Leather Expert Leather Colourant is a water-based opaque leather paint you use to restore or completely change the colour of leather. The paint stays elastic and does not dry out, so it moves with the leather instead of cracking. The secret is in the preparation and in working thinly: clean, remove the old finish, degrease, then thin layers of paint and seal with a top coat. You will find the Leather Expert Leather Colourant in the shop.
What the colourant does
Worn leather loses its colour where you touch it most: the side of the seat, the armrest, the gear lever. Leather Colourant lays a new, even colour layer over that. Because the paint is water-based and alcohol-free, it does not attack the leather, and because it stays elastic, the colour does not crack as the leather flexes. Leather Expert offers a colour chart with dozens of standard colours that are mixable, so you can approach almost any shade. The colour layer only becomes truly durable once you seal it with a top coat.
Preparation determines the result. You clean the leather, partially remove the old finish with a Leather Expert Leather Preparer and then degrease, so the paint adheres well. You will find all the products for this work in the leather cleaning and care category.
How to use it
Prepare. Clean the leather, partially remove the old finish with the preparer and degrease with an alcohol cleaner so the surface is clean and grease-free.
Shake and apply thinly. Shake the paint well and apply it in thin layers with a sponge or spray gun, the first layer in circular motions.
Dry layer by layer. Let each layer dry completely before you apply the next; thin and patient gives a more even result than one thick layer.
Finish and let it rest. Seal the colour with a top coat and then leave the leather to rest for about five days before you clean or condition it again.
Choosing and matching colour
Leather Expert works with an extensive colour chart and also offers a matching service: send in a leather sample, for example from a headrest, and they mix the colour to match. If you do not want a full re-dye but only to refresh the colour on absorbent leather, the Leather Expert Leather Colouring Balm is a simpler alternative: you rub it in and buff it off, without prep and sealing steps.
Which leather it suits
Leather Colourant is suitable for natural, pigmented leather and faux leather. Do not use it on suede, nubuck or aniline; for those Leather Expert has a separate leather dye. Do not work on greasy or unprepared leather, because then the paint will not adhere. When in doubt, always test on a hidden spot first.
Tips for the best result
Thin beats thick. Several thin layers dry evenly; one thick layer turns patchy and can crack.
Do not skip the top coat. Without a finishing layer the new colour wears off again quickly.
Work grease-free. The degreasing step is not optional; no paint adheres to greasy leather.
Take the rest time seriously. Not cleaning for five days lets the coating fully cure.
If you want everything in one go, there is a ready-made steering wheel restoration kit with paint and top coat together; for that read the guide restoring a steering wheel with the Leather Expert kit. The complete picture of cleaning, conditioning and repairing is in the guide cleaning, conditioning and repairing leather.