Dying leather

[jcuk]

Hello everyone

 

I am asking for some advice. My question is this:

With regards to dying vegetable tanned leather, which is the best dye to use which doesn't bleed onto clothing ( I want to make belts etc). If this is not possible which can seal the dye to stop the bleeding and how do i achieve this?

Another question, Tandy have on offer Oak leaf lightweight saddle skirting leather, has anyone used any of this and would you recommend it? https://www.tandyleather.eu/en/product/oak-leaf-lightweight-saddle-skirting-10-to-12-oz-4-0-to-4-8-mm

Look forward to your responses

Thanks in advance

JCUK

[sharkeyfinn]

hi jcuk, i have found the eco flow water based dyes pretty good, and the fiebings dyes are lovely,if a little bit messy, to seal colour, you can use a number of things, ecoflow super sheene, resoline, tancoat, to name a few, personally when doing belts, i leave the roughside natural and give it a good coat of neatsfoot oil, and the dyed side i use aussie leather balm, on 3-3.5mm veg tan ,the 2 together give the belt a loely supple feel, and as yet i havent had any complaints about bleed. 

regarding the tandy leather, personally i have found the identity store provide a nicer quality leather than tandy,thats not to say what your enquiring about isnt any good, just personal experience  hope this helps :-) 

[jcuk]

Sharkeyfinn thanks for the advice on dying I should have thought of not dying the flesh side of the leather.

Are oil based dyes better than water based dyes? -  dying leather not my strong point.

As for the for the leather i can go to Tandy Northampton and select the hides myself but if it get thumbs down here 

it will save me a 4 hour round trip.

Thanks for the advice on leather from Identity store i just thought they were a Tandy reseller.

 

[Nuttish]

You might try first lightly washing the surface with dilute oxalic acid to remove substances that might inhibit penetration. That will also wet it out (textile dyeing term) so that the first application of dye penetrates more evenly. I don't know if it will affect color of water based dye. It doesn't appear to affect alcohol based dye. 

Alternatively, wet out with distilled water using a soft watercolor brush then apply diluted dye with brush. Dilute with Everclear or distilled water. 

If you find spots that oxalic acid can't clean, test to see if xylene (similar solvent to old dry cleaning fluid) or naptha won't damage your leather and wipe very lightly with a soft rag. It will remove some wax and dirty fingerprints from unfinished tooling leather. It and oxalic acid are also occasionally good for cleaning dirty thread. YMMV. It will destroy finished and retanned leather. 

[sharkeyfinn]

18 hours ago, jcuk said:

Sharkeyfinn thanks for the advice on dying I should have thought of not dying the flesh side of the leather.

Are oil based dyes better than water based dyes? -  dying leather not my strong point.

As for the for the leather i can go to Tandy Northampton and select the hides myself but if it get thumbs down here 

it will save me a 4 hour round trip.

Thanks for the advice on leather from Identity store i just thought they were a Tandy reseller.

 

hey jcuk :-)  to be honest, i tend to use both, i use the fiebings for darker browns and the ecoflo for lighter ones, i tend to find the ecoflow better for belts as it seems to leave them more supple,also the less dye you use, the more supple the belt hence why i dont dye the flesh side, plus i feel it gives the belts that "real" leather look and feel,  however that might just be down to the finishing with neatsfoot and aussie leather balm, 

the identity store do sell tandy products but i think they get their leather from a different supplier ,ive never had any complaints with the leather i have had from them,i do a fair bit of carving,and the tandy leather doesnt seem to carve very well,dont get me wrong, im no tandy basher, ive just found the right place for what i do :-) 

[Matt S]

Potentially not the answer to exactly the question you asked, but I prefer to pay the tanner to do it. Dying is a messy process with a long wait between steps and I have never got as consistent as I would like. Dying a piece of russet veg is useful for those who have colour their leather, often to accentuate tooling or stamping. I do not, and the price difference is certainly worth it to me, even as a hobby. I get 3.5mm russet veg  shoulder at £4/foot (buffed back) and bridle shoulder between 6 and 8 usually. A belt is half a foot, so for a difference of £2 per belt I've saved an awful lot of hassle.

[jcuk]

Hi Sharkeyfinn i will wait for more response on the leather the before i buy have posted in leather section on here the right place for it so i

hope to get more feed back there. But i will be getting some Fiebing oil dye. Tandy are ok for people starting out in leather tools ( not the best either )and leather can be pricey every now and then they have some good offers.Which is why i am asking about the leather every time i have contacted them they have be really good.

Had some time in August so went to the store and again they were really good. 

I saw your Ranger belt on here good work.

 

all the best jcuk

 

[jcuk]

Hi Matt will do the the dying reply here hope you have read about the leather in the leather section.

Just want to widen my skill set with in the leather craft industry. Hopefully if i can get it right it will give me some more options. 

I saw that you just got yourself a BUSM no 6 let me know how you get on with it.

 

all the best jcuk

 

[jcuk]

Hi Nuttish

 

Thank you for getting back to me. Sorry wasn't being rude, had to keep reading your post as it goes right over my head! 

Dying isn't my strong point! I haven't heard of some of the products you have mentioned, I will Google them but my workspace is quite small and so i have to be careful of fumes. ( i have to shut the door now as its getting cold!) this side of the pond . But i am open to new methods so will take on board your advise .

 

 

all the best jcuk

PS DIFFERENT FONT WIFE TYPING