When leather clothing transfers colour

Download PDF

Is a new leather jacket transferring colour to your shirt or skin? This happens and is usually no cause for concern. If it becomes excessive, however, trying home remedies yourself is not the right solution. This article explains why.

What causes colour transfer?

Leather jackets, trousers, belts, bags and gloves can transfer colour to clothing worn underneath, skin or upholstery covers. Sometimes it is just small fibres from suede leather; sometimes the dyes were not sufficiently fixed during manufacture.

A minimal amount of colour transfer can occasionally occur with new leather and is normal. In contrast, heavy colour transfer that permanently discolours materials in contact is not acceptable.

What to do in case of heavy colour transfer

In the event of obvious colour transfer, you should first try to make a complaint about the clothing to the seller. This is a defect for which the seller must be responsible. In difficult cases, legal or consumer protection can help.

Important:
Commonly recommended home remedies such as hairspray, vinegar essence or waterproofing sprays rarely work for this problem. It is also not your task as a customer to solve the problem yourself; it is the responsibility of the seller of the goods.

When a complaint is not possible

Perhaps a complaint is no longer possible, for example because the garment has already been worn for some time or the item was purchased online and contacting the seller is difficult. As a last attempt, it is possible to first pre-treat the garment with Colourlock Leather Fixative and then clean it completely with Colourlock Leather & Fur Wash Concentrate according to the washing instructions.

Surface cleaning alone with a cloth or sponge almost never helps with this problem. Only a complete wash can actually wash out the unfixed dyes. There is no guarantee of success, but in many cases this substantially improves the problem.

Product recommendations

Note:
(Clicking on products adds them to the shopping basket, after which they can be ordered)

Last attempt for colour-transferring clothing

  • Leather Wash Set