Natal Leather

[TheMarriedHermit]

Fingers crossed, I hope this works.

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[TheMarriedHermit]

Fingers crossed, I hope this works.

Sent from my LG-SP320 using Tapatalk

Yay, it worked! I was about to get motion sickness from the upload/download seesaw. Here it is, inspected and issued a household cat seal of approval. The actual color is somewhere between the first two pictures and the rest, depending on the light. The jacket is as heavy as a knight's armor, and the previous knight must've been Sir Sweat-a-Lot, judging by the collar and some stains under the armpits. Maybe he loved it so much that he wore it in the summer. After all, there are battles to be fought year-round. Minor stuff aside, the jacket, like its new owner, is in a great shape for its age, not to mention the price. Walter, this is the beginning of a beautiful friendship.

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[Carlos840]

Yay, it worked! I was about to get motion sickness from the upload/download seesaw. Here it is, inspected and issued a household cat seal of approval. The actual color is somewhere between the first two pictures and the rest, depending on the light. The jacket is as heavy as a knight's armor, and the previous knight must've been Sir Sweat-a-Lot, judging by the collar and some stains under the armpits. Maybe he loved it so much that he wore it in the summer. After all, there are battles to be fought year-round. Minor stuff aside, the jacket, like its new owner, is in a great shape for its age, not to mention the price. Walter, this is the beginning of a beautiful friendship.

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Nice jacket, but that collar looks scary!
If it was mine i would give it a bathtub wash... Wouldn't want that on my neck!
Also i would think that can't be good as far as collar rot goes. I think sweaty necks are responsible for vintage jackets having destroyed necks, it attacks the leather. I would wash it with Lexol and give it a coat of Pecard.

 

[Edward]

Really, it's best to upload pics directly to the forum. Hosted images inevitably fall victim to link rot, and then the thread becomes worthless. Browsing old posts from 5 years ago, there's so much missing content.

Sadly, we got hit badly round her when Photobucket decided to start charging for using your photos elsewhere, as that's how most people put images up on he lounge back when. We do have a lot of bandwidth here, though, and going forward we encourage people wherever possible to include their photos within the post.

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I see kitty likes your jacket! My girls always loved to bed down on the Big Cat's things; the late Marlene cat especially loved to curl up on any one of my leathers she could find.

 

[Carlos840]

Sadly, we got hit badly round her when Photobucket decided to start charging for using your photos elsewhere, as that's how most people put images up on he lounge back when. We do have a lot of bandwidth here, though, and going forward we encourage people wherever possible to include their photos within the post.

You might not have noticed, but most of the photobucket pictures are back!
I think they realized their mistake and reverted things back to how they were, all my old pictureless threads have pictures again, and i didn't do it.

Personally i think the maximum size allowed by the TFL uploader is just to small to be worth it.
You can't see anything, can't zoom in, it feels like a waste... I can't bring myself to take nice pictures and have them be that small and low quality in the end.

 

[TheMarriedHermit]

Nice jacket, but that collar looks scary!
If it was mine i would give it a bathtub wash... Wouldn't want that on my neck!
Also i would think that can't be good as far as collar rot goes. I think sweaty necks are responsible for vintage jackets having destroyed necks, it attacks the leather. I would wash it with Lexol and give it a coat of Pecard.

Will keep the Lexol/Pecard prescription in mind. How do you wash a leather jacket in a bathtub?

 

[TheMarriedHermit]

Sadly, we got hit badly round her when Photobucket decided to start charging for using your photos elsewhere, as that's how most people put images up on he lounge back when. We do have a lot of bandwidth here, though, and going forward we encourage people wherever possible to include their photos within the post.



I see kitty likes your jacket! My girls always loved to bed down on the Big Cat's things; the late Marlene cat especially loved to curl up on any one of my leathers she could find.

Mine sleep on my old, blanket lined denim jacket. I know they'd like the leather one, too, but I can't let them near it--there are claws involved.

 

[Edward]

You might not have noticed, but most of the photobucket pictures are back!
I think they realized their mistake and reverted things back to how they were, all my old pictureless threads have pictures again, and i didn't do it.

Personally i think the maximum size allowed by the TFL uploader is just to small to be worth it.
You can't see anything, can't zoom in, it feels like a waste... I can't bring myself to take nice pictures and have them be that small and low quality in the end.

There are limits here, though for most basics they're fine.... Good news about photobucket though, I had missed that. Must check some of my old ones.... I would guess that the policy resulted in many people going elsewhere rather than paying up!

Mine sleep on my old, blanket lined denim jacket. I know they'd like the leather one, too, but I can't let them near it--there are claws involved.

Fortunately mine never clawed leather. Marlene, God rest her soul, never clawed anywhere she shouldn't have, but her sister Greta is a monster. My jackets are left alone, but the last sofa I had, she ripped the end clean out..... when she started paying attention to its replacement, she got latex claw covers.....

 

[Carlos840]

Will keep the Lexol/Pecard prescription in mind. How do you wash a leather jacket in a bathtub?

Like this:

I just put 4" of water in the tub, drop the unzipped jacket in, soak it for a couple minutes and then use a soft brush and some Lexol leather cleaner to wash it in and out. Rinse it a couple times in clean water and then lie it flat on a towel, itself lying on a rack, to dry for a day. (i use a towel between the drying rack and the leather so as not to mark the leather)
Once it is mostly dry but still humid i put it on a wide wooden coat hanger and shape the collar how i want, then leave it till fully dry (2 or 3 days).
When fully dry apply a couple thin coats of Pecards and you should have a brand new looking jacket.

That's what i did to this jacket, it was pretty grubby and the collar was shapeless beforehand, it came out looking great.:

https://www.thefedoralounge.com/threads/apparel-annex-leather-tailors-chp-jacket.94489/


Some people don't do all that and just use their washing machines, i can't bring myself to trying, it feels wrong...
Be careful about using the zippers on a wet jacket, they get very sticky and it would be easy to break a puller.
I avoid playing with them until the jacket is fully dry.

(The colour of the water that came out was GROSS!)

 

[TheMarriedHermit]

Like this:

I just put 4" of water in the tub, drop the unzipped jacket in, soak it for a couple minutes and then use a soft brush and some Lexol leather cleaner to wash it in and out. Rinse it a couple times in clean water and then lie it flat on a towel, itself lying on a rack, to dry for a day. (i use a towel between the drying rack and the leather so as not to mark the leather)
Once it is mostly dry but still humid i put it on a wide wooden coat hanger and shape the collar how i want, then leave it till fully dry (2 or 3 days).
When fully dry apply a couple thin coats of Pecards and you should have a brand new looking jacket.

That's what i did to this jacket, it was pretty grubby and the collar was shapeless beforehand, it came out looking great.:

https://www.thefedoralounge.com/threads/apparel-annex-leather-tailors-chp-jacket.94489/


Some people don't do all that and just use their washing machines, i can't bring myself to trying, it feels wrong...
Be careful about using the zippers on a wet jacket, they get very sticky and it would be easy to break a puller.
I avoid playing with them until the jacket is fully dry.

(The colour of the water that came out was GROSS!)

Thanks for the detailed procedure. You mention using a soft brush. Any particular kind or a brand?

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[Carlos840]

Thanks for the detailed procedure. You mention using a soft brush. Any particular kind or a brand?

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I just got a plastic bristle scrubbing brush from the pound store, nothing fancy.
I also used a soft non scratch scouring pad (the ones to clean non stick pans) in a few areas that had some mold stains.
Just use something that won't scratch the leather but that will scrub filth off.

Also, make sure you let it dry naturally, keep it away from heat and don't put it in the sun.

 

[TheMarriedHermit]

There are limits here, though for most basics they're fine.... Good news about photobucket though, I had missed that. Must check some of my old ones.... I would guess that the policy resulted in many people going elsewhere rather than paying up!



Fortunately mine never clawed leather. Marlene, God rest her soul, never clawed anywhere she shouldn't have, but her sister Greta is a monster. My jackets are left alone, but the last sofa I had, she ripped the end clean out..... when she started paying attention to its replacement, she got latex claw covers.....

Now, that's a funny coincidence. My two cats are sisters, too, and they're also named after the stars of classic Hollywood: Tallulah (Bankhead, of course), and Gilda (one of Rita Hayworth's movie characters). Leatherwise they have an ugly old burgundy recliner to do with as they please. I would've gotten rid of it ages ago, but it's the most comfortable thing I ever sat in, and it was free. Sorry, folks, for this off-thread cat-lover talk.

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[ElMasChangon]

I just got a plastic bristle scrubbing brush from the pound store, nothing fancy.
I also used a soft non scratch scouring pad (the ones to clean non stick pans) in a few areas that had some mold stains.
Just use something that won't scratch the leather but that will scrub filth off.

Also, make sure you let it dry naturally, keep it away from heat and don't put it in the sun.

Hi Carlos! I found this post from another member and it's given me a point of reference of the first part of the process. Thanks! Now for the next part: drying with the intention of shrinking.

Did you have the jacket come out of your outlined drying a bit snug or see overall shrinking? I'm not sure what to expect realistically.

 

[Carlos840]

Hi Carlos! I found this post from another member and it's given me a point of reference of the first part of the process. Thanks! Now for the next part: drying with the intention of shrinking.

Did you have the jacket come out of your outlined drying a bit snug or see overall shrinking? I'm not sure what to expect realistically.

Hi,

Since writing that post i have also washed a couple jackets in the washing machine.
In both cases there was no shrinking whatsoever.
I did the washing cold both in the tub and in the washing machine.

Some people say they have shrunk jackets using a hot dryer but i have no experience doing so and can't comment on whether it works or not.

 

[sweetfights]

When I purchase a used jacket I spray "Natures Miracle" and saturate the liner completely (turning the jacket inside out).
Once dry, I add detergent and place in the washer, cold water, gentle cycle. To dry I lay flat in front of a couple of fans turning the jacket a few times a day until completely air dry- May take a few days. Then I add a leather conditioner.
You will likely remove more dirt than you think possible, and rid your self of anyone else's "smells".
Did this with a 50 year old Langlitz Horsehide and it worked like a charm. I did also have the entire jacket relined. Zero shrinkage.

 

[Guppy]

I just came across this interesting bit of information on the Taylor Stitch website:

The story of our Leather Moto spans two generations and thousands of miles. Inspired by a classic café-racer, the original belongs to our Product Designer, Nick, by way of his father, Albert, who bought the jacket back in 1973.



Turns out, the jacket was made right around the corner from our office at Golden Bear.

The very same jacket Albert picked out over forty-five years ago was made by Golden Bear, our neighborhood leather shop here in San Fransisco. We took it over to Schirley, the owner, who recognized it instantly: “This one’s old,” she said, “we made this for a small men’s shop near Boston.” Schirley tore through rows of manila folders and pulled out the exact leather swatch. She showed us the before-and-after; what started out as a rich whiskey leather had burnished to a rich, burnt sienna color. Schirley stepped back into the Golden Bear production area, and ten minutes later brought out the original pattern card.

Since we know that Walter Dyer used the same exact patterns in some of their jackets as Natal/Natel, it is possible that all three were just relabeled Golden Bear jackets, made in a super heavy leather.

Since Golden Bear is still in operation, it should be possible to confirm this hypothesis, which if it is true would finally shed some light on the Natal brand!

 

[Monitor]

I just came across this interesting bit of information on the Taylor Stitch website:



Since we know that Walter Dyer used the same exact patterns in some of their jackets as Natal/Natel, it is possible that all three were just relabeled Golden Bear jackets, made in a super heavy leather.

Since Golden Bear is still in operation, it should be possible to confirm this hypothesis, which if it is true would finally shed some light on the Natal brand!

How come we never saw anything remotely similar from Golden Bear then, either in style or material?

 

[Guppy]

How come we never saw anything remotely similar from Golden Bear then, either in style or material?

It's a good question; I have no idea.

It's all the more interesting because the Taylor Stitch has a completely different back than the WD jacket that supposedly inspired it. Imo the Walter Dyer back is a better design.

 

[Monitor]

It's a good question; I have no idea.

I had a GB 90's cross zip jacket, one in distressed hide. It didn't really look a lot like WD/Natal's, not to mention how much lighter it was. I never would've guessed there's any connection.

It's an interesting theory & I'd like to know more. I really wanna find out what's the story with Natal and more importantly, where were they sourcing that insane hide. After seeing more of Deerskin lately, I'm semi-convinced some of the jackets they made indeed were deer!

 

[Monitor]