During one of my Junkin’ Journey trips (specifically to Richmond, Virginia), I came across the most GORGEOUS old suitcase at an antiques shop. But as much as I loved it, I couldn’t justify the cost on something I simply didn’t need- truly an exercise in restraint for me. So, I snapped a photo and thought of it often…until I wondered if I could recreate the look of vintage luggage décor on my own.

Isn’t he GORGEOUS?

Now, of course, I already know that whatever I created wouldn’t look EXACTLY the same or be a perfect replacement for the Real McCoy. BUT…it might scratch the vintage luggage itch that I had…and would cost just a fraction of my inspiration. This post contains affiliate links for your crafting convenience.

The first step in my experiment was obtaining the right vintage suitcase. I found one at a thrift but an even better one came from Maliasmark, one of my favorite Etsy shops.

Looks like I’m going on a trip!

The beat-up old tweed suitcase was, however, missing a handle. An interesting challenge that didn’t scare me off one iota.

No handle? No problem!

Why? Because I knew exactly how to replace it inexpensively with a similar look: A plain ole’ door handle from the hardware store.

Just needs a little paint, but otherwise perfect.

All I needed to do was spray paint the galvanized metal and swap out the screws for nuts and bolts. So, I did exactly that (using this spray paint on all parts) and set it aside to dry. I also carefully pried off the old handle hardware using pliers.

Now- to transform the old suitcase into the vintage luggage décor I was envisioning, I needed to do two things. First, I needed to add some “straps” and second, apply some vintage-y looking travel stickers.

The former would be easy, and as it turns out, the travel sticker part wasn’t difficult or expensive at all! I found another Etsy shop that sold digital downloads of luggage labels– I couldn’t decide on a favorite, so I bought four of them.

How great are these?

If you notice, the labels are kind of faded/pale- that’s because I printed them using my printer’s “Ink Saver” mode, which I thought made them look more worn and vintage-y! How funny is that?

Now for the luggage “straps”! I suppose I could have fashioned straps out of old belts or other material, but I decided it was just as easy to paint them directly onto my vintage luggage.

Time to decorate!

It was easy enough to do- first I measured out where I wanted the “straps” to be and marked the edges with painter’s tape– making sure that they were about as equally placed apart as possible.

Strips, stripes, straps!

Then, I brushed on some dark craft paint inside my painter’s tape stripes, removing the tape after two coats had dried.

Working like a charm…

Onto the vintage luggage labels! I had printed them on full-size label sheets, and cut them out leaving a “tag” of label edge on each one, if that makes sense. This made it a LOT easier to separate from the paper backing before fully trimming them out.

Now for the travel labels…

I seriously love these full-size label sheets because you can turn anything you print into a sticker!!

After covering my vintage suitcase with the travel labels (further securing them with this easy-to-use brush on super glue), I attached my now-painted door pull as the new handle. Doesn’t it look great?

Ta-da!

And that was it- my vintage luggage décor idea came to life exactly as I had hoped.

Love!

That door pull was simply perfect for the handle, eh?

Now I can use it as a display piece and/or storage. I’ve been known to bubble-wrap breakables- vases, bottles, platters- that I use infrequently and store them in old suitcases. It keeps them safe and dust-free, and if the suitcase has a musty odor, it’s not a big deal for non-porous items like glass or glazed ceramics.

All done…

Such a fun project to work on and I think the handle-replacement trick will come in handy…and while it’s not a perfect replacement for the original suitcase that I fell in love with, it’s awfully cute nonetheless.

Craft on!

S

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