I Need Help About Dye ! Please ! Wallet Making

[Leprechaunleather]

Im making a little card wallet for my girlfriend, and ive oiled it with extra virgin olive oil , and have applied the dye , i used ox blood which is really nice but its very difficult to get a nice even coat .

if you guys have any tips on dying to get an even coat speak your mind please

BUT ! my main problem after an hour drying i started buffing with some white paper towel and it just keeps coming off , ! there doesnt seem to be any end to it coming off. Am i doing something wrong or do i just have to keep buffing ?

Did i leave it long enough to dry ?

and what is a good finish to put on a wallet ?

[Eccho]

I don't believe you should have put olive oil, or any kind of oil on first. The dye cannot penetrate the leather. There may be others, with more input. I don't think it can be salvaged but I am not sure. Good luck.

[Leprechaunleather]

i thought a lot of people here oil first then dye ....

[Chief31794]

I dye first, I've heard of others who oil first. The only way I would consider it is if I were using spirit dyes, never with water based dyes, I don't have any scientific data to support it but I don't see how water based stains or dyes like Fiebings Antiques would be able to penetrate the oil. I've never had a problem oiling after. To get dye as even as possible I usually wet the leather lightly with whatever base I'm using, Denatured Alcohol for spirit dyes and Distilled Water for Water Based Stains. Just my opinion, I could be wrong, that's happened before.

Chief

[Leprechaunleather]

the fiebings dye i used was spirit based , i am really confused as what i should be doing and as of how to stob the dye from coming off

[Eccho]

Here is a quote from a leather care specialist.

Although leather does indeed become a little suppler after applying olive oil, this instant gratification comes with a price. Olive oil, and every oily substance for that matter, will not "nourish" your leather, but actually accelerate its deterioration. Leather is extremely permeable, and will soak up any oils you put on it. When oil first saturates leather, it seeps to the back-to the part you can't see. Eventually, the oil ends up spreading throughout the leather and naturally resurfaces. Once this happens, your leather will have unsightly oil spots.

I suggest using this as a learning experience. Make a new piece, dye it, then use leather honey, or Ausie to soften it. Then your finish. IMHO

[Palermo]

The rubbing off is normal to most dyes.. I usually do what I call a mid coat then a top coat... A good way to get most of the rubbing off out is to buff it with tissue paper like the ones that are in gift bags. It absorbs a lot of the dry dye.

You should also try using carnuba cream but this will affect the over all color.. I usually make tests of dye strength + carnuba cream to achieve final color. It will take a few test strips and patience

[JoeSnuffie]

These are my steps

1. Dye with a piece of sponge that puts on a lot of dye and moves it all around for a nice and even coat.

2. Buff until barely any color comes off. I use 4"x4" pieces of old tshirts to buff.

3. If I used spirit dye and I don't mind the leather sometimes darkening I use Neetsfoot oil

4. When it soaks in and 'dries' on the surface, I buff again

5. Apply Kiwi Leather Lotion, let it soak in, dry, then buff.

I have gotten some unique effects by mixing dye with olive oil. You can get very controlled streaking, swirls, etc.

[minimal Oz]

I think most people do not oil before they dye the leather. what Eccho says really make sense.

don't be discouraged, we learn from mistakes and every expert comes from this way. try it again, I am sure do can achieve much better next time, and people will love your work.

[Leprechaunleather]

thanks for all your help guys !

[Toolingaround]

Hi there

Gotta add my 2 cents. I don't think your piece is ruined at all. I have oiled before or after, don't matter it is the sealer that counts. Dye rub off is normal. You could try a light rub with denatured alcohol to see if that cuts down the on the rub off but in my humble opinion dye rub off is going to happen to some extent until you have sealed the ittem well.

Resolene is an acrylic sealer that most folks aply 50/50 with water. I use it but don't like it much as it hard to get a non streaky coat. If I am doing something that must be waterproof like an eye patch so the person doesn't end up looking like the little rascal's dog. I use folk art or Ceramcoat acrylic sealers. Yes the cheep stuff from Walmart.

My favorite finishes are laquers. I use saddle lac sprayed on a piece of sheep wool and lightly and quickly rubbed on. Don't spray it directly on the piece. Clear lac would be better I just don't have any yet. Saddle lac will get fine cracks on areas that are flexed a lot. My advice is to look through the posts in saddle making. Those guys know how to finish things so the dye or antiquing doesn't rub off.

Tip: I get the best search results by going to google and typing leatherworker.net and what ever I want to find out about. For some reason I get better hits than the internal search.

There are so many cool ways to do things in leatherwork I love to read everyone's different opinions. Well there is some of mine.

Cheers Toolingaround

[camano ridge]

If properly applied oilis apropriate for leather. Though I normaly oil after dying, it won't hurt if you dye before. If you oiled and then dyed right away you did not give the oil a chance to migrate through the leather and even out. You may see some of the blotchiness fade as the oil has time to even out. Hopefully you only gave it a finger tip aplication and did not saturate the leather. As has already been said rub off is normal. Just rub the heck out of it until you stop getting rub off. Let the piece set a couple of days before sealing the color may even out to some extent as the oil migrates through the leather.

As to your question of getting an even coat the best way to do that is dip dye.

[Leprechaunleather]

What is the best sealant to use on a wallet ? any experience in using tan kote ? or caranuba creme ?