Comparing Leather Dye Types and Techniques!
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- Опубліковано 1 жов 2024
- We use leather dye in almost every leathercrafting video, but we've never explored the different types of dye or the techniques of applying it! Today we go back to basics and level up our knowledge of leather dye!
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As a Tandy Leather employee, thank you for doing the Lord’s work.
Yo Tandy is amazing. I moved away from my old store, I still order from them anytime I need anything. They are some of the nicest people
Sadly, this may be the most recognition he gets on that front.
@@AustinB1024 Tandy IS awesome. I love my job! This is the best breakdown of all the different dyes we sell that I have seen, and I am very excited to be able to point people to this video.
@@dawsonehlke1290 send the video to corporate. Get him a sponsor.
@@zedzknight Already did. Here’s hoping!
This is the video that every leather workers wanted when they first got started. Thank you sir from me and on behalf of all the future generations of leather workers.
Hey leather worker, can you help me out? I have brand new baseballs I want to look used for a craft project. Tips?
Great video! Couple comments as I've been testing a ton of different application techniques too:
- My #1 tip: prep your leather before dyeing by dampening and lightly burnishing the surface with a wood or glass burnisher. This is AMAZING - it tightens the grain, resulting in way smoother dyeing, and makes the leather really pliable and smooth - I'm obsessed with the feel of the leather after doing this and it also helps with tooling, makes cuts much more crisp . Don't overdo it though or it will glaze up and seal the surface (good for undyed!). You may want to lightly oil your leather before all of this if it seems pretty dry, especially since the alcohol-based dye will further dry it out.
- You should press your application tool on scrap leather or a rag after soaking it in dye to remove excess or pooling on your piece. Also, I think my favorite application tool is a rolled up cotton rag. Dip it, then press it on a piece of scrap leather or other rag to remove excess and then apply in circular motions. Most even application I've found (and an old fashioned method). Also, land your applicator away from the edge so you don't get pooling near the edges - my earlier experiments always had darker stains around the border
- Dilute your dye. This helps tweak colors and apply it more evenly. Probably the most optional of all my findings.
- Rehydrate your leather - apply oil after 24h of drying and buff heavily. Then put your top coat on.
Would love to see an exploration of aging/patina techniques!
Previous Tandy employee here, it is SO NICE to see this info out there. There’s a lot of misinformation that makes its way around, so I appreciate your thorough demo, and all of the good useful info you’ve shared here.
Another fantastic thing about the Fiebings Pro Dye is that it is a set pigment. You can add as many coats as you want and it won’t darken beyond what it is supposed to be. Which is super nice for when you are trying to match colors between pieces.
Hello im making my first leather piece and stumbled on this just now. Does what you said carry over all of their colours? No matter the colour i buy and the amount of layers it will always be consistent?
@@meki8216 that has been my experience with them! Brown and black have done that for sure. The red was slightly more variable. Haven’t branched too far behind those.
A few tricks we use at Seraphic Wood and Steel regarding leather dyes. if you want to do more detailed work with dyes, use a brush instead of a dauber, you can also use alcohol markers. I also use leather dyes to dye wood (I use this often for my guitars). alcohol based dyes can be cut with denatured alcohol especially useful to get blended grades.
Along the lines of the baking soda, you can make iron acetate by putting steel wool in vinegar until it dissolves, and use that to dye leather. It's a common technique for "ebonizing" wood, and works by reacting with the tannins in the woods. Since leather is also full of tannins (hence "tanning" in veg-tan), it also works here. It gives an interesting blackening effect that doesn't rub off, since it's a chemical reaction in the material rather than a pigment.
Question on the Iron. When I have used Iron mordants on wool, the hand of the fiber is noticeably harsher and the wool tends to be quite brittle. Does it have a similar effect on leather since both are protein?
@@karladenton5034 I've only wiped it on the surface, and it didn't seem to get too bad. I imagine if you soaked it (either applying a lot, or submerging it) it could get brittle. I know some people have also suggested washing it with water or even a light baking soda solution to rinse out or neutralize the acid. I'd suggest testing on a cutoff before applying it to a full project.
@@PKDoesStuff Thanks, I'm pretty confident with natural dyes on fibers, but am totally a beginner with leather.
fiebing's leather dye does not ship to California anymore.. anyone want to ship me some burgundy?
Make a dark oil for finish that is darker than natural oil. Add Fiebings oil brown to a container of Neatsfoot oil. This will give you a color that is like plain leather that is oiled and has been exposed to the sun for a long time. Fiebings use to sell a dark oil 20 years ago. I learned this from a saddle maker 25 years ago.
what ratio of dye to oil if i may ask?
@@mkuhnactual It is like putting pigment in to paint. Just add until you get the desired color. They use to sell a light brown and dark brown oil. Leather will darken if you put it on the dash while parked in the sun. None of it will be as dark as just applying stain.
I love love love the result of the less baking soda solution (shown at 9:00 ) after you uncurl it, the flex marks? It looks like bark. Really cool. This whole video was great. I love that you don't discount any technique, depending on the results you want, they all work. That all said, I hope you replaced your wife's mister. Happy wife, happy life.
I have been doing leatherwork for 25 years and I have to say this is probably the most helpful and informative video on dyeing that I've ever seen.
Can you possibly talk about different finishes and or waterproofing you can do after dying? This is a topic that doesn’t seem to be touched much.
Yes please!
Over the years, I have found that water based dye stiffens the leather. Fiebings Aussie Condition is about the only thing I have found to make the veg tanned leather bend easily again. A long process. Fiebings Pro Dye does not have that problem. Just condition with leather balm after. No stiff leather.
Quick tip, for the leather crafter that doesn't have access to a Fiebling's distributor (Tandy) or that mail order is too expensive for. Try a Sharpie. It works very well for small projects, like pouches or phone cases. One of my first projects was dyed solely with a black sharpie. It was a belt pouch for my wallet so I didn't have it in my back pocket all the time while driving a truck. That was about 10 years ago. I still wear the pouch, and it still looks as good as the day I made it. Olive oil will work as a leather conditioner if you don't have access to other oils made specifically for leather. Just work it in and wipe off the excess.
Don't bother with metallic Sharpies for leather. They rub off badly and do other odd things even with a top coat.
Would love more of these crafting mythbusters type episodes!
This is amazing timing. I just created my own leather balm balm. 1/3 beeswax 2/3 neatsfoot oil. It shines, protects and makes everything awesome!
That mix makes a lot of sense. I'll have to file it away to give it a go.
I use a more 60/40 mix but it is an awesome balm!!
I did the same, but also did another mix with 2/3 neatsfoot oil, 1/6 beeswax, and1/6 carnuba wax. Both worked great, but the mix with carnuba wax was a bit more solid and shined up a little better. In both cases, I heated the leather slightly with a heat gun, to help it penetrate.
i recently tested with rit dye. luke warm water, not super hot. soaked over night. black rit dye turned my leather a deep dark purple and then after oiling it, it looks almost black.
in fact i left a picture on the discord of a belt i made using that same leather as keepers. ive also used purple (eggplant) rit dye and its very vibrant after applying a conditioner
rit?
@@LadyVineXIII fabric dye. The liquid is super concentrated and only a few dollars per container. It gets mixed with water and is used for fabric dying but it works well on large pieces of leather as well
@@M4st3r0fN0n3 Good hack to know. Thank you.
FYI... dont use reducer!! Use denatured alcohol (stove fuel) instead. it does the same thing, but MUCH CHEAPER. I wouldnt use isopropyl as it generally is diluted with water. Most dye additives with a brand name (i.e. Tandy) are way over priced for something that is commonly available, and it wont take much to find the base product (like denatured alcohol)
I put mine on a stove fuel bottle, and use it for leather when I am home, and stove fuel when I am camping.
So what about sealers and conditioners? Is there a way to bring the suppleness back to those crispier leathers?
You should be able to get some of the suppleness back by applying oil (mink or neatsfoot) or conditioner to the leather after dying. Though, like he showed, applying the oil first gives even coverage and keeps it from getting crispy, so that's probably a better plan.
And now Clever is sleeping on the couch....
'
Rule #1
Thou shall not steal thou wife's things to permanently render useless for wife's intended purpose
Rule #2
If thou violates Rule# 1 thou shall sleep upon the couch for a time designated by said wife
LOL, she HAS shot him before (see the LARP arrows vid).......
I am now curious. What about boiling beets and using the liquid OR using beet paste? Beets have historically been used as a natural vegetable based dye. Also, what about leather cleaners and conditioners? I posted what I use, but I'm curious what others have recommended and how well they work. EDIT: The Fiebings along with similar dyes benefit from a good conditioning after they dry. The crispiness will come right out. Won't save you from that chemical burn that the baking soda did though.
I have 2 question, First did you have to thin your dye out when you used your mister. And what did you use to clean out the mister if you change colors
I've done application using an air rig to dye a cloak made of upholstery leather. Fiebing's Pro-dye in a 50/50 Kelly green and black. The 1 oz. hobby airbrush kept running out too fast, but gave an interesting mottling similar to the camo from star Wars 6. The larger 2-cup paint spray rig gave a smoother finish. Both gave a lot of overspray. If you try this you need full face PPE! I had dye on my glasses that won't come off, and my filter mask was green afterwards. I still was inhaling some of the dye. Be safe.
Holy shit! So much work went into this video. Thank you so much.
wow!! I really love that video!! The experimentations and results you have here are precious! I would really love to see the same kind of video but with the different top coat products and see which one is more resistant! :D
Yes please. More deep dives. Compare, contrast, play and experiment please!
Notie SQUAAAAAAAADDDD.
good thing i have discord notifications on. youtubes hasnt come through yet
worst part of youtube - you cannot like something multiple times xD
deep diving on theory of a technique you do casually: like
actually using logic in your experiments: like
presenting your results in a neutral way (there are no wrong ways, it depends on your goal to achieve): like
being an enthusiastic craftsmen: like
gaining and sharing insight on subjects: like
going back to basics as a pro: like
i definetly forgot some "likes" in there but it really hits home to see you going over such trivial things just to learn new ways :D
And now i'm out to do some projects!
Thanks for your continued inspiration (and advise) :)
New category idea - if you don't have it already: Alchemy. This would fall under both skill categories. You're not practicing straight up Chemistry, but the way you're using the dyes falls under the definition of Alchemy concerning the transformation and manipulation of a material's properties. The color change, altered stiffness and texture.
All Alchemy can be explained with the Chemistry and Physics, but is accomplished without the knowledge or deliberate application of either. Like the backyard Blacksmith adjusting the carbon content of their steele through experience rather than sophisticated machines and a bunch of Maths.
For the more diluted baking soda soaked piece, the flexing streaks on it also kind of look like weathering too, so that's a really good way to get some weathering on the project too
Any chance we can get a link to that mister bottle you snagged from your wife lol
Absolutely! www.amazon.com/Flairosol-Continuous-Infinity-Spritzer-Sprayers/dp/B07TZNBKL4/ref=asc_df_B07TZNBKL4/?tag=hyprod-20&linkCode=df0&hvadid=385344870621&hvpos=&hvnetw=g&hvrand=10145776705104576370&hvpone=&hvptwo=&hvqmt=&hvdev=m&hvdvcmdl=&hvlocint=&hvlocphy=9001774&hvtargid=pla-806977939121&psc=1&tag=&ref=&adgrpid=87036378148&hvpone=&hvptwo=&hvadid=385344870621&hvpos=&hvnetw=g&hvrand=10145776705104576370&hvqmt=&hvdev=m&hvdvcmdl=&hvlocint=&hvlocphy=9001774&hvtargid=pla-806977939121
this is really helpful my brother and I just got a leather kit to make some armor, so knowing these dyeing methods is good
Now I want to ruin my mister that I use for painting watercolor so I can get an even coat on my leather purse I’m about to dye!
One thing to note a out the ecoflow waterstain. Some colors do not apply well or evenly at all no matter what you do. Turquoise is the prime example. Just don't with that color
super helpful video!!! i only recently got into leatherworking, and the fiebing's dye was my go to as well. i always noticed it left it crispier than i liked lol and tried the eco flo water dye and that was better but still kinda streaky so i definitely will be checking out the pro dye!!!!
I liked it and each technique has it's own effect and purpose for different looks so great job really informative
Might I recommend using tea to dye leather
One thing you can do to keep the leather from curling during the drying process is to put it on a cookie rack which will cause it to dry evenly .... on a flat surface the skin of the leather dries first so it tightens with the flesh side still being wet ... leather shrinks wen it dries
I love this! Thank you
Question. I have a 25-year-old Natuzzi plum colored leather sofa. My wife wants to change the color to brown. I am an experience commercial painter and have access to spray equipment. What stain do I want to do to the Tuesday leather sofas with. Thank you for your channel.
Ooooh. This is tricky. First, you would need to remove the protective topcoat. Then, the original color would have to eithe be just on the surface or able to be over taken by the new color. Not impossible but tricky for sure
This covered a lot more bases than I expected it to. +1 subscriber for you, you've earned it. I'm totally stealing that salad mister idea and the baking soda one. I like the idea of caustic coloring to ensure the piece won't bleed color onto other surfaces in use.
"Fiebing" would be pronounced fee- (like pee) -bing. The ie sounds in German usually like ee. Hope this helps! Btw, just discovered your channel, and I'm binge watching and learning ❤ thanks!
Great Video! Really interesting to see the differences and for the large part similarities of the dyes and the ways to apply them. And I’m probably going to use oil on my leather before using the oil dye next time.
Just started using that same mister and it is a life changer! THANKS FOR THE IDEA!!!!
I’m watching this as I prepare to strip and revolve a pair of boots with fiebings regular dye and I now know I need to pretreat with neatsfoot oil. Thank you sir 🫡
When are you going to do marble and bubble dye? Great vid!
Not to add more work but does applying a waterproofing agent or bees wax alter the results?
For sure! Both would make it so very little dye stays on the leather. That's how an antique tends to work. You seal the leather first then add the antique. All the parts that aren't sealed or ar deeper (like you get with tooling) will hold on to the dye. The rest just wipes away with very little color change.
Eyyy this was great! The dauber with the baking soda was really interesting and im SO buying one of those misting cans
The shield is up on Discord and this weekend I'll finish it with the leather addings. Handle wrapping, carrying strap and because it dose have some weight to it, an arm strap for stability. Even I can't wait to see the finished product. 🛡🙂
Thanks for this video. I have watch so many videos on this subject, and none seem to go as deep as you did. Every question I had while watching this video, you went right into answering it. So you also leveled up your telepathy skill.
Another note, Fiebings alcohol dyes are meant to be diluted with alcohol before application. I normally do 3:1.
What kind of alcohol
I saw a tutorial about burning the hell out of thg he dobber clean off the char and that puts down the dye better
I've done this, burning gets rid of the peach fuzz on the dobber
Not first but I beat Nora
So I have a dying question, I have old pouches which are brown and I would like to dye black. I have heard so many different ways on how to do it. What would you recommend ? Do I sand the leather with fine grit to get rid of the sealant? Do I just dye over the old dye since I am going darker ?? Any help please.
Ooooh. Ok, first keep in mind that, depending on the process used or the type of leather, it just may not come out right. For example, if it is a chrome tanned leather. But, yes, I would hit it with sandpaper to take down the protective coat first. Next, a bit of oil to open the pores back up, then add you new dye. Let me know how it turns out!
@@SkillTree will do… I know you have been into larping and for the less skilled old army ammo pouches work nicely, but the leather is usually off colors. I will take some before and after pictures. Slowly leveling up :)
very cool. thank you. love these kinds of videos.
First
Excellent video and extremely topical for my current project. I'm making one of Dieselpunk's Dragon masks and wanted to try to blend colors together in an ombre effect. Your using the spray bottle saved me from even bothering with that one. I already own a Preval Sprayer and was leaning towards that, but the mister looked interesting, with less cleanup, assuming you can store dyes long term in one. Thanks again, your enthusiasm is wonderful also.
I loved this video. Been leatherworking for a year but never really experimented, just stuck with what works.
Thanks for doing this, that bicarbonate trick seems a great way to antique leather
You can also use Kool-Aid concentrate to dye leather! plus it will smell like whatever flavor you choose
This video is so comprehensive for someone trying to figure out how to dye for the first time. Honestly, just stellar job.
I was surprised to see angelus wasn't one of the dyes tested, they have like 30 different dye color's for both leather & suede
What a great video, clever!
does this work for faux leather?
Exactly what I needed for my next level up. Thank you!
You should now do a finishing test with the pieces you just dyed. The problem with any waterbased dyes is that it will come off in humidity or handling. You have to seal the 'dye' into the leather. All dyes will shed excess color. What is the best way to keep that from happening without stiffening the leather? Leather balm? Bick 4? Carnuba Cream? Leather milk? Neatsfoot Oil? Mink Oil? Resolene? Clear coat?
Hi everyone! I wanted to dye my saddles piping red, the piping is a cream color now. I’m hoping to use a dye that doesn’t soak and Melt into my breeches or the rest of my saddle when it rains, or I ride for a long time and sweat. Reccomendedations? This would be my first time ever dying leather.
The information and content was very good but …….. listening to the exaggerated inflection of his voice was a HUGH annoyance. I was constantly adjusting my speaker volume to try and overcome his fluctuating pitch. Great content but horrible presentation!
I've been searching and searching & can't find what I'm lookin for. I'm hoping you can help! I'm using Chamois for projects in one of my classes, but, instead of just having a light blue & tan I wanted to dye it. I know chamois is super soft, would using rit dye or any of these dyes you used in this video make the chamois hard, or bleed if it ever git wet? I have absolutely no experience with hand dying or leathers. Lol but I'm all about the experiment!
Fiebings looks like it's an originally German name, and the German pronounciation would be the one with a vowel like in "Eagle", and not the one with the vowel like in "fire".
But on the other hand, it's an american company, so why pronounce it the German way?
Btw.: I've built a coffee maker like you did a coupe of months ago, but not in a suit case but in a chest. For weeks now the chest is unfinished, because I want to make the hinges an the buckle out of red leather and I did not know which dye to use. Just to let you know your videos are usefull, not just entertaining.
My black dyes from aliexpress are dark purple when applued. Any tips to avoid that problem? Am i using too much? What os going on?
Try using acetone in a spray bottle randomly spraying leather which has been dyed about 20 minutes prior, this will cause a marbled look which can be very intense. (Note I only use pro dye so I’m not sure how it will affect other dyes)
I have an old (soft) leather trifold wallet ( light/medium shade of a green) that i just can't let go of. However no matter how much I clean it, it looks dirty; perhaps due to the color lifting from years of cleaning ? Nonetheless is it possible to successfully re dye the wallet?
I am a cake decorator. Food color, esp red, is not colorfast. Meaning it will begin to fade VERY rapidly when exposed to light.
New skill for the list (I honestly thought that this would have been at least suggested before), Coin walking. for reference see just about any Val Kilmer character.
Fee-beans
"Do you expect me to LARP", Goldmember? No, Mr. Clever, I expect you to dye!
I’ve just bought a new leather pouf but the colour is not what I expected. What can I do/buy to change the colour to a darker brown antique look? I’m a complete novice !
I dip dyed with Eco Flo oil dye and it is still leaking, really never dried even after a week. It also scratches off super easily. Probably not going to use this dye again. I think I'm sold on the Fiebings Pro Dye.
Know that your video is still being watched! My friend wanted pink, but I dont want to buy a whole bottle for one project. The food coloring idea is wonderful. I will let you know how it turns out!
Something not taken in to account is aging. I made a really nice hand bag for my wife. It was green and brown. I used Eco flo for the green. It was a very nice forest green, but two years later that green dulled to an olive greenish brown. My wife likes the color, so happy accident, but I still think it should give us the color they say the dye gives.
Same story with a sky blue book I made. It is now a Smoky black. I am done with eco flo.
Black walnut hulls, poke berries, Blackberries, blueberries, raspberries fresh cut grass, beets, and other vegetation smashed up and soaked in a small amount of oil, water, or alcohol then strained make excellent dyes for fabric, wool, and leather. Some of them will require less fluid than others due to the amount of water in them already. When you go to use them just add more water, oil, or alcohol to get desired color tone and effects. As far as the dried-out leather bend them and such like you did to the one piece That gives a really nice aged look to them. Then rub Obenauf's heavy-duty LP Leather preservative into the leather. That will soften and protect the leather pieces as well as somewhat waterproof them. Obenauf's does have a full line of leather care products and even boot laces that are treated to protect the eyelets and laces.
Do you have a recommendation for dying RV captains chairs? Product and method?
I'm contemplating dying a Pair of horse showing chaps that have a finish to them. I'm wondering if your food dye will penetrate if using and trying it. I will try but it would be real cool if you demonstrated how to dye a finished price of leather. These chaps are expensive and I don't want to ruin them and I do like the finished look. They are light grey and either a darker blue or darker grey will do
Awesome
I was shocked at how dark some the those light browns were. The pressure sprayer worked amazingly well. I want to try that with some royal blue I have. It was a lot darker than I wanted it to be.
A pigment is a pigment. This is the color, and it comes in different concentrations.
Water, alcohol, and oil are carriers. Carriers aren’t colors.
The Pro dye is a mixture of an alcohol and oil carrier, with a higher concentration of dye pigment.
The more "layers" you put on the leather when dyeing, the darker it get's, this is ofc only for some brands and type :) This is my experince
Have you ever tried a color like blue or green? I'm trying to make the Moraine vest from The wheel of time and I can't seem to find a good enough blue to use to get the color I want.
Another idea try the vinegar black method. (Stealwool and vinegar)
Hey, quick question - when applying oil before dyeing, should the oil soak in completely? If no, how long should you wait, and should you wipe off excess when applying? Thanks!
EDIT: Another one popped into my head - have you thinned out your dye when using the mister? If yes, how much? And what have you cleaned it with after using it?
Hello! The way it worked for me was to just add on a thin coat and let it soak in. Should only take a minute or so. At least that's how I did it lol
If anyone is looking for that spray bottle it is a "Houseables Continuous Spray Water Bottle"
I need to make brand new baseballs look used for a craft project. Any tips? I don't want it to be perfectly even or anything
I am currently redyeing a pre-war cars leather seats. The leather is much thicker than modern leathers and they have some damage and serious cracking all over. My question is will leather filler paste, which will be required on all seats compromise the adhesion of the dye ? As the leather soaks in the dye I am concerned the filler which hardens when cured will not absorb the dye. I do have patches of leather filler on all seats after final fine sanding .
I've got a couple of brown leather jackets that, while they are very good looking jackets in brown, i really want them to be black instead. Here to learn a thing or two.
The pronontiation of Fiebing is the first one you said. ''E'' sound. Not ''I'' sound
So happy i found this after years of leatherworking! It confirms all of the things I had to learn through trial and error! Thanks for making it easy!
In a field of experiments - try making a vinegaroon dye - just saying :)
May i know if this fine to do for gaming chair leather i think the leater called PU leather if i am not mistaken since my chair peeled off
A different question how 2 erase a dye u don't like , example it's 2 dark I want 2 put more light into it
I diluted the light brown fiebings leather dye in a ratio of about 1:1 dye to water and dip dyed something and got an amazing result that was similar in colour to your pro dye
Yay, new video!!
As a woodworker who dabbles in leather work, i have lots of wood stains, wood dye stains, and gel stains. They are water, oil and alcohol based. Have you ever tried these on leather?