Bring back old antique leather to life

[chrisash]

You find lots of old veg tan leather items from Gladstone bags to briefcases etc with leather well dried out and past its useful purpose in its present state

Everyone seems to have made their own specialised miracle balm, conditioner, oil etc to bring things miraculously back to life, and the experts seem to do multiple actions using special creams, oils et that they never tell you what they actually are

So my question is if you find a item that is veg tan and considered beyond all hope of reviving (well nearly) what would you use and what process

 

[jimi]

Saddle soap works well Chris. I am using at the moment 1 part olive oil virgen extra and 4 parts beeswax and it is working fine for me. Just use a cloth or rub in by hand.

 

[paloma]

7 hours ago, chrisash said:

You find lots of old veg tan leather items from Gladstone bags to briefcases etc with leather well dried out and past its useful purpose in its present state

Everyone seems to have made their own specialised miracle balm, conditioner, oil etc to bring things miraculously back to life, and the experts seem to do multiple actions using special creams, oils et that they never tell you what they actually are

So my question is if you find a item that is veg tan and considered beyond all hope of reviving (well nearly) what would you use and what process

 

It makes sense. It's their business.

in my case i make my balm with very simple and basic products;  neastfoot oil,beeswax,carnuba and some tears of the clove tree oil ( to avoid bacteria and mushrooms) for the quantity of each it's : one spoon- five spoons-hal spoon-5 drops.prepare in a not too much hotI water bath.

Edited May 11, 2019 by paloma

[chrisash]

Hi

I think i was looking more at how you start to reactivate the old crinkled leather that may be breaking up at the edges, rather than just adding  say NFO or balm plus more good commercial refreshers than home made

[johnv474]

Look up British Museum Leather Dressing and look up leather conservation techniques.  Some of what you'll find out is unfortunate (no miracle balm), but you can always do something.  Expectations just need to be realistic.