The Laundry of Leather Accessories for Clothes

Many clothes use leather accessories to show different design styles and improve their beauty. Patchwork leather decorations are used on pockets, cuffs, or plackets. Buttons and pendants are leather-made. It is a little difficult for people to wash the clothes. Improper treatment can damage the appearance and integrity of the accessories. Therefore, it is necessary to test these leather accessories first before washing.

The route of the risks of leather accessories lies in its low colorfastness. (Its colorfastness is generally lower than that of the common fabrics.) There are two kinds of leather. One is coated leather and the other is dyed leather. The colorfastness of the dyed leather is lower than that of the coated leather. Before washing, the test should be done according to the following methods.

Test One: Color fading risk after water washing

Choose an inconspicuous leather part of the clothes → Dip a cotton swab thoroughly in clean water to keep it moist but not dripping → Apply moderate force and wipe the selected leather area in one direction 5 to 10 times → Observe the head of the cotton swab after wiping.

If the cotton swab has no staining or only a very slight staining (almost imperceptible to the naked eye), it shows that the leather has good water fastness and the risk during regular water washingis relatively low (but the overall washing strength still needs to be noted).
If the cotton swab shows obvious color fading, it means that the leather has poor color fastness to water and it should not be washed directly with water. If water washing is necessary, it should be done separately (to avoid contaminating other clothes). Also, it is advisable to use a leather-specific color fixative (need careful selection and local testing) or operate under professional guidance. When washing, choose a gentle mechanical force.
If the cotton swab is severely stained (dark in color and large in area), it means that the leather is extremely not water-resistant. It is recommended to do small areas of cleaning (not the leather part) because the risk of overall cleaning is too high.

Test Two: Color fading risk after dry cleaning

Choose an inconspicuous leather part of the clothes as well → Dip a cotton swab in an appropriate amount of dry cleaning solvent → Apply moderate force and wipe the selected leather area in one direction 5 to 10 times → Observe the head of the cotton swab after wiping.

If the cotton swab is not stained or only slightly stained, it means that the leather has good solvent resistance and the risk during regular dry cleaning is relatively low.
A slight touch of the cotton sign shows that leather may have a color loss in the dry-cleaning process. Although it can be dry-cleaned, it must be strictly isolated from leather accessories so as to prevent discoloring other parts of clothing or other clothing that is washed with the same batch.
If the cotton swab shows obvious or severe staining, it means that the leather is not resistant to such dry cleaning solvents. Dry cleaning agents such as tetrachloroethylene or hydrocarbon solvents are not suitable.

Common Protection Methods

Dry cleaning mesh bags/cotton bags for isolation

Operation: Carefully put the entire garment (the zipper is zipped up and the buttons are fastened) into a large enough breathable dry cleaning bag. For the delicate clothes, use a softer cotton bag to provide a more gentle protection. There should be enough room in the bag to make the solvent circulate. This method can effectively reduce the friction between leather items and other clothes or the wall of the inner drum, and buffer mechanical force.

Professional-level protection laws for moderate to significant color fading risks

For items that have vivid color fading tendency in tests before, or special decorative positions, small volumes and prone to friction, more rigorous and targeted protection is required:

Decorative protection with edge rolling strips

This type of decoration is usually slender and runs through the edges of the garment (such as the collar, hem, and cuffs), with a large contact area with the main fabric and many friction points.

People should use dry cleaning mesh bags or cotton bags for overall isolation first. (the method is the same as above). If the risk is extremely high or the roller is particularly prominent, it is advisable to wrap an additional layer of clean white cotton cloth or thin non-woven fabric around the roller and gently fixing it with a pin or easily removable loose thread (note that this is a temporary fixation, not permanent sewing) to ensure that all leather surfaces are covered. After wrapping, it still needs to be placed in the dry cleaning mesh bag or cotton bag.

Independent leather pendant/small protection (buttons, zipper head, leather label, pendant)

They are small and have an irregular shape. It is very likely to cause intense friction with the surrounding fabrics or other clothes during the washing and tumbling process, leading to color fading or self-wear.

It can be wrapped with aluminium foil. Cut the aluminium foil to the appropriate size to completely wrap around the small leather items, ensuring that no gaps or corners are exposed. Aluminum foil can effectively isolate solvents, moisture and light (which is beneficial for some photosensitive leathers), and it has a certain hardness to provide physical protection. After wrapping, pinch and fix it tightly.

People can also choose to use clean waste cloth to carefully wrap leather. It also requires no gaps. The number of layers of wrapping can be appropriately increased, and then gently tied tightly with a rubber band or thin thread (to avoid damaging the clothes). This method has a low cost, but its protection tightness and durability are slightly inferior to those of aluminum foil.

Protection for decorations like pocket openings and partial leather patches

Leather pocket flaps and pocket edge trims are relatively large in area and protrude. They tend to fold and rub during washing. You can cut a piece of clean white cotton cloth or non-woven fabric of appropriate size to completely cover the leather-decorated parts.

Use a hand-sewing needle and removable thread (loose thread or thread with a distinct contrasting color) to sew sparsely and temporarily along the seam where the leather edge meets the garment fabric for fixation.

The stitches should be loose because they just temporarily secure the cloth piece to prevent it from falling off, so as to avoid damaging the fabric or leaving permanent pinholes. Ensure that the covering cloth completely covers the leather and will not shift during washing, which would expose the leather. After covering and fixing, put the entire garment into a dry-cleaning mesh bag for washing to provide double protection.

Conclusion

By the above methods, the risks of leather accessories on clothes wearing out and fading during the washing process can be effectively reduced.