completely.
3. Lift dry marks with a suede eraser using minimal pressure.
4. Do not attempt anything oily, coloured or set — it belongs with a leather specialist.

Never put leather cream, conditioner, wet wipes, soap or a water-based cleaner on suede — the list is short and absolute. Every one of them mats the nap or leaves a ring visible in every light. Regular brushing does more over a year than any treatment, which makes the realistic standard prevention rather than repair.

Raffia and sisal, canvas and nylon, silk and satin

Buy these knowing they are the least serviceable materials the brand uses. Because these are not tanned surfaces, there is nothing to condition and no way to refinish a stained panel. Solvents and hard scrubbing distort the weave of canvas and nylon and leave a clean patch that reads as damage, even though both wear well otherwise. Silk and satin pieces, including the small evening bags and knotted crossbody shapes, mark permanently with water and skin oils. A barely damp cloth, a spot-clean and a quick blot — that is the only home treatment worth trying on any of them. Because there is no repair to fall back on, rain and sunscreen are the two things to avoid completely.

The parts people forget: hardware and linings

What needs protecting is the finish: palladium-plated hardware in a matte or brushed finish. Metal polish is made for shine and will burnish a deliberately soft surface into something that no longer matches the bag. Buckles and feet want nothing more than a dry cloth, and drying whenever they get wet, so moisture never sits in the join. On the Margaux the buckles and base feet are engraved, and the recesses trap dust, which a soft brush clears better than a cloth. Vacuum cotton herringbone linings, as found in the Soft Margaux 10 and 12, instead of washing them. Inspect the stitching at the handle roots from time to time, because a loose thread caught early costs a small repair rather than a large one.

How to store them between wears

Good bags deteriorate quietly in storage, and the fix is cheap. Put it back in the dust bag it arrived in, lightly stuffed so the shape holds without stretching the sides. Use acid-free tissue, or a soft cotton scarf; newspaper does not, because the ink transfers. Because shape survives emptiness but not weight, store bags upright on a shelf rather than stacked under others. Dark, dry and ventilated is what the space needs, with no sealed plastic boxes to trap humidity against leather. Because form comes back to a bag that rests, rotating what you carry matters more than owners expect.

When to hand it to a professional

Good row handbags get ruined when the line between maintenance and restoration is crossed at home, and that line is clear enough. Anything involving colour loss, ink, oil, water rings on suede or a stretched handle belongs with a leather specialist. Structural work is the same, whether that is loose stitching at a stress point or a lining torn away from its seam. Check that the specialist has handled unlogoed luxury calfskin, since what works on coated canvas does not transfer. Expect discreet testing, and honesty about any mark that cannot be lifted cleanly, because on untreated hide, some marks simply cannot be. One competent job costs less than the resale discount that follows a botched attempt at home.