Genuine leather outfits are always trendy. Leather is stylish, casual, waterproof and does not crumple easily. However, as a result of improper storage, there are situations when wrinkles and crumples appear on the leather. So there is some useful information on how to iron a dress or skirt made of leather properly without damaging it at home.
Types of material and features
In order to effectively smooth the folds on the leather clothes with an iron, you need to know what type of material you are dealing with. Leather clothing can be made of the following types of material:
- genuine leather;
- artificial leather (pleather);
- eco-leather.
If you do not know what type of leather your skirt is made of, look at its underside. The reverse side of the natural material will be velvety and fleecy. Pleather and eco-leather, which is a kind of artificial leather, will have a woven underside. You can see the weaving of the threads on the reverse side of the product.
For all types of material, you can use the same methods of ironing, with just slight variations. A skirt or a dress made of genuine leather is better ironed from the front side through paper or cotton material. Artificial leather, which has a woven base, can be ironed from the underside without the use of fabric layer.
In case a dress or a skirt has a lining that does not allow you to see the reverse side, you need to iron the outfit from the front side through a thin fabric. You can also use other ways to straighten folds at home.
When does it become necessary to iron the leather? It can be one of the following factors:
- The presence of crumples and creases on the surface of the leather as a result of improper storage or other reasons.
- The stretched areas appear on outfits made of genuine leather when wearing, for example, on elbows or backside. Outfits made of artificial material are not stretchable.
- Deformation of the leather outfits occurred as a result of improper care or for other reasons.
If the outfit has changed its shape under the influence of moisture or heat, you can not restore it to its original form by ironing. For example, a skirt made of genuine leather was completely soaked and then crumpled. Ironing is also useless if the outfit was put on a hot radiator and it has deformed. In other cases, when the leather clothes are wrinkled or stretched, they can be ironed out.
The quality of the leather also matters. The thinner and better the material used for making clothes, the easier and faster you will be able to iron and smooth it. Thin, genuine leather is easier to iron than a hard artificial leather.
How to iron the leather
There are several ways to return the leather outfit to the original shape. You can use any of them or try every one to choose the most effective one.
Be careful when working with perforated products. Thin material can easily tear, and this kind of damage cannot be restored.
Using an iron
Leather dress or skirt can be ironed at home. In general, the process is the same as ironing ordinary clothes, but it has some special tips.
The iron dial should be set to the lowest temperature. If the temperature exceeds the allowable limit, the clothes will be ruined. The second condition is using cotton cloth or paper, which is put over the surface of the leather. The outfit should not be ironed without this coverage.
If your iron is equipped with a steam function, it can be used to smooth the outfit, but use it at low power and separately from the ironing process. So you either iron the outfit with an iron, or steam it, but do not do that all at once.
To iron crumpled leather clothes, place the piece on the ironing board and straighten it out. Cover it with paper or a dry cotton cloth. Turn the iron on minimum power and gently iron the leather on the edge. It’s best to test the iron on a spare piece of the same leather your garment is made of. But if you don’t have one, you will just have to be very careful.
Iron the crumpled area, placing the iron directly onto the crease. If you don’t see any effect, slightly increase the temperature. After the crumpled area is smoothed out, wait until the garment has cooled and hang it up.
Straightening out the parts that stretched out is done in much the same way. Put the skirt on the ironing board with the back part facing up, smooth it with your hands and cover with a cloth. Place the iron on the outstretched areas and hold it for a while. If you use the right temperature, the skirt should restore its original shape.
The creases on the dress or skirt can also be removed using the steam function. Hang up the leather skirt, switch the iron into the steam mode. Steam the skirt at a short distance and on low power so as not to spoil the leather. Direct the steam stream onto the folds, while slightly pulling the material from the bottom. Be careful and do not burn yourself.
Using water
Small creases on the skirt can be removed in an easy way. Hang up the clothes in the bathroom. Sprinkle crumpled areas with water from the spray gun or wet with your hand. Water should be purified, so it doesn’t leave stains.
Leave the leather outfit hanging for some time (several hours). During this time, it should recover its original shape.
Using steam
Hang the leather outfit up in the bathroom and smooth the surface with your hands. Open the hot water tap, and make sure that the stream does not touch the clothes. Close the door to the bathroom so the steam cannot come out.
After a while, the hot steam will create humidity in the room. This will help to smooth the folds on the surface of the leather. If the creases are not very deep, the clothes will return to their original shape.
To iron a leather outfit at home and not damage it, use the above recommendations. Choose the most effective way yourself. In order to avoid ironing in the future, store and care for leather clothes properly.
Thanks a lot.. We tried this method to iron the leather skirts and it worked.