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Leather Conditioner
I am interested in formulating my own leather conditioner. I realize that most folks on this forum are probably interested in making cosmetics, but science is science right? I know a bit about cosmetic science from my keen interest in it and reading and such and am curious if this science can also be applied to caring for leather. I am a bit of a fop and have a shoe collection that would make a Kardashian blush and I enjoy the process of taking care of them. I’ve always researched different products and tried different ones with various successes. In my research into how leather is made and experience with different products I have found that there are many trade-offs in off the shelf products and would be interested in any direction the forum has to offer in making my own.
Here is what I know and have experienced that will guide how I want to formulate a product:
Leather is amphoteric and when it comes out of the tannery the pH ranges from about 3-5. Modern tanneries use ionic conditioners that hydrogen bond to the protein fibers of the leather when they are within this pH range. When leather is exposed to alkaline conditions above its isoelectric point the protein fibers shift ionic negative and repel the ionic negative conditioning agents causing them to spew out and the fibers to get stiff.
Products that exist today exist in a few forms: natural oils, oil in water emulsions, and silicone. Beeswax might be a component in any of these as well. Pure oil on leather has many drawbacks the first is it smothers the leather making the surface not able to take a shine, the fibers get loose and it turns into a “wet rag” think of how cardboard getting wet behaves. Also, oils attract dust and dirt which in the creases act as sandpaper over time breaking down the fibers. Also, oils go rancid rather quickly and gunk up and get sticky, which makes the dust and dirt issue a bigger issue.
The emulsified products I generally like because it isn’t as easy to “overdo” it. The water evaporates and leaves behind whatever oil is in there. The issue with water is it is polar has has an influence over the pH of the leather fibers. These emulsions SHOULD be acidic in nature, but many emulsified products that I have tested are all over the pH scale. Not sure why, but the manufacturers aren’t generally forthcoming about their products.
Silicones are generally frowned upon in the leather world because they tend to stick around wherever you put them unless you are routinely stripping the leather. The buildup isn’t wanted because over time it leads to a dull finish. There are some people that claim they are super occlusive which “chokes out” the leather. I’m not really sold on that idea.
So what do I want to do? Is it possible to use conditioning agents that provide slip that will penetrate the leather fibers and stick to the ionic positive leather fibers? Also, are there any such conditioners that will evaporate out and not stick around requiring constant stripping? Also, is it possible to include water and maintain an acidic pH to help keep the leather in the range it wants to be? Of course, if water is used some sort of preservative is necessary. If using oils is in-fact the right way to go, is there a way to inhibit oxidation?
Thanks in advance for any help, or general direction.
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6 Replies
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I just finished a leather conditioner that has went to market. I worked on some of these questions for 4 months. So many questions, let me hit a few. You can use a solvent to evaporate leaving your waxes and moisturizers behind. Methyl Acetate is commonly used by some. Water would be a poor way to adjust pH and not good for leather. Neats Foot and Mink oils are used in a lot of these products but too much will simply soak into the leather and attract dirt. If you want shine, wax. Lastly, look at some MSDS sheets related to some of the products you like, this will help you come closer to the ingredients you want. I doubt you find many leathers with a pH as low as 3, most we worked with were 4.7 to 5.1. Good luck and keep us informed.
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Thanks for your comment/suggestions Darrell. I do realize that solvents are used in a lot of these products, but in my mind they might be harsh, no? I mean I wouldn’t want them on my skin, so why leather?
I guess my reasoning for asking in this forum is maybe there are some unconventional ingredients out there used in hair/skincare that the leather care world overlooks. Specifically “unnatural” things like polyquats, or “-omium Chlorides” or something like that. Could any of those be used over oils, which have their problems?
I’d like to stay away from “shine” finishing type products and stick to a pretty straight forward conditioner so I’d like to shy away from wax. I have also tried to look at MSDS sheets, but many of them provide little info and manufacturers claim “proprietary” in their correspondence with me.
What do you think would be a better pH adjuster than water?
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Try looking at some of the info Dow Corning puts out. Silicones have improved a lot, especially silicone waxes.
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It seems that Dow Corning’s products/expertise lies in the finishes applied to leather at the tannery, not really in the care of already finished leather.
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Just poking around on their website. Those links are for car waxes…
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