Painting on Leather Tutorial
Found the right pair of boots for a costume but they’re the wrong color? Need a detail design painted on something leather? Or do you just need to touch up a piece that has gotten scuffed or marked up? Repainting leather is less difficult or expensive then you might think.
I like to buy old jackets form the thrift store and recycle the leather for cosplay pieces. This mean I can get a significant amount of usable leather for less than $10, but often it is an ugly color. Sometimes the color leather I need isn’t even available to purchase on the market. To fix this I simply paint the leather with specialty acrylic leather paint.
Acrylic Leather Paint: Where to Get It
Angelus brand is the most wildly know and recommended leather paint. This brand comes in a multitude of colors: primary, secondary, neon, metallic, glitter paint, etc. I usually purchase mine off of Amazon. Prices can range from $2.99- $8.00 for a 1 oz bottle. Shop around and don’t pay more then $3 -$5 for a bottle. 1 oz may seem little but I promise that the paint goes a long way. If you have a large surface area to cover 4 oz bottles are also available. For $30-$40 you can get a 12 pack of 1 oz bottles in the basic colors. For $13-$20 you can get a 6 pack of 1 oz bottles in the neon colors. If you have a leather supply shop where you live try contacting them and see if they carry the paint for less.
EcoFlo Cova paint is another brand that is available online and through Tandy Leather Shop. It has almost as large a selection of colors as Angelus and the price is similar. The wonderful thing about EcoFlo is that the normal bottle size is slightly larger- 1.5 oz. But 2 oz is the largest size available in most colors.
In a pinch regular acrylic paint will work too. But I find that the Angelus brand seems to adhere better. Be sure to seal it or it will start to scrape off under ware and tear. I do not recommend using craft store acrylic paint to repaint shoes, it does not hold up well under stress.
How to Use Leather Paint: Tips and Tricks
Leather paint works the same way as regular acrylic paint. You can blend them to create custom colors, drying time is comparable, and you can clean your brushes with water.
Make sure the leather is clean. If you are painting on top of a pre-existing color you will want to strip the shiny top layer off with a little bit of acetone (i.e. fingernail polish remover) and/or fine grit sand paper (200 grit or finer). Be careful not to take off to much or you’ll risk pulling the pre-existing coat of paint off and creating blotchy uneven spots on the surface. I highly recommend using a scrap of leather to test out how much acetone/sanding it will take to strip off the top layer before trying it on the piece you are working on.
This type of paint can also be used on vinyl/pleather but not as effectively. It doesn’t adhere as well, requires sanding in the prepping stage and I find it doesn’t hold as well if the item is under a lot of stress (ex. shoes).
If you are changing the color from a dark to a light (ex. the boots pictured above) you may need somewhere between 3-6 coats to make sure it is properly covered.
You can apply the paint using a sponge brush or a regular paint brush. A sponge brush leaves fewer streaks and creates a smoother finish but it will soak up and waste quite a bit of your paint. With a regular paint brush you risk streaks but you can control the amount of paint you are using with less wastefulness. The paint will also work well with an airbrush if you have one.
If you water the paint down (especially with the EcoFlo brand) you can use it like a stain.
If you get paint on an area of the leather that you don’t want it you can pull it off with a little acetone. I usually dab some on with a paint brush and then pull it off with a Q-tip or paper towel.
After your final coat is dry you will want to seal the paint with a top coat. I use either polycryclic or EcoFlo. Polycryclic can be purchased at any hardware store. EcoFlo comes in a several different sheens: matte, super sheen, satin sheen etc. It can be purchased at Hobby Lobby, Tandy Leather and many online retailers such as Amazon.
If you have any questions feel free to send them my way: http://cosplaying-on-a-budget.tumblr.com/ask
If you are interested in my cosplay work you can find me on DA and FB: http://lookylolo.deviantart.com/ https://www.facebook.com/bigfamilycosplay
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