The Breitling Watch Source Forums

Recently i bought a Breitling Blue Calf Leather strap and felt that the color isn't strong enough, i decided that i use Apple leather care kit to enhance and polish the leather strap. However, i encountered a problem, let me explain.

The strap is divided into 3 parts, the main area is the middle part of the strap and 2 thin layers beside the 2 white stiches. I polished the middle part and now it looks great, but i do not dare to polish the the 2 tiny layers beside the white stiches, because the blue color will stain the white stiches thus the stiches will look blue.

Any solution for this ? I would like to prevent the white stiches from being stained.

Careful q-tipping. I am not responsible for what you are doing over there in any way. Good luck.

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sco
Breitling Chrono Superocean
Omega Aqua Terra 8500
Rolex Submariner Date Ceramic

Yes if I can Q-tip with Olive oil you should be able to do it. Unless there is something particularly "runny" about the blue dye.


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SHARKMAN

What is q-tip ?

I normally use a small cloth and wrap it around cotton woo stick to polish the middle area of strap.

Do i need to wrap a mini cloth around the q stick ?

I will go out on a limb here and suggest the following. Don't blame me though if this does not work. Try it on something that you can spare for trial purposes and see how it works.

Have you thought about using a liquid gum, like Milliners Solution on tghe stitching? If you paint it over the white stitching and then undertake the leather care process, it may stay in place on the white stitching and only peel off after you have finished the leather work. It paints on with a small brush and you can be quite intricate with it. So it becomes a protector. Things like Milliners solution are a rubber gum, which remain flexible for a long time when exposed to the air, and they also stay put as they have a mild adhesive effect, without being adhesive. I can’t remember if they leave a residue or stain, but I don’t think so, especially if they are removed within a few hours of application. They peel off like skin after sunburn and can be used to mask or protect surfaces. A tackable fixative is more like how they act. Make sure you don't get any on the leather as that will mask areas you want to hit with the leather treatment. I also do not know what will happen if the leather treatment runs and is soaked up by the stitching.

I could imaging tipping becoming a little messy and hit and miss affair.

Just a thought.

More I re-read this, the more rediculous it sounds. On second thoughts, don't listen to me, go with the other suggestions.

Later

Jim

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Jim

"You have Control".

As Sharkman suggests try a cotton wool tipped stick. I have used olive oil on a tobacco croc to great effect.

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Al

“Quis custodiet ipsos custodes"

So do i need to wrap anything around the cotton stick ? Or just use the cotton stick itself ?

As others have said, a Q tip...or even a toothpick for that matter given how small the area is. You may wind up needing a bleach pen for the white stitching anyway. When you say you wanted to enhance, do you mean darken, lighten, deepen, etc?

darken

did not read the whole thread, hope you did not choose regular olive oil, it has to be Extra Vergine, ideally "Non Filtrato".

no, i using apple leather care kit to darken it, very good product.

If the Apple works like some things such as Leather Honey, getting the material on the stitching will have minimal affect. Does the Apple actually remove the blue from the leather strap? If you wipe a towel over a freshly done area, what color is the residue on the towel?

How can it remove the colour of it darkens it, i haven't try the wiping you suggested. But there are some light blue stains at the cotton stick. This product is actually quite good, i have been using it for several years on my leather made montblanc wallet, mom and sis also burrowed them to polish their bags.

I had my wallet for 7 years and it looked old, i used apple leather care and my wallet looks shiny and darker than the original colour.

The kti comes with 2 products, leather care and leather cleaner. Apply leather care liquid on it, wait for it to dry and finish it with apple leather cleaner.

http://cruisingfor.blogspot.sg/2009/10/ ... -care.html

At the end some of the white stiches did came into contact with the blue blue liquid but it remains white after drying.