Ostrich - How To Prevent Dye From Bleeding Into Edge

[PAMuzzle]

I have made a holster and am using ostrich bonded to veg tan leather. When dyeing the edge, I touched the edge of the ostrich and it started to bleed further into the leather. Luckily I was able to sand the edge a little further to remove it.

What should I do to prevent this? The ostrich is cognac colored and I am trying to do a medium/dark brown edge.

Thanks to anyone who can help.

[Ed in Tx]

I have had that happen to me as well. What I started doing was to dye the veg tan before I glue the ostrich on top of it. Just make sure you get good penetration of the dye because you will lose some of the color when you sand and burnish the edges. I also use edge finish after burnishing, Fiebing's Edge Finish is a lot thicker than regular dye and doesn't seem to run as much in my experience. I use Q-Tips to apply the edge finish, they are a pain but much smaller than even the smallest daubers.