Dyeing Leather Watch Strap - Cartier Santos

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Hands90

·Apr 28, 2020

Has anyone dyed a leather watch strap or any other solutions to darken leather.
There are many guides on doing this but I wanted to see if anyone here has done this.

Why?
These straps have built in spring bar type system so since the watch comes with a strap, I'd like to darken it.

The strap matches the one of the original Santos model but it's a little bright to me. I'd be fine with dyeing it black.

 

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asrnj77

·Apr 28, 2020

You could experiment but I’d be worried that it would bleed when you got sweaty. For the price of custom straps these days I would just buy another strap before I started dyeing old ones. You could have the spring bar system stitched into the new strap if they take it out of the old one.

 

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ducatiti

·Jun 27, 2021

Any update? Same strap and situation but would like to dye it green or blue.

 

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DaveK

·Jun 27, 2021

You’d need to take the top coat off of the strap first with a product called Deglazer, basically a modified nail polish remover. Next step is to dye it, I’d recommend Fiebing’s “Pro Dye” in the colour of your choice. You’ll need to then reseal the dye with a top coat like Fiebing’s “Leather Balm with Atom Wax”. The edges of the strap might need to be resealed by this stage in the strap’s life, and an edge coat would be needed. This is a flexible sealant that keeps the leather from soaking in moisture along the edges where the top leather joins the bottom liner. Easy to do if you have all the products. It is hard to say how the strap’s stitching would pick up the new dye colour or not

 

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DaveK

·Jun 27, 2021

…or maybe just a very light application of neatsfoot oil on the strap would bring some richness back to the colour and darken it a bit. As a bonus, this will also nourish your leather.

Paging @Duracuir1 for second opinion 😀

 

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Duracuir1

·Jun 27, 2021·Never Used A Kodak

The original post is over a year old. But if still an issue, I would not dye it. That leather will nicely age on its own. The problem is that as collectors we do not wear the same watches daily. So natural aging takes forever! This baseball glove palm aged on its own, but it took a while. You can use neats foot oil and it will accelerate the process. Oh @DaveK already wrote that!

Edited: Jun 27, 2021

 

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ducatiti

·Jun 27, 2021

Thanks guys but plan to dye it blue or green. Acetone will work with an oil based green/blue dye will work on this light brown strap?

Strap is still unused, probably won't need to seal.

Can I use Angelus to "seal" the new dye? I may have some lying around. Used to be a sneakerhead, now a dress shoe collector 😀

 

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Syrte

·Jun 27, 2021

The strap in the first picture looks like a very fine quality leather strap- a home-made dye job is truly a shame as it will require scraping the surface of the finely tanned leather and will unavoidably damage it.
A real pity and a total waste. Just get another strap and sell this one to someone who will be using it.

 

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Donn Chambers

·Jun 28, 2021

Syrte

The strap in the first picture looks like a very fine quality leather strap- a home-made dye job is truly a shame as it will require scraping the surface of the finely tanned leather and will unavoidably damage it.
A real pity and a total waste. Just get another strap and sell this one to someone who will be using it.

I suggest that if the OP really intends to do this, he buy a vegetable tanned strap and try his dying method out first. I would bet he will be surprised at how bad it looks. I would hate to experiment on a strap that cost over $100.

in fact, I’m sure I can find a tan strap I no longer use in my strap box and am willing to mail to the OP for free in an attempt to save the Cartier strap from experimentation.

 

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Syrte

·Jun 28, 2021

Donn Chambers

I suggest that if the OP really intends to do this, he buy a vegetable tanned strap and try his dying method out first. I would bet he will be surprised at how bad it looks. I would hate to experiment on a strap that cost over $100.

in fact, I’m sure I can find a tan strap I no longer use in my strap box and am willing to mail to the OP for free in an attempt to save the Cartier strap from experimentation.

Totally agree and a good idea.
I once tried to die a pair of shoes and found that the abrasive chemical needed to remove the existing dye completely
Messes up the texture, and the ensuing dye application cannot be as even or as good looking.

Edited: Jun 28, 2021

 

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Evitzee

·Jun 28, 2021

There are plenty of bespoke strap makers who will make exactly what you want in blue or green with your choice of stitching color, and they'll put in a quick release spring bar for a few dollars more. I don't think you'll be happy with a hand made dye job. A nice watch deserves a nice strap, even if it costs of couple of hundred bucks. Genteel-handmade is an excellent maker with a huge array of styles and colors.

 

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Foo2rama

·Jun 28, 2021·Nowhere near as grumpy as he used to be...

Dyed leather? Most leather in bright colors is painted.

 

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ConElPueblo

·Jun 29, 2021

As someone who have worked a little with leather, let me repeat the advice given previously - don't. This is a really good looking leather strap and it doesn't look to have been treated with pigmented applications before. There is no way of knowing how the leather will take an application and you could easily end up with a blotchy appearance or a too dark colour - the lovely light stitching will be ruined as well. Hides are coloured prior to being cut to shape for a reason.

 

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Syrte

·Jun 29, 2021

Evitzee

There are plenty of bespoke strap makers who will make exactly what you want in blue or green with your choice of stitching color, and they'll put in a quick release spring bar for a few dollars more. I don't think you'll be happy with a hand made dye job. A nice watch deserves a nice strap, even if it costs of couple of hundred bucks. Genteel-handmade is an excellent maker with a huge array of styles and colors.

And it doesn’t have to cost a couple hundred bucks, or even to be bespoke.
There are fabulous high quality options available for less than 100 dollars - as well as bespoke straps available for that price.
If you’re US based you can go to Instagram Wristwatchme,
Ir Delugs straps- or you can seek out craftsmen who sell on this forum, and there are even more options.

 

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texasmade

·Jun 29, 2021

I haven't see a lot of good 3rd party strap designed for that watch. When Cartier redesigned the watch with the quick strap release, they made it a lot harder for 3rd parties to make straps for the watch. I think you're better off just going to a Cartier boutique and ordering another strap.