British Museum Leather Dressing - Use

Use

Leather dressings are applied as lubricants to leather, particularly items that are in use, rather than on static display. They are beneficial when a leather item has lost its flexibility, or when it must be protected from future variations in humidity.

Lubricants should be avoided for leather unless necessary. An excess of them may attract airborne dust or even moulds. If the item does not need to be flexible, then there is rarely a need to lubricate it. An excess of lubricant may actually act to seal the surface and repel moisture, causing the leather to dry out even further. There is certainly no need to 'feed' leather — it is already dead. If the requirement is to improve the surface appearance alone, a wax treatment such as Renaissance Wax may be more appropriate. Most lubricants will darken the leather.

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