How to Clean Leather

Stop paying dry cleaners to do a bad job on your leather goods. Doing it yourself is easy!

Instructions

Difficulty: Easy

Things You’ll Need:

• Saddle Soap
• Leather Conditioner
• Steam
• Stain remover
• Maybe needle, sturdy thread, and thimble.
• Sprayable scent that won't damage lining of coat

1. Determine the state of the leather item in question. This article is for normal cleaning and maintenance only. If the leather is damaged, you will want to take it to a professional leather cleaner. Many dry cleaners have a leather cleaning specialty, but make sure that they do before handing your leather item over to them.
2. Get saddle soap and leather conditioner from a local tack and feed store. Use Febreze or scent of choice (NOT air freshener!), I use 5 drops of essential oil in one capful of alcohol suspended in water. Test all substances used on item first to determine if any damage will be caused. Read and obey all cautionary statements on products. DO NOT try this on fur or suede.
3. Using a large bowl of warm water and a sponge, get a good lather from the saddle soap on the sponge. Apply liberally to only the leather surfaces. Rinse well with clean, wet cloth. Do not submerge leather in water.
4. Use a clean, dry cloth, preferably cotton, to apply leather conditioner. Do not be afraid to apply liberally, the leather will keep absorbing the oil until saturated, at which point it will just sit on the surface and can be wiped away.
5. Apply scent carefully to any lining or cloth bits, do not get it on the leather. Apply steam from a steamer or iron in short bursts. Do not steam leather, only the lining. Place barrier between leather and lining if possible. If using an iron, shoot the steam from a few inches away, and use an ironing board or some surface that will be undamaged by the heat. Be careful, steam burns are both painful and dangerous. Leave yourself plenty of ventilation.
6. Check item carefully for missing buttons or split seams. Sew back together with matching thread. If you have to sew through the leather, use a heavy needle, the thimble, and stitch one way through and then go back the other way to fill in the entire line with stitches. Look to other areas of the item to get the look to match. Use the holes that are already there, do not try to punch new ones. When sewing a button back onto leather, stitch very securely five or six times.
7. The leather can be ironed with a dry iron set to low/medium heat. Be careful, and check often. It helps to place a thin cotton cloth between leather and iron. Never use steam directly on leather.
8. When done, hang or store leather item promptly and properly. Put away all equipment and supplies safely out of reach of children and pets. Remember that steamer and/or iron will probably still be hot.

Tips & Warnings

• This is going to take some time and has the possibility of being messy, so set the time and space aside.
• Do the leather cleaning and conditioning all at one time, do not break them up into two sessions. Doing so can dry out your leather too much.
• The cleaners used can be dangerous for children, do not leave them where children can play with them.
• Steam burns can be very dangerous and painful. Make sure you have plenty of ventilation, be careful about your skin, and again, do not endanger children by leaving access to the area open.
• Test all cleaners on hidden areas of the item first and leave for twenty four hours.
• DO NOT try this on fur or suede. You will ruin your item, so smooth leather only.