Do I have to deglaze veg tan and/or harness leather?

[LAPat]

First of all, I can't tell you how much I appreciate this forum and Art for turning me on to it.

I am a dog trainer who started out making real fur dog toys for competition dogs and then started making split braided leashes. I spent years working without a machine since this was a part time thing and made everything with split braiding and some rudimentary pattern tooling, which worked then. Then I got a Singer 500 and started sewing a few toys, but with a lot of struggle because the Singer, which is a great machine, was really being asked to do something she wasn't meant for. However, for someone who is doing this the hard way, I sell a fair amount of real fur toys to the "fancy."

I just bought a Pfaff 545 and so far I am thrilled with what it has done for my ability to turn out product.

I am also trained in fine art and did a lot of oil painting years ago, which I much prefer to acrylic.

Now I am at the point where I want to add color to my leashes and paint detail as well, whether or not I tool them. In the beginning I was lucky to find some brightly colored shoe leather which I am running out of, with hues like orange, yellow, baby blue, red and turquoise. But the leather is not all that soft and really only works if I braid it with a latigo or veg tan.

I also only recently started bevelling edges and just bought my first side of harness leather.

I will try to keep the questions simple.

Do I have to deglaze veg tan and/or harness leather?

Is there a homemade or simple deglazer that is not a commercially prepared product?

For a one-off projuect I bought some nu-life color spray and it tested very well on the veg tan. Is this an acceptable product? (I would not use it regularly due to cost of course)? Can I use it on the comparatively waxy/oily harness leather without deglazing it?

Is there a way to use an airbrush for dying leather?

I have some basic colors in a Tandy dye but I am trying to keep things simple and not put too much time in any one leash. I don't intend to edge dye because of the split braiding but will do the back of course. I don't even know if I should slick the back before I dye it...

I see a lot of natural hues in leatherwork but not alot of bright color outside of commercially manufactured shoes and handbags etc. Any links or other sources of info?

Thank you so much in advance. I can't give back much info to the list because I know so little, except about dog training...

Best

LAPAT

[abn]

LAPat,

I doubt I can answer all of your questions, but I'll try to help out.

First, regarding your questions on deglazer, I've never had the need to use this product. I think it's normally used to strip a finish, and I hear that it's really toxic stuff. If you're just interested in prepping a veg tan surface to accept dye, I think you can get away with a light rubbing of denatured alcohol to extract any surface oils.

Regarding your questions on leather colors, I haven't used the special color spray you mention, but if your testing shows it's a reliable and durable finish, I don't see any reason not to use it. My only concern would be to make sure it doesn't seal off the leather so much that it won't accept a conditioner, like Lexol. If you're looking for other finishes that are quick and easy, as you mention, I'd recommend Tandy's Eco-Flo All-In-One Stain & Finish. It's very easy to apply and comes in some pretty vibrant colors, including pink, red, green, purple and blue.

Finally, I know that several folks here use air brushes to apply leather dye. So, it's definitely possible, but I'm not sure what goes into it. Maybe they'll add their two cents here.

I hope this information gives you a start!

Regards, -Alex