Suede - Stop The Bleeding

[traice]

Thank you for your help . Is there anyway you know of to get rid of the extra dye on the outside of the gloves . As they are, black residue is left on everything I touch while wearing them. I got them for a special event and can not afford to replace them.I'm no fashion snob , but the suede gloves and shoes make the dress, and it is such an important night for me I've spent months putting together this outfit on a small budget. I just can't go around leaving black marks on every hand i shake.

[NVLeatherWorx]

You could try a piece of old denim; wet it up a bit (not too much) and then wipe them down a bit if you can.  Try this while wearing them and see how much, if any, residue that you can pull off from the leather.  You can also try giving them a good brush down with a stiff bristle brush (like a scrub brush or firm fingernail brush) and get all of that excess fiber that is hanging around among the rest of them; that sometimes helps a lot to cut down on the leftovers.  Like I indicated earlier, suede is an animal all unto itself and there are a different set of rules for it.  One of the biggest reasons that suede isn't used much is because the looseness of the fibers allows for all of the dirt and oils that come from the environment and hands/skin to get trapped in the fibers which then turns into slick spots (ever noticed the "wear" spots on old suede shoes or jackets? It isn't wear, it is dirt and oils that can't come out) and can also lead to potentially making everything else it touches dirty and grimy as well.  

Give the two methods above a try and see if it helps.  Good luck and hope you have a great special event.

[Desiree1]

I've just dyed my first pair of suede shoes and was looking up how to seal them. My joy is sinking fast as I realise how difficult it will be to not have colour transfer. They are a bright Teal. I've also dyed my suede handbag the same colour. Question: I have a can of Joseph Lyddy Camping and outdoor waterproofer. Could I use this to seal the suede shoes and bag? The can says it's for lightweight canvas fabric, synthetics, and leather but does not mention suede. But stranger things have happened so..... Has anyone used this to seal suede effectively? 

[Stag352]

Well, just stumbled upon this thread, and I must say, this is disconcerting.  I just dyed a pair of suede military boots using Angelus Suede Dye (as opposed to their regular dye for smooth leathers).  Had to mix and match, but the color came out great.  At least, for now... the realization that "suede dye" is not guaranteed to NOT run has me wondering.  Now, I have had experience ironing suede or nubuck leather boots (these were Civil War reenactor's boots, reproductions of the 1859 pattern) with a regular clothes iron, the effect of which was to smooth out the suede til it's close to just regular, smooth leather.  The heat of the iron also locked the dye into the leather, so that even when worn in stormy weather, very little dye soaked the wearer's socks.  I realize this idea is not feasible for finer suede/nubuck items, especially if they are any color other than black... my recent boot project was to get them to a color today's army calls "foliage green", so it doesn't even work for me in this instance.  Still, the idea that applying a hot iron to black suede smooths it out and locks in the black dye might be helpful to someone out there.  

There is another idea I'm considering: it's more important to me that the boots don't run, at least not perceptibly, than it is to retain the fuzzy suede look.  So with that in mind, I may just go over the green suede with a clear shoe polish, and really work it into the leather, buffing it off after.  True, I'll lose the cool fuzziness, but at least the leather will no longer bleed all over the place, and I'll retain the color I wanted... even better than before, actually, since suede scuffs and discolors faster than smooth leathers in my experience.

Gil