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Preserving aging aprons?

Mosaic

Registered User
Good day all.

I have a couple of old aprons & gloves handed me by my grandfather before he passed away in 2002. I notice most aprons begin to discolor with age. Is there a way to preserve them? Perhaps by getting them framed or using some substance to hold the color and texture?


Thanks in advance.
 

crono782

Premium Member
Keep them dry, flat, and out of direct sunlight. That should help keep it from cracking, curling, an yellowing. You could frame it under glass for sure.
 

dfreybur

Premium Member
There are leather treatment products like Neatsfoot oil. Rub the oil into the leather then rub out anything that comes to the surface. It both cleans the leather and replaces oils that have evaporated out over the years.

Leather gradually becomes brittle over the years as the oils evaporate. This is why the one I was given came in a sealed cardboard tube and why parchment lodge charter documents are kept in more carefully sealed metal tubes. The tube should preserve your apron for your life so it can go to the grave with you. It was not intended to last several generations. For that you'll want to use a leather treatment oil every decade or so.
 

MarkR

Premium Member
I've been told that aprons that have been rolled up in tubes for forty-fifty years don't want to unroll, and are a problem at the time of the funeral.

I wouldn't mess around with home remedies for the apron. Find a cleaners or a leather shop that really knows how to clean and treat leather and get it done there. I just did a Google search for "leather cleaning huntsville alabama" and found a few.
 

Brother JC

Moderating Staff
Staff Member
I would definitely go to a professional for this. Most leather treatments will darken the leather, especially old, dry leather. The last thing you want is a spotted brown apron.
 
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