How to rejuvenate leather wallet that went through the wash

[scoots]

I have an ordinary brown leather cow-hide wallet that's gone through the laundry and dryer. It's in OK condition, but now looks rather "parched".

Is there a specific leather care product that I can use to restore it? The only product I can think of is neatsfoot oil, but I remember from my baseball days in HS that it's really oily and not suitable for "fine" leather. Wikipedia mentions Mink Oil, but I don't have any experience with that.

Thanks

 

[ea56]

I’d try using one of the leather conditioner products sold for use on leather upholstery. I don’t have any on hand, and can’t recall the name right now, but one of the products I’ve used in the past came in a brown plastic bottle, and was a pleasant scent lotion, not greasy or oily. It will rehydrate the leather and may save the day for your wallet.

HTH
Eddie

 

[joeekaitis]

This brand has been around a while.

 

For leather and its synthetic counterparts.

California Scents | Air Freshener for Home, Car & Commercial Area

With different fragrances in our collections, California Scents Air Fresheners are available for home, cars and commercial areas.

www.lexol.com

 

[ea56]

Lexol, thats exactly the product I was thinking about Joe! If it will rejuvanate dried out leather auto upolstery, it should be able to make this dried out wallet look better too.
Eddie

 

[scoots]

Thanks. I have a trip to Walmart coming up on Monday, I'll get some Lexol then and let you know how it turned out.

 

[Ultramatic]

 

 

Oh that has happened to me a couple of times. I always thought the wallet was ruined, so I'd just toss it and get a new one. Now I know better.

 

[michaelman2]

Residual Lexol

Scoots, once you treat your wallet, make sure after the last application of the Lexol you wait until the product appears to be fully absorbed and then place the wallet, open on an old towel. Fold the towel over to completely cover the wallet with the terry cloth.

Then place a book or something with some weight, to press the toweling to the leather. This will cause any unabsorbed Lexol to be absorbed by the towel.

Since the wallet will be in your back pocket you don’t want the unabsorbed Lexol to bleed through causing a mess.

As you may deduce , I have washed my wallet and had to apply the Lexol to restore the leather.

 

[iej]

Go to a shoe repair place or shoe store and get leather conditioner

 

[mrboilwash]

If you don`t want to spend money on a special leather conditioning product which you will probably never use up for anything else, you could simply wash your wallet again but this time with a crazy amount of fabric softener. It will keep the leather soft and pliable for just a penny. If you still think it`s not soft enough you can also apply a very thin(!) coat of vaseline or wax based shoe polish and then wipe off any excess.
One thing I would stear clear of is treatments with body lotion, natural oils or anything else that will get rancid.

 

[michaelman2]

Wallet after treatment

Scoots, how did your washed wallet fare after the reclaim attempt?

 

[askolover]

I use Lexol on my car seats sometimes, but the best is Leatherique...but it ain't cheap.

Leatherique Restoration Products

Clean, condition, restore, and preserve leather with Leatherique’s premium care products. Trusted by professionals and collectors to rejuvenate automotive, furniture, and vintage leather. Bring your leather back to life with our proven, high-quality Leatherique formulas and expert support. Made...

www.leatherique.com

 

[vacerator]

Mothers

leather conditioner is very good, and smells like leather should.
Another $5.99 leather cleaner/conditioner I use and makes it soft and supple is
Parker & Bailey. Lather it on with your fingers and let it soak in well and almost dry before buffing off.

 

[scoots]

Mike asked for an update...

First, thanks to everybody who contributed input on this restoration.

Mike asked how the wallet turned out. The wallet is now serviceable, but it didn't come out as well as I'd like (but probably as good as it could.)

First, I washed it by mistake again. I went to Walmart to pick up some Lexol as recommended but, even though the web site said it was in stock at my local store, I could not find it. Rather than delay this project some more, I simply bought a bottle of Weiman's.

I applied two applications, carefully blotting the excess after half an hour as Mike recommended.

While it did make the leather far more supple and rejuvenated, it did not restore the finish to the degree I had hoped for. I put this down to the age of the wallet (1990s), multiple washings over the years, and years of neglect.