Start Here
Five Rules That Cover Almost Everything
Get these five right and leather mostly looks after itself. Everything below is detail.
- Hang It Properly — Use a wide padded hanger. Wire hangers put the whole weight on two points and leave permanent shoulder dents.
- Keep It Breathing — Never store leather in plastic, because trapped moisture causes mould. Use a breathable cotton or canvas garment bag instead.
- Keep It Shaded — Direct sunlight fades the dye and dries the oils out of the hide. It happens through window glass too.
- Never Use Heat — No radiator, no hairdryer, no tumble dryer, no hot car. Drying leather quickly is precisely what makes it crack.
- Condition Twice Yearly — Leather loses its oils with wear and time. Conditioning replaces them, and prevents cracking that can never be repaired.
Know Your Hide
Each Leather Wants Something Different
Lambskin, cowhide and sheepskin behave differently. Check your product page if you are unsure.
Lambskin
Thin, soft and the most delicate of the three. Used in our dresses, tops, blazers, trousers and loungewear.
- Use a light cream conditioner, never a heavy balm — it will sit on the surface and feel greasy
- Scuffs more easily than cowhide. Keep it away from rough bags and seatbelts
- Condition every 6 months, or every four near the coast
- Never rub a mark hard. Lambskin’s finish lifts under pressure
Cowhide
Thicker, firmer and considerably more durable. Used in our biker jackets, coats, pencil skirts, belts and bags.
- Takes a heavier balm or wax conditioner
- Expect it to feel stiff when new. Two to three weeks of wear softens it
- Develops a patina with age. Darkening at the elbows and cuffs is not damage
- Condition every 6 months
Sheepskin & Shearling
Hide on one side, wool on the other. Used in our aviator jackets and shearling coats.
- Never apply cream or balm to the wool side
- Brush the wool gently with a suede brush to lift and separate it
- Condition only the leather side, sparingly
- For anything beyond surface dust, use a specialist shearling cleaner
Day to Day
Care by What You Own
| Garment | What it needs |
|---|---|
| Jackets & coats | Hang on a wide padded hanger, never folded. Empty the pockets — weight distorts the shape permanently. |
| Dresses | Hang, never fold. Support the shoulders. A dress bag in cotton, not plastic. |
| Skirts & trousers | Hang from a padded clip bar at the waistband rather than folding over a rail. |
| Corsets & bustiers | Store flat or hung, never compressed. Air after wearing before putting away. |
| Tops & bodysuits | Hang. Lambskin creases easily and creases in leather set permanently. |
| Bags | Stuff with tissue to hold the shape. Store in the dust bag, upright, never stacked under weight. |
| Belts | Roll loosely or hang. Folding cracks the grain at the fold. |
| Gloves | Lay flat. Reshape while slightly damp if they get wet. |
When Something Happens
Fixing the Five Common Problems
Rain, marks, creases, mould and smell. What to do, and what never to do.
It got rained on
Blot with a dry cloth — press, don’t rub. Hang at room temperature away from any heat source and let it dry naturally. Condition once fully dry, because water draws oil out as it evaporates.
If it was sea water, wipe first with a cloth barely dampened in fresh water. Salt left in leather stiffens it.
It has a mark on it
Start with the gentlest thing that might work. A barely damp cloth handles most everyday marks. If that fails, use a leather cleaner made for garment leather and test it somewhere hidden first.
Oil and grease are different, cover with cornflour, leave several hours, then brush away gently. Never use water on an oil mark
It has deep creases
Hang it in a steamy bathroom for twenty minutes and let the creases gently relax on their own. Gravity does most of the work. If you must iron, use the lowest setting, no steam, and a cotton cloth between the iron and the leather. Keep it moving. Never let an iron rest on leather, even briefly.
It has developed mould
Take it outside before you touch it, so you are not releasing spores indoors. Brush the mould off with a dry cloth, then wipe it with a cloth dampened in weak white vinegar and water. Dry completely, then condition. Then fix the storage, or it comes back. Mould means the garment was stored damp without airflow.
It has a smell
Air it outdoors in shade for a full day. Do not spray perfume or deodoriser directly onto leather — it stains, and it does not address the cause. For persistent smells, leave an open container of baking soda in the wardrobe beside the garment for a week or two. Never seal it in plastic while airing.
The Long Game
Storing Leather Between Seasons
More leather is damaged in storage than in wear. This is where care counts.
- Clean it before you store it — Marks left on leather for months set permanently. This is the step people skip.
- Condition it before you store it — Not after. It goes away supple and comes back supple.
- Wide padded hangers, cotton or canvas covers, never plastic — Plastic traps moisture against the hide.
- Leave space between garments — A tightly packed wardrobe has no airflow, and no airflow in a damp room means mould.
- Somewhere dark, dry and stable — Not an unheated garage, not a sunny spare room, not a damp basement.
- Check on it once mid-season — Two minutes now beats discovering a problem in six months.
New Zealand’s coastal humidity, damp housing stock and unusually strong UV all make storage harder here than in most countries. Our New Zealand leather care guide covers what that means in practice.
Avoid
Seven Things That Ruin Leather
Every one of these causes damage that cannot be undone. Worth reading through once.
- Machine washing — Not on cold, not on delicate, not in a laundry bag. It destroys the finish and stiffens the fibres irreversibly.
- Tumble drying — Same outcome, faster.
- Drying with heat — Radiators, hairdryers, heat pumps, hot cars. Heat dries leather faster than its oils can redistribute, and it cracks.
- Plastic storage — Dry cleaning bags and vacuum bags trap moisture and cause mould.
- Household cleaners — Dish soap, all-purpose spray, baby wipes, alcohol gel. All strip the finish.
- Over-conditioning — More is not better. Excess product leaves leather greasy and can darken it unevenly.
- Ordinary dry cleaners — Use a specialist leather cleaner. A standard dry cleaning process can ruin a leather garment and most will not accept liability.
Questions
Frequently Asked Questions
How often should I condition leather clothing?
Every six months for most garments, or every four if you live near the coast or wear the piece often in sun. Conditioning replaces the oils that heat, water and ultraviolet light strip out, preventing cracking that cannot be repaired.
Can I wash leather clothing?
No, never machine wash leather on any setting, and never tumble dry it. Wipe any marks with a barely damp cloth and let it air dry away from heat. For anything more, use a cleaner made specifically for garment leather.
What can I use to clean leather at home?
Nothing, provided you blot it dry with a cloth and let it air dry at room temperature. The damage comes from drying it quickly with heat, which cracks it, or storing it damp, which causes mould. Condition it once dry.
What happens if leather gets wet?
Nothing, provided you blot it dry with a cloth and let it air dry at room temperature. The damage comes from drying it quickly with heat, which cracks it, or storing it damp, which causes mould. Condition it once dry.
How do I get creases out of leather?
Hang it in a steamy bathroom for twenty minutes and let the creases relax on their own. If you must iron, use the lowest setting with no steam, a cotton cloth between the iron and the leather, and keep moving.
Can I take leather clothing to a dry cleaner?
Only to one that specialises in leather. A standard dry cleaning process can strip the finish and stiffen the hide permanently, and most ordinary dry cleaners will not accept liability for damage to leather garments. Ask before you leave it.
Does conditioning darken leather?
Slightly, and usually only at first. Conditioner absorbs over a day or two and the colour settles back. Applying too much causes uneven darkening, so use a small amount and buff off any excess with a clean soft dry cloth.
Why does my new leather jacket feel stiff?
Cowhide is firm when new and needs wearing in. Two to three weeks of regular wear softens it as the hide warms and moulds to your shoulders. That break-in period is why the jacket lasts for decades rather than seasons.
Will my leather stretch or shrink?
Leather softens and moulds to your shape with wear, particularly at the elbow, knee and hip, but it does not gain or lose a size. Heat and improper drying can shrink and stiffen it permanently, which cannot be reversed afterwards.
How long should leather clothing last?
Looked after properly, a full-grain leather garment lasts decades rather than seasons. Leather improves under wear, developing a patina instead of thinning or wearing through. Conditioning twice yearly and storing it correctly decide whether that is ten years or thirty.
Before You Order
Not Sure About Sizing? Ask Us First
Every EXODUS piece is cut to order, so we can’t take change-of-mind returns. That makes fit worth getting right before anything is cut, not after.
Send us your measurements and tell us what you’re looking at. We’ll check them against that style and come back within one working day — with anything that looks off, and what we’d recommend instead.
No obligation. We'd rather answer a question than remake a garment.