What and how to quickly iron a leather jacket, skirt or coat?
Leather is considered a very plastic material that holds its shape perfectly, but it can also be severely dented if you ignore basic storage conditions. It is worth considering that following them will save housewives a lot of time and effort, since ironing a leather jacket or other massive product is not at all easy. There are many methods for restoring the original appearance of a thing, but they all differ in the abundance of stages, nuances and limitations. In some cases, approaches involve the risk of cracks and abrasions appearing on the material, so you should not deviate even one step from the instructions.
There is no need to restore your favorite skirt, jacket or raincoat if you provide them with proper care:
- Leather products can only be stored flat. For this, it is recommended to use special hangers (including for skirts).
- Things that are in the closet together with a leather product should not create pressure on the item.
- Don't wear a leather skirt or jacket that doesn't fit properly. The product will very soon sag or become stretched in problem areas and lose its shape.
- It is strictly forbidden to hang leather outerwear on hooks. Even if the item is removed for only a few minutes, it should be placed on hangers or the back of a sloping chair.
If the recommendations for some reason did not work, and your favorite item is in poor condition, you can iron a leather jacket or other product made of unyielding material using effective, albeit troublesome, manipulations.
Principles and features of dry ironing
Housewives usually use an iron if they need to iron a leather skirt or raincoat, i.e. the product has the simplest possible form without numerous transitions and artificially created folds. In order to get the optimal result with this approach at home, you must follow the following rules:
- The temperature should be minimal.
- Processing is carried out from the front side. You can only work from the inside out if there is no lining.
- The sole of the iron should not come into direct contact with the skin; the use of a gasket is mandatory. This can be a very thin fabric without a pronounced texture or wrapping paper.
- Wrinkled leather should not be treated with steam during ironing.
- To straighten the material in problem areas, you need to gently press with the iron, hold for a couple of seconds and release. After checking the result, we repeat the effect or move to another area.
- There is no need to rush into transitions from one zone to another. We move the skirt or turn it over with another part only after the treated area has completely cooled.
- We also treat hard-to-reach places or small elements with an iron, but we place a miniature stand under the material, which usually comes complete with an ironing board.
The same principles must be taken into account when ironing a leather jacket.You just need to take into account the peculiarities of the shape of the item and act strictly according to the patterns, otherwise, in the end, the item of clothing will not fit the figure as before.
How to restore a product using hot steam?
Wrinkled leather can be smoothed out using steam. At home, an iron or steamer is used for this purpose. In the first case, we will need a device with a steam generator; the use of simpler models can end tragically for the material.
Most often, this method is used to smooth a leather jacket:
- We place the item on a hanger and fix it on a vertical hanger.
- We keep the selected device at a distance from the skin (about 15 cm) and begin to supply steam.
- We don’t stay in one place for more than five seconds, we constantly move the device.
- You should not try to correct the product during processing; you may get a serious thermal burn.
- Remove the item from the hanger only after it has cooled completely.
Tip: If your household does not have a steamer or a suitable iron, you can find an equally effective way out of the situation. We put a basin of boiling water in the bathtub, hang a jacket over it, and leave it until the water cools down. If necessary, we make another approach.
Contrary to popular belief, steam treatment is more effective and allows you to restore the shape of things made from very dense and unyielding leather.
The most gentle methods of influence
When working with products made of very delicate material, it is first recommended to try softer and safer options:
- We simply hang the product on hangers of a suitable shape and wait patiently for several days until it returns to its previous appearance.
- In some cases, Vaseline, castor or nut oil helps. Apply the product directly to the creases and remove with a damp cloth after the material has softened and smoothed out. This approach also restores elasticity to the tissue, so it can be used as a preventative against skin thickening.
If you don’t want to waste time on all this trouble or there is a fear of damage to your favorite thing, then you should use the services of special service centers that work specifically with leather. But, as practice shows, the listed approaches are safe, while guaranteeing a positive result.
We recommend that you read the article about how to smooth leatherette