Rescued my over-distressed Wested

[randystokes]

You may recall I recently posted saying I had tried distressing my Wested lambskin. Despite carefully following directions and being incredibly cautious, I ended up with a mildly distressed jacket -- except for the area right above the left pocket, where virtually all of the dye "disappeared." I tried moving dye around, to no avail. Looked awful.

So, I made a few calls around town, and was referred by a local leather company to a dry cleaner that, among other things, does "leather repairs." I took the jacket in, asked if they could re-dye it and hoped for the best.

I got the jacket back yesterday, and it looks great. Not distressed, and not quite as dark a brown as it was originally, but you can't tell there was ever a problem. It may actually look better than before I tried distressing it, as it seems a bit softer, and the slightly lighter shade of brown actually makes it look a little older and more "broken in" than a new Wested lambskin. I think the "new" color actually shows off the grain a little better, but it's not light enough to be "off," in terms of "screen accuracy."

I'm going to keep it as-is, with no more attempts at artificial distressing.

The re-dyeing cost $48, but I got the jacket used (though very gently used), so I think it still cost me less than my other Wested, that I bought new directly from the company.

So, after a brief flirtation with the "Dark Side" of artificial distressing, I'm back with the purists . . . more or less

Randy

[Michaelson]

Just be sure to put on a leather treatment, pecards or the like, and you're good to go. It's a better color, but you've still removed the original surface of the leather, so it will be more prone to soak up water should you get caught in a downpour. The treatment will help keep that from happening.

Regards! Michaelson

[randystokes]

According to the person who did the cleaning and re-dyeing, she also applied a sealer coat after doing the dyeing, so I may be OK there, but I may go ahead and pecard it anyway just to be safe.

Thanks, Michaelson. And was that chapters 4 & 5 for next time?

Randy

[binkmeisterRick]

Besides, how do you think Michaelson's been able to keep looking so... young?

bink

[randystokes]

Besides, how do you think Michaelson's been able to keep looking so... young? Wink

Lots and lots of Pecards

[Hemingway Jones]

Randy,
Could you post a picture? It would be great if you had a "before" and "after."

[randystokes]

I'll see what I can do. There's no "before" picture -- whether "before" I tried distressing, or after distressing but "before" re-dyeing, but I'll see if I can get an after re-dyeing picture and post it.

Actually, I haven't posted a picture here before. How would I go about that?

Randy

[Spooky]

You may recall I recently posted saying I had tried distressing my Wested lambskin. Despite carefully following directions and being incredibly cautious, ... Looked awful ... I'm going to keep it as-is, with no more attempts at artificial distressing.

So, after a brief flirtation with the "Dark Side" of artificial distressing, I'm back with the purists . . . more or less
Randy

I'm glad your 'jacket intervention' was successful Randy.
Makes me even more hesitant to distress my jacket.
BTW, what was your (temporary) Sith moniker? ...
Darth Shredder?

[Hemingway Jones]

I'll see what I can do. There's no "before" picture -- whether "before" I tried distressing, or after distressing but "before" re-dyeing, but I'll see if I can get an after re-dyeing picture and post it.

Actually, I haven't posted a picture here before. How would I go about that?

Randy

One of the easiest ways is to go to a site like Imageshack.us, follow their instructions for hosting an image, then copy and paste the link onto your post. The image will show up. PM me if you need help once you're ready.