DYI: dying leather jacket?

[Peasant]

Anyone ever object dye a pair of boots / shoes? If so, what products would you recommend? Any tips? I have an older pair of boots that are smooth, brown leather. Not suede. Would like to dye them black or dark grey. I'm not overly emotionally attached so I'd like to try something on my own.

[vapidly]

Dying leather [i]properly[i/] yourself is a very bad idea. It is a very involved and toxic process. Costas (calibri) does not dye leathers and just works with textiles, which if you need something dyed, I highly recommend. However, for leather, going to a legit cobbler would work and I've also heard and saw good things from Angelos on 666 53rd street (google it). Or, if you know someone in fashion school, bribe them to either do it for you or sneak you in, but its probably not a good idea to do if you don't know what you're doing.

[Peasant]

Well, I appreciate the discouragement. I have no clue what I'm doing. Just thought I would throw them in some how water with black dye and cross my fingers. Have you ever dyed anything? I'd prefer to get these to a dark grey color instead of black, but the brown may make this impossible. Thanks.

[thehouseofdis]

Shoe Dyeing

Anyone ever object dye a pair of boots / shoes? If so, what products would you recommend? Any tips? I have an older pair of boots that are smooth, brown leather. Not suede. Would like to dye them black or dark grey. I'm not overly emotionally attached so I'd like to try something on my own.

I've dyed and painted leather shoes with good results in the past. Here's what I've done in the past to dye leather shoes:

• First wipe them down to remove any dirt or dust.
• Use masking tape to protect the sole if you don't want to dye it.
• Next use a rag and acetone to remove polish and open up the pores in the leather. Allow acetone to dry.
• Get a good quality leather dye: Lincoln, Fiebings, etc. and apply two even coats over the boot, allowing for time to dry in between coats. The shoes may have an weird sheen at this point.
• Finally, use your preferred black shoe polish to restore the finish of the boot. This should get rid of the sheen and give a nice even color.

[Chinorlz]

Dying leather [i]properly[i/] yourself is a very bad idea. It is a very involved and toxic process. Costas (calibri) does not dye leathers and just works with textiles, which if you need something dyed, I highly recommend. However, for leather, going to a legit cobbler would work and I've also heard and saw good things from Angelos on 666 53rd street (google it). Or, if you know someone in fashion school, bribe them to either do it for you or sneak you in, but its probably not a good idea to do if you don't know what you're doing.

It's not all that bad. Like Houseofdis mentioned, it can be done via usage of dyes like Feibings etc.

You can also vat dye using Procion dyes following this protocol:

http://www.prochemical.com/direction...DF/Leather.pdf

Definitely doable but it does take time and patience. I've learned the hard way never to shortcut on the times and steps for leather or for fabric when it comes to dying.

[vapidly]

Yeah its totally doable, but if its something you'd rather not botch or want done to a specific color, take it to a professional. If you want to get practice dying leather, get a shitty pair of boots or scrap leather and work on the process first, but I mean, they do give classes on doing this right and properly.

Interesting side note...semi on topic:
I had a pair of Burgundy/brown boots that were really comfy but wanted something a little darker. Instead of dying, I mixed some mink oil/shoe polish/organic conditioner together and coated it/set in sun/coated it/set in sun/coated it/set in sun, probably did this process at least ten times. I was really thrilled with the results. Not what I had originally intended, but still happy!
Picture:



They were much darker before wear, but the fading has stopped and these had been worn throughout winter, in the snow even! I was just curious to see what would happen through this process. I don't think i Have a before, but I can look.

[Peasant]

Thanks everyone. Doesn't sound all that bad. I don't think I'm ready for object-dying, but I'm going to try h.o.d's method. Will post results..

[Chinorlz]

Thanks everyone. Doesn't sound all that bad. I don't think I'm ready for object-dying, but I'm going to try h.o.d's method. Will post results..

purchase a bottle of Lexol leather conditioner and apply liberally after dyeing is complete. I've found Feibings and many other paint-on-dyes when combined with the other components of the treatment really dry the leather.

[Zenith]

Since nowhere I've checked will dye things for me, I'm thinking about dyeing a leather jacket myself. I am curious though, why would it be different to dyeing shoes? I understand there is a lot more material to cover, and uneven applications would show, but other than that is there any significant reason why you could not just "paint" the dye on and apply a sealant and creme?

[KM80]

I was thinking about it to and the one thing I was mostly worried about was being left with contrast stitching if the dye didn't take. happened on some T shirts I dyed which was fine, probably not as into it on a leather jacket though.

[ggrass]

Bump with question

Anyone had positive experience with dying really bright colors to black?
Found stunning incarnation jacket for like 600 usd, but color is deep and bright blue.

[Lohikaarme]

Bump with question

Anyone had positive experience with dying really bright colors to black?
Found stunning incarnation jacket for like 600 usd, but color is deep and bright blue.

Should be doable. Generally the rule is that it's possible to dye darker, but I'd go professional since I think they have little tricks to help the dye set in. Otherwise you'll probably get some sort of black-ish navy going on.