Care guide

Take care of it and it will outlive you.

Leather is skin. The same things that kept it supple on the animal will keep it supple in your pocket. Here's the short list.

Condition twice a year

A small dab of Aussie Conditioner or Smith's Leather Balm worked in with a soft cotton cloth — spring and fall is the right rhythm in the Northeast.

Keep it out of standing water

A few drops of rain are fine. A wallet that takes a dip in the lake will dry stiff and uneven. Blot, dry slowly, then condition.

No radiators, no dashboards

Heat is leather's worst enemy. Never leave a piece on a car dashboard in summer or near a heat vent in winter.

Patina is not damage

The darkening, the soft sheen — that's the leather telling the story of how you used it. Don't try to prevent it.

Send it to us for repair

If a stitch ever fails or an edge cracks, mail it back. We'll fix what we made, for life, at no charge.

Spot clean only

Never put leather in water or in a washing machine. A barely-damp cloth and a tiny bit of saddle soap handles almost everything.

Recommended products

  • Smith's Leather Balm — a small jar lasts years. Good on every leather we use.
  • Aussie Conditioner — heavier, beeswax-based, great for belts and bags.
  • Bickmore Bick 4 — for restoring color on dried, neglected pieces.
  • A clean soft cotton cloth — old t-shirts work perfectly. No special applicator needed.

"The best advice I can give is to use the piece. Leather that lives in a drawer doesn't patina; it dries out."

— Denise

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