Mike1261 Report post Posted August 30, 2019 Hi folks I use Chahin's Chestnut color leather strap for my leatherwork and I'm trying to make my edges look better. I've concluded that dying the edges to match the top surface is what I'm missing in my process. Does anyone know the best way to match this color? Or how I'd figure it out? So far, Angelus "Tan" dye is quite close. At a glance you'd say it's dead on, but with some quick scrutiny you can see there's too much red or pink tone to it. I've tried mixing with Neutral (dilute), English Tan, and Bismark Brown, and all the colors end up too red or burgundy. My goal is to have the top surface almost seemlessly blend into the sides with a bevel on the edges. I've got some pieces that look great this way with no dye at all, but then other pieces have a lot of lighter fibers visible that makes the edges look unrefined. The dye corrects this, but it needs to be a better match. Ideas? Suggestions? Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
wizard of tragacanth Report post Posted August 31, 2019 Sometimes burnishing the edges darkens them, but not always. Would be worth experimenting if you haven't already. Could you use edge paint? nick Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
rleather Report post Posted August 31, 2019 Do you have pic's so we might get an idea of the color. Where are you at in Fl.? Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Mike1261 Report post Posted September 2, 2019 (edited) On 8/31/2019 at 2:46 AM, wizard of tragacanth said: Sometimes burnishing the edges darkens them, but not always. Would be worth experimenting if you haven't already. Could you use edge paint? nick I've been burnishing without dying because it's a drum dyed leather, and it's hit or miss. Sometimes the entire edge is beautiful and blends nicely from the top surface into the edges and is very seamless. Other times, lighter fibers from the leather show up at the surface and it has a very ratty look. It certainly does darken with burnishing, but so do the darker fibers around it. I'm trying to smooth out that appearance. Especially when taking photos, it's almost like a stripe down the edge of the bracelet of light colored fibers. It's less than ideal. I can't use edge paint as I'm looking for a very specific appearance. Basically if the edge could vanish and become one with the top surface would be ideal. A seamless transition around the entire bracelet. Edited September 2, 2019 by Mike1261 Typo Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Mike1261 Report post Posted September 2, 2019 (edited) On 8/31/2019 at 3:37 PM, rleather said: Do you have pic's so we might get an idea of the color. Where are you at in Fl.? I'm in SW Orlando. Pics are attached. Very hard to get good accurate photos of the color. It's a rich brown with a red tone to it. I can get "close" but either it's too brown and not enough red, or the red tone has more of a pink or burgundy hue to it that stands out from the more orangey hue that the leather has. If I go with Angelus "Tan" with no dilution, it looks close, until you realize the edge has more of a pink-red than an orange-red tone. If I go with "English Tan" it's too brown. If I mix English Tan with Tan then it's too dark and still trending the wrong tone of red. If I dilute them heavily, it doesn't create enough opacity in the leather and makes the pink-red even more prevalent. I just ordered almost every brown that Angelus makes and I'm hoping I can get some combination to come close. There's also furniture leather places that will color-match dye for sofas, and I can then dilute the color so it doesn't over-darken with burnishing. But I'm not sure if it's the right kind of dye, I see mention of Urethane a lot and I don't know if that would preclude me from being able to burnish after dying. I went with a drum-dyed leather hoping to avoid having to dye, but the penetration of the drum dye falls short. The quality of the leather is exactly what I'm looking for, the texture and the color are perfect. I just can't seem to make the edges as seamless as I wanted. Edited September 2, 2019 by Mike1261 Higher Quality Pics Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
rleather Report post Posted September 2, 2019 Hi Mike, I'm over in the Ocala area, stay safe the next couple days, you will get more of the storm than over here. I have used Fiebing's saddle tan dye that seems to be pretty close to what you have in the pic's. It will take a few coats to get that shade. Might be worth trying on a piece of scrap. Good luck. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Mike1261 Report post Posted September 3, 2019 21 hours ago, rleather said: Hi Mike, I'm over in the Ocala area, stay safe the next couple days, you will get more of the storm than over here. I have used Fiebing's saddle tan dye that seems to be pretty close to what you have in the pic's. It will take a few coats to get that shade. Might be worth trying on a piece of scrap. Good luck. Thanks you too! Seems to be reduced to a Cat 2 now and mostly off the coast, but man the Bahamas got decimated! :-( I was eyeing the Saddle Tan, I'll pick one up at Tandy when they're open again! Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Mike1261 Report post Posted September 4, 2019 Figured it out! Went to buy Saddle Tan at Tandy and looked at their leather swatches with the colors. Fiebings Pro Dye Mahogany is extremely close, and to do the edges to create a nice uniform burnish, I dilute 1ml of clear dilutant to 2 drops of mahogany. Looks as close a match as I could ever imagine! Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
