Extraordinary Guide On How To Soften Leather Jackets in 2023!

Purchasing leather jackets can be exciting, but difficult to soften them as they come in hard material. No matter how stylish a leather jacket is, it can be quite difficult to wear it if it’s hard. To solve this problem, we have brought this comprehensive guide to teach you How to soften leather jackets.

The fashion industry has been using leather garments for years and years. They are the need of our everyday lives. Leather garments are known for their durability. This means that there is a possibility of them being hard. The harder the leather is, the tougher it would be. However, when we talk about jackets, the majority prefers softer textured ones to avoid hard leather.

There are a lot of leather types that are made from the skin of different animals. Each type of leather demands special care, attention, and maintenance. They also demand different softening methods according to their nature. Finding this conversation informative? Then continue reading to know more about leather.

Leather Types and How Do They Differ From Each Other In Hardness

If you think that most of the leather is taken from cowhides, you are wrong. Leather is also taken from many other animals like buffalo, goats, and many more. Bovine leather is known for its roughness. The main objective of this leather type is to protect its wearers (mostly bikers) from serious damage if they face any road accident.

On the other hand, we have Calfskin which is famous for its softness and fragility. Goat skin can be used instead of bovine and calfskin. The amazing and best attribute of goat skin is its water-repellent quality! And this is the quality of it which makes it unique and valuable! If we talk about lambskin leather, we would say that this type of leather is used to make expensive clothes and other accessories.

Industrialists produce these products for high-class people who do not compromise on quality. This is the class of our society, that doesn’t care how costly a single leather product is. They simply buy it without caring about its price.

Common Hides to Make Leather

Let us highlight the most common animal skins (to make leather from) and their softness:

• Cowhide: 

The leather which is used in the making of sofa covers and other furniture items is made from cowhide. This type of leather is the strongest and the toughest! But because it is very heavy that is why industries do not make clothes out of this.

• Deerskin Leather:

This leather type is even softer if we compare it to cowhide leather. Deerskin leather contains the quality to imprison cold winds in the middle of its particles. The purpose of this process is to give this leather type an even softer texture. Deerskin leather has a unique ability to provide warmth to its wearers in winter and cool in summer. As with most leathers, this particular leather type is also reliable and long-lasting.

• Lambskin Leather: 

If we visit the market, we will find this leather the softest among all the other leather types! The reason for its softness is that this type of leather has been taken from immature lambs. The fine-grained texture gives it a unique look! What we know is that the softer this leather is, the more we can rely on it.

Not only this, but it also has the ability to protect its wearers if they face any road accidents. But if we want to take advantage of the quality of this leather type, we will have to take proper care of it. This is the only scenario in which it will provide us protection. Since the establishment of leather industries in the 1900s, industrialists have been using Lambskin leather for the manufacturing of jackets.

Classification of Leather

Leather can be divided into the following types:

• Full Grain: 

This type of leather is taken from the uppermost layer of the animal skin. It is available in a rough texture and is the most expensive type of leather. All the rich people buy this leather, who are fond of leather products!

• Top Grain: 

If you are looking forward to buying a new leather jacket, we suggest a top-grain leather jacket. The craftsmen make jackets with this leather type by cutting the uppermost layer of skin in two parts first. When they go through this step, they polish the external part of it. It not only smoothens its appearance but also makes it flexible.

This type of leather is very tough and long-lasting. Since this leather type has become flexible, industrialists make stretchable garments with it. And no matter how much its users stretch it, it never gets destroyed. This type of leather is also used in the making of expensive leather garments.

• Corrected Grain:

This leather type is made from the top layer of the skin of animals. And later on, it goes through the process of splitting.

• Bonded Leather: 

Another name for bonded leather is faux. The craftsmen use it in the manufacturing of sofa cloths, car seats, and many more. This type of leather contains only ten to twenty percent of pure leather.

Reasons Why Does Leather Become Hard

Even if a craftsman has manufactured a specific leather in high quality, much better than others, chances are that it may turn hard with time. There are many reasons for its hardness that we are going to cover under the next heading.

1. Storing Place

There are times when we purchase jackets, and then don’t take care of them by placing them in some non-suitable place. As a result, these jackets become stiff. The fact that we need to understand is that even jackets demand a suitable place to store them.

In simple words, jackets get affected by extra moisture and extra dryness if kept in the wrong place. Both of these factors can make your leather jackets hard. Now the question is how can one prevent them from getting stiff? Well, the solution to this problem is to keep them in a place that has a humidity of forty to forty-five percent.

2. Stretching

Suppose you have bought a jacket in which you cant fit properly especially due to its small size. If this is the case, then you would stretch it fully to make it fit you properly. This extra stretching can make your leather jacket stiff. So whenever you buy something which does not fit you, DO NOT try to stretch it. Otherwise, it will result in destroying your jacket.

3. NEVER Use A Dryer

Always remember not to store your jacket in such a place, that is dry. The reason for stopping you from doing this is to prevent your jacket from being damaged. Now the question is why and how? Well, it is because intense dryness can damage your jacket badly! So if your jacket has become wet anyhow, make it dry with the help of a washcloth. This will dry your leather jacket in a safe way.

4. Your Jacket’s Life Is Over

If you take care of your jacket in every aspect, it will serve you with its long-lasting ability. Taking good care of your jacket can result in serving you with its best quality and service. But in spite of special care, your jacket can become stiff if you use it for a long time period.

Enough to give you so much information about leather. Now it’s time to start the discussion about our main topic. So without wasting a minute, let us jump into it!

Top 4 Methods To Soften the Leather Of Your Jacket

1. Use Leather Conditioner

If you want to soften your leather jacket in a safe way, use a leather conditioner to get the job done. This will let the leather of your jacket maintain its texture and quality. The right time to apply a leather conditioner to your jacket is after every few months. Leather conditioners contain water which enables them to apply the right quantity of moisture to the leather jacket. And thus, now you know, so go and use this leather softening technique!

2. Combination of Alcohol and Vaseline

Another method to soften stiff jackets is to apply rubbing alcohol on them but in a specific way. What you need to do is to take a cotton ball, and dab it in the rubbing alcohol. Then, apply it to your jacket. After getting it dried, use vaseline on it and keep it aside for a night. The reason for leaving it for a whole night is to give it its demanded time to work effectively. So under this heading, you have learned how to soften a stiff leather jacket. So use this method, and feel real comfort when wearing a leather jacket!

3. Use Coconut Oil

This leather softening method is on number three on our list. So what you need to do is to put your jacket under the sun for a few minutes. When it becomes hot, apply coconut oil all over it in a proper way. But, always try this oil on a small patch on the jacket as a test.

This experiment is necessary because there are chances that this method may darken the shade of your jacket. So always test coconut oil on a small area of your jacket first. This is another technique that tells you how to soften stiff leather jackets. So what are you waiting for? Just go for it!

4. Mink Oil

This leather softening technique is simple yet effective. Under this method, mink oil is applied to the leather jacket. When you complete this step, put it aside for two to three days to let it absorb the oil. But always apply this oil in three layers to make this leather softening method effective. So now you know how to soften the leather of jackets in the quickest and easiest way! 

Conclusion

Here you go with the complete guide on how to soften leather jackets. So use the leather softening techniques and comfort yourself!

Since we are talking about garments, let us tell you something exciting. The good news is that we have a huge variety of men’s shearling coats & jackets and motorcycle leather jacket mens on our website at reasonable prices! So go and check this 2023 collection, and add style to your appearance! And since now you are aware of how to make a leather jacket softer, it is your time to shine!

FAQs

• Why is my leather jacket so hard?

New leather jackets are always hard. Wearing them often softens them.

• What is the natural way of softening leather?

Leather can be softened by different methods. Some of them are coconut oil, conditioner and vaseline.

• How can I make my leather flexible?

Conditioning agents can be used on leather to make it flexible.

• How much time does it take to soften leather?

There is no exact time duration for leather to soften. The more often you wear it, the more it softens.

• Is Vaseline good for leather?

It is extremely good to soften and maintain the quality of your leather jacket. Just rub it and remove the excess.