Gave my Wested a good soaking... With NEW pictures
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Gave my Wested a good soaking... With NEW pictures
Having scuffed and sanded my Wested previously, I gave it a good soaking in a sink of hot water the other day then dried it over the radiator. I'm very pleased with the effect. It's lost most of its gloss and has a good wrinkled look.
Last edited by djd on Tue May 15, 2007 10:10 am, edited 1 time in total.
- Kt Templar
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Kt Templar wrote:And some mysterious "orbs" into the bargain!
Did you scallop your pockets or did they come that way?
I gave the pockets a bit of help using the pulling whilst wet method (before this overall soaking) but to be honest they weren't badly shaped in the first place... As to the orbs, I think they may be the ghosts of my old credit cards come to haunt me!
Last edited by djd on Wed May 09, 2007 11:27 am, edited 1 time in total.
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Re: Gave my Wested a good soaking... With picture
I'm impressed! I really wish I had the guts to do that, but I get scared just leaning against the wall with my Westedsdjd wrote:Having scuffed and sanded my Wested previously, I gave it a good soaking in a sink of hot water the other day then dried it over the radiator. I'm very pleased with the effect. It's lost most of its gloss and has a good wrinkled look.
Hard to say on the strinkage.... The sleeves seem shorter but it may be due to them becoming more wrinkled than actual shrinkage. Maybe half an inch shorter? No negative effects. The lining is fine ( a bit of die comes out in the water but it still looks the same). The texture of the leather goes a bit harder, but you'd expect that even with a good rain shower I'd guess.
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I have a hard time explaining what soaking the jacket does to the look. It does not physically weigh it down (once it dries, that is), but it swells the leather a bit and gives the wrinkles and creases more character and depth. The leather appears like it is thicker and heavier as a result of it. You may sacrifice a small bit of softness at first, but that comes back soon enough.
It is usually the drying of the leather that causes problems though. After reading that first post about drying the jacket on the radiator, I was waiting to see a Barbie sized jacket.
It has been my experience that the lighter the leather the more pronounced the shrinkage. I have no idea if this is true or not, but my heavy cowhides and horsehides barely shrink where the lambs and calfskins shrink a LOT more...
It is usually the drying of the leather that causes problems though. After reading that first post about drying the jacket on the radiator, I was waiting to see a Barbie sized jacket.
It has been my experience that the lighter the leather the more pronounced the shrinkage. I have no idea if this is true or not, but my heavy cowhides and horsehides barely shrink where the lambs and calfskins shrink a LOT more...
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Interesting. What I'm also tryng to avoid is that bell shape that the lambskins seem to take on after being worn a while. My theory (right or wrong) is that this happens because of the thin soft leather.
I'm thinking that if a soaking thickens up the leather a bit it might not do that as much. Right now I always keep mine zipped since I'm not wearing it much in the summer. Don't know it that's gonna help but it seems like a good idea at the time.
I'm thinking that if a soaking thickens up the leather a bit it might not do that as much. Right now I always keep mine zipped since I'm not wearing it much in the summer. Don't know it that's gonna help but it seems like a good idea at the time.
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My guess is that the bell shape those jackets seem to acquire is due to the leather facings... because they are so reinforced, they make the jacket openings go straight, and depending on how tight your jacket is, will cause an upside down V shape, aka bell-shaped jacket!JulianK wrote:Interesting. What I'm also tryng to avoid is that bell shape that the lambskins seem to take on after being worn a while. My theory (right or wrong) is that this happens because of the thin soft leather.
That's my take on it anyway, since my first jacket had leather facings, and is annoyingly bell shaped (I'm hoping a future jacket with a VERY tapered waist will solve this), while my second jacket without any facings falls perfectly fine (although due to it being a few inches longer, it is hard to really tell)
Although the leather may appear thicker visually and probably definitely via microscope, the density is no different. For instance, if you had two 6” square samples of leather – one “dry” and one that has been soaked and allowed to dry – the soaked one would appear thicker but would weight the same as the dry one. No mass has been added and the weight would only change if the leather retained some of the water.JulianK wrote:I'm thinking that if a soaking thickens up the leather a bit it might not do that as much. Right now I always keep mine zipped since I'm not wearing it much in the summer. Don't know it that's gonna help but it seems like a good idea at the time.
Here is something to think about… A popped popcorn kernel should weigh about the same as the unpopped kernel, even though there is a substantial size difference. Probably less, as the popped kernel gives up some moisture. The same may be true of your jacket. If the soaking removes any of the natural oils from the leather, you may wind up with a slightly lighter jacket, that just looks heavier.
I would not want to be partly responsible for someone ruining a jacket because they want it to be thicker. I cannot say for certain that any of the leathers properties are changed either. This is just my typical long-winded way of saying “be really careful!”
Personally, I wet every jacket I have owned eventually. Sometimes on purpose, and often not. The way I see it – wetting your jacket is way better than wetting your pants.
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Hahaha. That reminds me of this. I recently came across this bit of trivia on the City of Haverhill, Massachusetts website for recycling:
About 2,000 lbs equals 1 ton of paper.
This is sort of confusing...
About 2,000 lbs equals 1 ton of paper.
This is sort of confusing...
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My question is this: if I am going to soak my Wested, should I apply the Letap leather cleaner before/after/not-at-all?rick5150 wrote:I have a hard time explaining what soaking the jacket does to the look. It does not physically weigh it down (once it dries, that is), but it swells the leather a bit and gives the wrinkles and creases more character and depth. The leather appears like it is thicker and heavier as a result of it. You may sacrifice a small bit of softness at first, but that comes back soon enough.
It is usually the drying of the leather that causes problems though. After reading that first post about drying the jacket on the radiator, I was waiting to see a Barbie sized jacket.
It has been my experience that the lighter the leather the more pronounced the shrinkage. I have no idea if this is true or not, but my heavy cowhides and horsehides barely shrink where the lambs and calfskins shrink a LOT more...
My jacket wound up being a bit bigger than the 52 I tried on at Peter's so I am not so worried about shrinkage, though air drying seems like a good plan.
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Thanks Michaelson! I was sort of thinking that (or even worried it might repel the water).Michaelson wrote:If you're going to try this, apply Letaps afterwards. It's water soluable, and all you're going to do is wash it out with the soaking, so the pre-application would be pretty pointless.
Regards! Michaelson
It is still worth applying even afterwards though? (my goal is durable and roughly SA; not "pretty")
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Absolutely.
Anytime leather is hit by water, then allowed to dry out, the trying action tends to pull the moisture OUT of the hide by wicking action. Any good leather treatment product helps replace and condition dried out leather.
The last thing you want to happen is to have the leather crack or split on you due to dryness.
Regards! Michaelson
Anytime leather is hit by water, then allowed to dry out, the trying action tends to pull the moisture OUT of the hide by wicking action. Any good leather treatment product helps replace and condition dried out leather.
The last thing you want to happen is to have the leather crack or split on you due to dryness.
Regards! Michaelson
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