Dyeing/sealing Problem

[TardiS]

So I'm pretty new to leatherworking. I made my own armor for a LARP out of 10oz leather I purchased from Tandy. I went and played my first game with it and it was great. I decided between games to dye the leather and bought some black dye from Tandy as well as some Atom Wax sealer. I cleaned off the surface of the leather and painted on the dye and let it dry until the leather was a hue I wanted. The next day I began to 'buff' on the wax using the sleeve of a clean cotton T-shirt. What I've been noticing is that the dye is coming out of the leather when I try and put the sealant on.

Did I do something wrong in the dying process? Is there something I can do to stop this from happening?

I've already got a coat of the sealant down over the whole piece and it looks okay. I went to put a second on and dye is still coming off. I'm afraid I can't put more dye on because of the sealant that's already there, but I dont want to lose anymore color sealing it with the Wax and I also don't want it to all run off the first time I'm wearing the armor in the rain.

Thanks ahead of time for your advice!

[HellfireJack]

You need to buff out any excess die to start with. Buff and buff until barely any die comes out and then buff it some more.

Then you'll want to seal it with something more waterproof. Leather Balm with Atom wax isn't very waterproof. I think it's more of a protector/conditioner than a sealant. I would suggest Acrylic Resolene. Saddle-lac or wyosheen.

Even when you apply the final finish some dye will come out but once it's dried and sealed it should be ok.

[TardiS]

should I buff, redye, buff redye repeat until I get the hue i want THEN apply the atom wax THEN the sealant?

Can I do this even though there's some atom wax already on it?

[HellfireJack]

If it were me I would deglaze it first then dye and buff to the hue you want then. I've never used resolene on top of leather balm with atom wax so I don't know what the results would be.

Some people use a mix of neetsfoot oil and beeswax as a final finish. Search the forums and you'll find the ratio. I think it's 1:1 by weight but don't quote me. This may be more along the lines of what you're trying for instead of resolene.