Tan/natural leather jacket

[Aloysius]

Because it looks like natural color to me, no?

I think you're misunderstanding. When people say "natural leather" they mean the base shade it results in from tanning without any dyes. That's why these shades can vary greatly, depending on the hide and tanning process.

Kakishibu is a dye (which itself can range from tan to dark red), so by definition it's not "natural leather".

 

[Will Zach]

^^
Adding to that, kakishibu (persimmon) dye reacts with sunlight (likely the UV part of it), and darkens considerably on exposure. I played with dyeing a natural vegtan belt with it - very cool. But the dye solution is pretty pricey in the US, and I did not want to start fermenting persimmons from scratch, lol.

 

[X83]

It will be hard to wear the first few weeks because you dont want to stain it, the surface is like paper and easy to show any stain but its matte bone white color is surprisingly easy to wear with faded jeans or olive or tan pants.

Then it will darken a bit picking up some sheen and look like a dead person skin, this is saver to wear as it doesn't collect dirt and stain as easily still easy to pair with previous colors

Then it develops some pink flesh tone and similar sheen, this is very hard stage to pair with anything

Then it develops yellowness mixed with that pink into nude skin tone, this is also hard to pair with since it resembles your own skin tone.

Then it develops some more orange tone
This is quite stable that stays for sometime unless you oil the leather. Impossible to match with anything, so i oiled mine to develops further into caramel tone.

Then it turns into light caramel that will get darker overtime, and the surface looks shinier, this is where it gets good and only get better.
View attachment 524624
That is 3 years from natural vegtan, my wristband there is from 2018

this was brand new 1st time being worn
View attachment 524627
View attachment 524628

Exactly the same leather left over of the jacket, one i wear frequently and exposed to many hand washing protocol during covid and the thin one I just made today to start wearing
View attachment 524629
So the promise of rich earthy tone is there, one day the jacket would be this dark and perhaps unless you use another dose of heavy oil like obenauf or the likes it will stay in this brown color for a long time, as i have 2 other bracelets and belt i own for more years and stay pretty similar in tone.

Ok so my aero sunburst got a stain and now I’m reading this and I’m starting to feel for these natural jackets I should not only welcome this stain but many others and with time the jacket will darken all together is this correct

 

[attack_decay]

Ok so my aero sunburst got a stain and now I’m reading this and I’m starting to feel for these natural jackets I should not only welcome this stain but many others and with time the jacket will darken all together is this correct

So, it depends what the "stain" consists of. Maybe a picture will allow a more accurate response. But if it is natural leather, it will accumulate marks, and dirt more readily than a dyed jacket. Overall it will darken as it ages and is exposed to UV rays, oils from your skin, etc. I look at small marks on my natural jacket as "patina" rather than stains. I embrace the little marks as they tell the history of the jacket in a beautiful way, in my opinion.

 

[X83]

So, it depends what the "stain" consists of. Maybe a picture will allow a more accurate response. But if it is natural leather, it will accumulate marks, and dirt more readily than a dyed jacket. Overall it will darken as it ages and is exposed to UV rays, oils from your skin, etc. I look at small marks on my natural jacket as "patina" rather than stains. I embrace the little marks as they tell the history of the jacket in a beautiful way, in my opinion.

Not a big deal was thinking possibly going the mink oil route or just lots of wear rain and all

 

[Canuck Panda]

Mink oil can stay on the surface more than the other oils. I use it for waterproofing. It can leave a white sticky residue that needs to be brushed with a horsehair brush. Neatsfoot will penetrate faster and probably smooth out the patina faster. Not sure. I will need to try on mine. But the veg tan natural leather really just takes time to evolve.

 

[Canuck Panda]

Man I must had some senior moments. I thought I had posted these progression images but I guess I didn't. The wait is brutal but as seen in the IH shirt progression thread it will all be worth it in a years time...

 

[X83]

Mink oil can stay on the surface more than the other oils. I use it for waterproofing. It can leave a white sticky residue that needs to be brushed with a horsehair brush. Neatsfoot will penetrate faster and probably smooth out the patina faster. Not sure. I will need to try on mine. But the veg tan natural leather really just takes time to evolve.

Is it ok to use Neats foot on aero Vicenza natural being that it’s a natural but I believe has a finish

 

[Canuck Panda]

Is it ok to use Neats foot on aero Vicenza natural being that it’s a natural but I believe has a finish

Here is my experiences with Mink oil and Neatsfoot oil:
Mink oil - Mine comes in the tub, in paste form. I have to use a rag to apply it onto the leather. And it leaves a sticky film afterwards. Of which then I would have to brush it with a horsehair brush to get rid of the sticky film. So I don't know how much mink oil actually got left. Sometimes the leather will spit out after hanging for a few days, then I would have to brush it again to get rid of the white sticky stuff. Lots of work. It does wonders in breaking CXL very fast and is the only reason I continue to use it.
Neatsfoot oil - Comes in liquid form. I have used it on my past natural (comipel) leather and it didn't patina fast enough. I've seen ones here cut with beeswax, so I will try that method. Because it's liquid form it gets in faster and Lexol like so I don't have to brush it again afterwards. Although too much of it also leaves an oily hand which I would have to wipe religiously afterwards to get rid of it. So don't put on too much, and use the pure ones not ones cut with other minerals.
In your case with the natural Vicenza, I would just leave it. First year is always the worst. All the oxidation will show up because how light the skin is. Applying oil to them religiously isn't gonna change that overnight. If anything the oxidation spots will get worse before it can smooth out with the background color darkening.
I know others have had faster patina results. But in my own two tries, it's more of a two year journey before it make the full journey from pale to pink to orange. And oxidation spots happens at every stage. Even at the final orange stage. I mean repeated oxidation spots is what turns it brownish patina right.
Sorry for a lot of words. But I would leave it at this moment, your natural Vicenza. And let it do what it does for the next two years. You may have faster results.

 

[X83]

Thank you for all your information I learn something new from great people like yourself that take the time to write back I appreciate you

 

[X83]

Day 1 4oz horween natural steer with croc

 

[Hide'n'seek]

Day 1 4oz horween natural steer with croc

Have to say i'd be very surprised if that leather is 4oz . Looking at the construction and arm creases i doubt it's heavier than 3.5 oz ( which is surely as heavy as you would want a shirt ? _

 

[X83]

I was told between 3-4 it just felt much thicker than most things I own so I was leading more towards four, but you’re most likely correct

 

[X83]

Day 1 4oz horween natural steer with croc

Update after some sun we have more work to do but yeah loving it