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What to use to dye faux leather shoes and how to use it?

January 29, 2018 by Jean-Marc Chateigner 12 Comments

Dyeing faux leather shoes can be a very difficult process if you don’t know what you are going to use and what materials you are working with, sometimes the faux leather fabrics in the shoes are not going to absorb the color well and they may even start having a horrible smell which is going to make you feel bad about you shoes never wear them again!

I’m going to share with you the best colorants to use for dyeing faux leather shoes and also how to use them efficiently.

For all your faux leather maintenance, I highly recommend saddle soap. Click here to get it!

But before we start talking about dyeing faux leather shoes, you need to understand what the faux leather fabrics they are made of are.

This is very important because some faux leather fabrics cannot be dyed and will in fact give very terrible results when colored.

So make sure you apply the dye in a small and hidden are of your faux leather shoes, otherwise it may cause more damages.

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There aren’t many techniques to know about the faux leather fabric you are dealing with unless you are an expert, what you can do is simply test the fabric yourself.

A very good way to test whether your faux leather shoes are going to support dyeing or not is to make tests on hidden parts.

For example, you can test the inside lining of your faux leather shoes and see whether they are going to absorb the color are not.

If they can’t, then, no need to expose them to much more colors because they are simply going to look horrible and you may not even like the result.

To prevent faux leather from peeling and cracking, I highly advice you to use a good conditioner. Click here to try it!

And if they absorb the coloring wonderfully and don’t reject it after some few days, then it is all good.

So now let’s talk about the best dye to use for your faux leather shoes.

Most people are going to think that faux leather fabrics may necessitate different coloring processes and different coloring materials than real leather, but the truth is that both fabrics can be dyed using the same products, as long as your faux leather is going to absorb the colors.

If your faux leather shoes do not absorb dyes, then I highly recommend that you use upholstery paint, it is very affordable, usually costs less than ten dollars and it is very effective, however it is not going to last a long time!

This is why the best brand to use in my opinion for dyeing your faux leather shoes is called Fiebings leather dye and which comes in different colors and different formulas.

Here are the most important indications when dyeing your faux leather shoes:

  • Always use the applicator provided by the manufacturer, don’t use tissues or cloths, these chemicals tend to be very aggressive when it comes to your hand and your health.
  • The next step is to always use the deglazer before dyeing as this is going to allow your faux leather fabrics to absorb the color efficiently.

The third step is to think deeply before dyeing your faux leather shoes, by this I simply mean that you should use your mind to determine what color do you really need, for example your faux leather shoes may look brown but in reality they may have a greenish color to the brown, this means that you should mix some green with your brown dye.

This is important to understand because it will simply mean the success or the failure of dyeing your faux leather shoes.

Remember to use the following conditioner to maintain your faux leather objects cracks free: Click here!

It is best to use alcohol to mix different colors in order to get the perfect combination and if you are unsure about dyeing your faux leather shoes, you can always give them to a professional repair shoe shop.

Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. Karam says

    June 8, 2013 at 12:26 pm

    please help, I’ve used a strong color and now my bag is looking horrible! what can be done?

    Reply
    • Jean-Marc Chateigner says

      June 8, 2013 at 12:44 pm

      Hi, you can always try using alcohol, it will get most of the color off, but it may damage the original color.

      Reply
  2. Marianne Friend says

    September 10, 2017 at 10:37 am

    Hi Jean-Marc

    Are you, really, saying I can dye some new, black faux-leather booties from hospital, say an olive or light brown colour?

    Sounds amaing and almost ‘too good to be true’ but I am ‘open to this!

    Can you say where to bo buy this amazing product – although you may, already, have done this – just, I have, only, just, gone on to your website

    Angel Light

    Marianne Friend

    Reply
    • Jean-Marc Chateigner says

      September 12, 2017 at 10:54 am

      Hello Marianne,
      Yes, you can do it, I buy it from Amazon.com, https://fauxleatherguide.com/Leather-Dye.

      Reply
  3. Marianne Friend says

    September 10, 2017 at 10:44 am

    Just to say, you are amazing doing this and I know many, many vegetarian & vegan people and many others – a n d all our animals are very grateful you have chosen to do this.

    Thanks and well-done, if I may say this

    Angel Light

    Marianne

    Reply
    • Jean-Marc Chateigner says

      September 12, 2017 at 10:53 am

      Thanks Marianne.

      Reply
  4. Nora says

    October 1, 2017 at 8:20 pm

    hello,
    is this product vegan? I was looking for a similar product but couldn’t find the ingredients…and this is how I found your page.
    Best regards

    Reply
    • Jean-Marc Chateigner says

      October 3, 2017 at 8:41 pm

      I don’t think so Nora because it may contain traces of lanolin. I’m not sure though.

      Reply
  5. Jodes says

    April 20, 2018 at 7:03 am

    Hi, thanks for a great info page! im looking for some advice. I have white synthetic leather heels, i have the liquid you use to remove the protective layer (forget the name). I want to dye them off-white. Everything else (lace, fabric, etc) i have dyed using tea. Do you think tea will work on this faux leather too? And word vinegar or salt be better to help the color stay?

    Reply
    • Jean-Marc Chateigner says

      April 22, 2018 at 9:35 pm

      No, it won’t help you at all since it’s a synthetic fabric.

      Reply
      • Jodes says

        May 19, 2018 at 5:08 am

        So do u have another suggestion?

        Reply
        • Jean-Marc Chateigner says

          May 20, 2018 at 6:49 pm

          You can use chemical dyes instead, the one I like is Fiebing’s, it’s inexpensive and works fine with faux leather fabric.

          Reply

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Hello, my name is Jean-Marc and I am a passionate French faux leather craftsman. I began very early in this craft, first I was working with real leather, but after seeing all the harm that was done to animals for our sake, I changed to faux leather. I would like to help people with their faux leather issues, from cracking and peeling to discolorations, you name it; I'm your guy :-) Read More…

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