Wanting To Start But...

[a guy who sews]

what options do I have? I hate strong smells, etc Is there something natural I can use to take care of the leather that wouldn't smell or be a bad chemical?

[King's X]

Store your new leather in a closet and you will quickly find out that they have a very strong odor. You can go ala natural and use plain oil, but it might have a slight smell. I would suggest if you are going to continue in this craft that maybe you consider a breathing aparathus? Sorry.

[a guy who sews]

wow, that bad!

mmmm. will have to think about this long and hard.

[radar67]

Are you meaning to take care of the leather smell, or chemicals to dye and color the leather? Leather itself has a smell, personally I like the smell when I open my closet. If it is the chemicals to color the leather, there are many water based products you can use that do not have strong odors.

[a guy who sews]

yeah, that is what I meant, sorry wasn't clear.

the chemicals is what I am concerned about. Good to know about water based products...

[Glendon]

I have similar concerns. Not because the smell bothers me, but because I live in an apartment and don't want to disturb neighbors. You can get products such as Eco-Flo from Tandy and similar products from other leather suppliers. Water based dyes and adhesives are becoming much more common and easier to find. Many of the old hands don't like them as well as the more traditional oil based products, but they do get the job done.