How to Age Veg Tanned Leather by V&P Leather Artisans

This is a tutorial about how to age vegetable tanned leather for obtaining a distressed look. This is a technique invented by V&P Leather Artisans (Vasile & Pavel).

The leather we used in this tutorial is 2.4 mm veg tan.

Since we are releasing a new plague doctor mask pattern, we wanted to show a way to age veg tan leather.

Before dying, we spray some water on the leather. We are using Fiebings Oil Dyes, but other leather dyes will work as well.

First I put a layer of yellow dye. This technique works with a single layer of dye as well, and it also works great with black.

The next layer is dark brown. When we will use sandpaper later on, the colours will fade and this is how we get the distressed look.

Lastly I am using red dye. Again, this is optional and you can use only one colour if you want.

Don't use any finishing substances yet. Wait for the leather to dry.

I am using a polishing machine with a used 80 grit sandpaper. You can do it by hand as well. If your sandpaper is new, use 160 grit or higher.

I bought the polishing machine from some kind of home depo and was around 30-40 USD. The cheapest one will suffice and save you some work.

Remove the leather dust particles generated by the sanding process by using a vacuum cleaner.

I am finishing the leather with atom wax: masks do not need a strong finish like bags do.

I am using a piece of cotton fabric to spread the wax on the leather surface.

Wait 15-20 minutes for the wax to settle before rubbing it with a piece of cotton fabric.

If you are going for a distressed look and more texture, you should roll and bend the pieces of leather. This will also unstiffen the leather.

Enjoy!

SHOP PATTERNS HERE:
SHOPIFY: vasileandpavel.com/collections/leather-pdf-patt…
ETSY: etsy.com/shop/PlagueDoctorMask?section_id=21761…

SHOP MASKS HERE:
SHOPIFY: vasileandpavel.com/collections/plague-doctor-ma…
ETSY: etsy.com/shop/PlagueDoctorMask?section_id=20879…

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Music: Corelli, La Folia

@ 2020 V&P Leather Artisans

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