Designer Handbags, The New "Hot" Leather

While designer handbags have been around for years, finding a professional to clean them is difficult. Dry Cleaners will often turn customers away but Without A Trace is the answer. We have provided professional handbag cleaning for some time and current tight economy is creating opportunities to grow this service area.

"Restoring" versus "replacing" has become a common expression today. You may consider extending the life of your expensive designer leather or suede handbag by cleaning it rather than buying a new one. You just need to know the service is available.

Most leather and suede handbags will be pre-spotted and hand cleaned. However, the next step is what separates us from the other cleaners. We have the tools to restore color and maintain feel in the refinishing process. We use proprietary products for cleaning and refinishing that are not available to other cleaners.

Basic repairs services are also available. Replacing zippers, sewing open seams, fixing "D" rings and more can be done by our in-house repair department.

Without A Trace Weaver Inc Receives 2009 Best of Chicago Award I am pleased to announce that Without A Trace Weaver Inc has been selected for the 2009 Best of Chicago Award in the Broadwoven Fabrics Weaving Mill category by the US Commerce Association. Read Press Release Here.

 

CBS News - Without A Trace Featured Without A Trace was featured on a CBS News special about the effects of the economy and how some small businessses are thriving. Video Here.

 

Reweaving: The Dying Art American Drycleaner, December 1992
For the last six years our reweaver has been Without A Trace. Yes, that’s the company name. Without A Trace is located in Chicago and we recently talked with owner Michael Ehrlich.... Read the full story.

 

Dreamweavers by Margaret M. Magnarelli, photography by Michael Voltattorni
Behind several racks of clothing at the Without a Trace Weavers shop on West Bryn Mawr Avenue, four women quietly concentrate. They are mending expensive - though slightly torn - garments...Read the full story.

 

Chicago Magazine August 2003 by Brittney Blair, Rebecca Cutler, Hannah Feldman, Elisabeth Fourmont, Jack Helbig, Geoffrey Johnson, Jenna Lane, Lucia Mauro, Jennifer Olvera, Penny Pollack, Sarah Preston, Steven Rhodes, Dennis Rodkin, Stuart Rosenberg, Jeff Ruby, Carie Sager, Ted Shen, Joanne Trestrail, Todd Urban, Cassie Walker, Stacey Wallace-Albert, Deborah Wilk and David Zivan
Best clothing repairs --- TEARAWAY -- got a favorite wool sweater or leather jacket that is frayed, torn or otherwise showing it's age? Michael Ehrlich and his colleagues at Without A Trace can clean, restore and even re-dye leather, shearling and suede garments. As for woven clothes, workers wearing magnifying glasses and wielding tiny needles can employ a variety of reweaving techniques to reconnect items that owners had given up for dead ...

 

The Best of the Robb Report June 2003 by W.K.
Weaving legacies. Even with climate-controlled cedar closets to preserve fine fabrics and keep moths at bay, clothing takes a pounding from the wear and tear of frequent use. When it comes to repairing insect holes, pulled threads and large tears in superfine wools, no one has more experience than Without A Trace.

The Chicago firm, which was founded by Michael Ehrlich more than 2 decades ago, is one of a handful of companies still specializing in the dying of french weaving. The practice involves dissecting the garment's original fabric structure, snipping threads from unseen areas such as inside seams, and interweaving the exact same pattern over the hole, one thread at a time. For a small moth hole, the handwork can require 2 hours or more. Another process called inweaving, is used for larger tears and involves placing a square of cut cloth over the damage and reweaving the garment's threads through the patch for a seamless match. Without A Trace uses similar techniques for knitwear and can also repair damages to leather.