How do you paint leather?

August 22, 2011 7:42 AM

I'm turning a small vintage samsonite leather suitcase into a baby travel kit that will stay in my sister's truck. I know how to get the lingering smells out, and how to replace the liner. I also figured out how to clean leather. But what type of paint is best to use on leather? I want to add some decorative elements with a baby theme to the outside and I'm not sure if acrylics are okay.
posted by FunkyHelix to Sports, Hobbies, & Recreation (8 answers total)

It depends on what sort of treatments have been previously applied to the leather. I can think of a couple products which would leave a terrible binding surface and the paint would probably just peel right off. Wiping the whole thing down with a rag wet with acetone would probably remove anything like this and give you a pretty good surface, though.

Do this outside and away from anything resembling an ignition source and give it a day or two for all the acetone to evaporate lest it mess up your paint job.
posted by Kid Charlemagne at 7:55 AM on August 22, 2011

Acrylics will probably wear off eventually, if it gets much use. You can get paints specifically for painting on leather, for what it's worth. (I don't have a link for you right now, sorry). You will have to sand those areas first to give the paint something to soak into to and hold on to, if you do use acrylics you might want to still do that to give it a slightly longer lifespan.
posted by stillnocturnal at 7:55 AM on August 22, 2011

You might be able to just burn a design into the leather -- there are irons designed for woodburning that should work on leather.
posted by novalis_dt at 8:35 AM on August 22, 2011

Dharma Trading offers Angelus leather paints.
posted by catlet at 8:43 AM on August 22, 2011

Someone painted a suitcase to look like a watermelon in this Crafster thread and said she used acrylic/Krylon paints. You might find some other helpful tips in the thread as well.
posted by orange swan at 8:43 AM on August 22, 2011

I just learned this - there's leather paint primarily used for shoes. It's really inexpensive, but requires a few coats. Also comes in spray paint.

The less expensive brand is Angelus - I'm on my phone, but can memail you the link later if you need. I can't remember the higher quality brand, but can track it down if you need.

I went to a shoe-repair supply house here in Chicago and it was less than $2 a bottle. Tons of colors. So see if there's something like that around you.

I painted my bike seat - I've now ridden several miles and it withstood some rain. Amazing (oh, and get the finisher for extra safety.)

(isachssons.com, I think. They were really nice - tell them I sent you! My bike seat is great!)
posted by crankyrogalsky at 8:44 AM on August 22, 2011

First, clean well with ammonia to remove any wax or oil. Shoes requires flexible paint, but your suitcase won't need that. Patent/super shiny leather might need special paint. I think acrylic will work fine on most leather; it will have a rough enough surface for paint to grip. Cute idea.

I just saw this on lifehacker: http://lifehacker.com/5831861/pack-your-picnic-supplies-in-a-suitcase-that-transforms-into-a-table-with-speaker-system
posted by theora55 at 9:37 AM on August 22, 2011

I've used Cova Color acrylic paint for this in the past. Available from Tandy Leather
posted by kaszeta at 11:38 AM on August 22, 2011