How to do this beautiful dye project.

[cjartist]

Doing a quick search brought me to this page.  They even have a page dedicated to their dyeing proces, although it doesn't give away their secrets.

https://www.dalembert.com/

 

[NVLeatherWorx]

Kind of misleading in their story about how they came to be though; all of their items are actually made in Spain, they only do the dyeing, put their name on it, and sell it for a hefty price.  So, for everyone out there who thinks that your works can't garner a decent price, here is an example of exactly how the plainest (beauty in color aside of course) can fetch quite a price indeed.  Their process is not really much more than most of us have done, or even do right now, and there really isn't a science to it.  Basically, you find the color blend that you want by mixing and/or thinning basic colors and then add blends of waxes and oils to create the unique hue's as well as the effects that you get on the leather.  This is very much similar to the concept of block dyeing, just a little more Artsy is all.  The best thing to do would be to get yourself some various colors of dyes and then start creating your own blends and trying them out on scrap leather.  Start with the weakest formulation you can think of and then add a bit more base color to it until you get what you are looking for.  I have found, in the past, that if you want to give the finish a little finer hue you can rub the raw leather (grain side of course) with some beeswax (rub it in real good until it is all worked in) and then hit it with your base color.  You don't get as much dye absorbed into the leather and it gives you some really interesting results.  The best results come from natural veg-tan leathers as they have not been corrected in any way; the leather used for these items that were made in Spain has been corrected enough to remove any blemishes or abnormal cell appearances.

[cjartist]

I saw a Springfield Leather video the other day where they talked about mixing a conditioner with the dye.  The only thing I have mixed with dye has been thinner (alcohol or water based).  Do you have any insight on mixing dye with lexol or some other type of conditioner?

[NVLeatherWorx]

I actually blend my dyes (and Antiques) with Pure Neatsfoot Oil; it gives a more consistent coverage and also gives a bit of conditioning to the leather.  Lexol and other such items are primarily chemical based so their actual conditioning effect is minimal and their long-term impact has been known to cause issues over time.  Some here may attempt to dispute this but the writing is on the ingredients label; all you have to do is just read it and all becomes clear.  You can learn much about the various products that are available by researching their compound makeup and any available MSDS that may be available on the product or their ingredients.  Compounded conditioners are the worst thing that can be used on leather for its long-term stability.

I use only Fiebing's dyes and Antiques and I can tell you from experience that mixing them with Pure Neatsfoot Oil has been very successful for me and the outcomes that I desire.  As with all things though, try them on scrap leather first to make sure that you achieve what you are intending to.

[bikermutt07]

6 hours ago, NVLeatherWorx said:

I actually blend my dyes (and Antiques) with Pure Neatsfoot Oil; it gives a more consistent coverage and also gives a bit of conditioning to the leather.  Lexol and other such items are primarily chemical based so their actual conditioning effect is minimal and their long-term impact has been known to cause issues over time.  Some here may attempt to dispute this but the writing is on the ingredients label; all you have to do is just read it and all becomes clear.  You can learn much about the various products that are available by researching their compound makeup and any available MSDS that may be available on the product or their ingredients.  Compounded conditioners are the worst thing that can be used on leather for its long-term stability.

I use only Fiebing's dyes and Antiques and I can tell you from experience that mixing them with Pure Neatsfoot Oil has been very successful for me and the outcomes that I desire.  As with all things though, try them on scrap leather first to make sure that you achieve what you are intending to.

So, are you using the neatsfoot to dilute the dye or just adding a little to your dilution?

I'm gonna try that beeswax trick too.

[NVLeatherWorx]

I do it as a quasi dilution but it really is just to give the color a better chance of going on evenly (which we all know can sometimes be a chore if you are just dyeing it first).  I used to apply my Neatsfoot oil first (2 coats) and then apply my dye which gave the dye a deep rich color on the first application but the rub-off was much greater that way so I started blending it (30% oil/70% dye) and the results were just what I wanted without all of the excess rub-off.  The oil doesn't really dilute the dye it just blends right in.

[Sceaden]

On 1/29/2017 at 3:27 PM, NVLeatherWorx said:

I actually blend my dyes (and Antiques) with Pure Neatsfoot Oil; it gives a more consistent coverage and also gives a bit of conditioning to the leather.  Lexol and other such items are primarily chemical based so their actual conditioning effect is minimal and their long-term impact has been known to cause issues over time.  Some here may attempt to dispute this but the writing is on the ingredients label; all you have to do is just read it and all becomes clear.  You can learn much about the various products that are available by researching their compound makeup and any available MSDS that may be available on the product or their ingredients.  Compounded conditioners are the worst thing that can be used on leather for its long-term stability.

I use only Fiebing's dyes and Antiques and I can tell you from experience that mixing them with Pure Neatsfoot Oil has been very successful for me and the outcomes that I desire.  As with all things though, try them on scrap leather first to make sure that you achieve what you are intending to.

I'm guessing you are referring to Fiebing's Professional Oil Dyes or do you use their regular dyes?

[bikermutt07]

1 hour ago, NVLeatherWorx said:

I do it as a quasi dilution but it really is just to give the color a better chance of going on evenly (which we all know can sometimes be a chore if you are just dyeing it first).  I used to apply my Neatsfoot oil first (2 coats) and then apply my dye which gave the dye a deep rich color on the first application but the rub-off was much greater that way so I started blending it (30% oil/70% dye) and the results were just what I wanted without all of the excess rub-off.  The oil doesn't really dilute the dye it just blends right in.

Sorry, just not quite understanding. This mix is giving you color similar to the sample on the bottle?

No matter how I dilute it always is darker that the sample on the bottle.

[NVLeatherWorx]

23 hours ago, Sceaden said:

I'm guessing you are referring to Fiebing's Professional Oil Dyes or do you use their regular dyes?

I do use the Pro Oil Dyes, the standard spirit dyes are way too harsh for full cover dyeing but they can be thinned out if necessary.  The Pro Oil dyes really have very little oil content in them so I end up making a blend that has the consistency of what the new Tandy Eco-Flo Pro Oil Dyes has; I did it long before they even thought about though.

[NVLeatherWorx]

23 hours ago, bikermutt07 said:

Sorry, just not quite understanding. This mix is giving you color similar to the sample on the bottle?

No matter how I dilute it always is darker that the sample on the bottle.

To get the true color of a dyed object you need to let the application dry, entirely, before doing anything else.  In most cases the best thing to do is let it dry overnight (24 hours is recommended) and then you should have a true color.  One of the most common mistakes that I have seen people make over the years was to saturate their leather (well beyond where you would be if you had cased it too much) and when the leather dries the colors are super dark; just add an even application and let dry fully is all you need to do.  If you would like a darker tone at that time then add another application and let it dry fully again.  Diluting dyes is great is you are using an airbrush system but it isn't necessary if applying by hand and, when applying by hand, use a wool dauber and apply in overlapping circular motion (this is recommended by the manufacturer and has also been the trained way every since this trade became a hobby option way back in the day).  I wash all of my daubers (when new) to get all of the extra wool fuzz off of them which helps to tighten the fibers up as well so the circular application doesn't look as streaky as it sometimes can.

All the oil does is help give a more complete coverage appearance.