dbltlk44

Just wanted to post a follow-up... It's definitely something that can be done successfully, and I'm very, very happy with the color and finish. There is pretty much zero rub-off, so that is huge plus. I was going to top coat these, but I realized there wasn't much need to really. The ONE negative I will share, is the smell. I've been airing them out for a couple weeks now, and the scent of mineral spirits is still present, although quite diminished compared to freshly stained/dyed....but, only on the suede side. The dyed side has no smell at all really. Once I figure out the key to getting rid of the smell in a manageable time frame...I think I'll be golden. Otherwise.. I'm quite happy with how it turned out, and I wouldn't hesitate to use wood stain again!

Definitely works! I stained/dyed some chaps last weekend with Minwax oil stain in English Chestnut. The chaps were a buckskin tan/grey, and the English chestnut turned out a beautiful deep reddish-brown. It did NOT stiffen the leather at all, quite the opposite. I'll be conditioning soon though, after I'm confident they have gassed off enough. A couple caveats....the "paint thinner" smell takes a while to gas off, so I would leave whatever piece you stain/dye OUTDOORS for 3-4 days minimum. Maybe more, depending on your temps and airflow conditions. Since I did the 2 halves on different days, they have gassed off at a different rate...3 days on the 1st half, and the smell is just about totally gone, but the other half still had a bit of the smell. I expect the 2nd half will be ready to go tomorrow. When I buffed it out, the excess stain was sticky as hell...so I used ISO alcohol on the buffing rag and buffed away. Removed the sticky quite well. Also removed just a trace of color on the raised areas so gave it a little bit of the antiqued/worn in look (which I really like)..very, very happy with how they turned out, and I'd use oil stain again in a heartbeat.

Dwight, Sincerely appreciate it! This is the route I may well have to take. I definitely want a specific fit, and working off a known-good fitting piece would be ideal...just a little modification/adjustment for the lace up sides would be a breeze really. And yes, I'll definitely go with patch pockets instead of the conventional design, don't really use the pockets much anyway when I ride so might as well simplify construction. And, while I didn't work for Uncle Sam, I had a few pair of those fatigue pants years ago..good solid design. Even had a pair of OD's that were "field modified" to tiger stripe...wish I still had em, they were pretty cool. Excellent idea on the "starching", I'd never have thought to do that, but makes perfect sense. I will definitely share here when I get to putting them together, thanks for the great ideas Dwight!

Tks Aven, appreciate it...I'll check it out!

Appreciate the reply! I did scour Etsy, as well as a broad Google search...came up empty handed unfortunately.

Thank You so much!

Hello All! EDIT: I see this is probably in the wrong part of the forum! Sorry about that! Probably belongs in the clothing area. Longtime lurker and sometimes poster, and enjoying all the knowledge floating around here! I have a long shot question, and hopefully anyone here at makes leather clothing might be able to shed some light. I several pair of side lace-up, leather motorcycle pants that I wear quite often when riding, and I'd like to make a pair in some nice brown cowhide I acquired. I made several leather garments before in the distant past, so it's not completely out of my wheelhouse, and i have a pair that fits me just about perfectly to take measurements from...but, I cannot seem to find any kind of pattern for these type of pants! Not rocket surgery I know, and I'm sure I could (eventually) draft a pattern off the existing pants and/or modify a jeans pattern and make it work...but I'd love to find a premade pattern IF one actually exists! Anyway, thank You in advance for any and all info! And Happy Holidays all!

Second is application with a foam brush. I did maybe 2-3 wet coats, and was happily surprised that the color is quite close to the dipped color. Again, this is just rinsed but not oiled. I'm pretty confident that if I dipped longer, or applied more coats, it would be darker deeper brown, but as-is its exactly the color I need for my project! Serendipity. Anyway, thanks to all here that shared their knowledge and experimentation, it's given me a nice dye to work with! And at probably less than $1 for a quart in materials..I'm very pleased.

So, reading here inspired me to experiment a little bit with coffee as a dye. My mixture is composed of 3-4 cups of old French roast that I happened to save from several pots of morning brew. I also added to it by mixing up 1.5oz instant coffee in about 16oz hot water. To this brew I added a wad of #0000 steel wool, degreased via soaking in acetone and lighting it on fire. I also added probably 10-12 old nails and screws that I knew for sure would rust. I let it sit for maybe a week to let the rust form, then I tried 2 quick methods of application... 1.dipping for a few minutes, and 2.Applying it with a foam brush, like a normal leather dye. First, dipped for maybe 10min total, as you can see by the "witness lines", I dipped it a few time for a total of 10 min. This is after rinsing, no oiling.

Just signed up after perusing these forums for a few years, and finding a lot of useful information! I'm certainly not a seasoned leatherworker, and amateur would be a stretch right now...but, I used to be an avid buckskinner in another life and made my own leather clothing, accouterments, etc. So, working with leather isn't completely foreign to me, it's just been several decades since I've done anything at all really. Anyway, I look forward to being a part of this forum! Best wishes to All!