For a vegetarian, I really like leather. In fact, I’d say I like leather a lot even for a meat eater. Especially for shoes. I really love leather shoes. And purses. And wallets. And boots… oh lordy. Especially boots. I have a boot problem (damn you, eBay!). I like to buy nice leather boots and then maintain them, rather than go out and buy a new pair every year after the previous crap pair falls to pieces and are so poorly made they cannot be repaired. Having a good cobbler is essential for when zippers go, heals wear away, and holes show up in soles (I like Conti’s here in Calgary). For more day-to-day care, waterproofing and homemade leather balm help maintain the leather.
Leather is, of course, hide from a (once living) animal, and just like our skin, it can dry out. Waterproofing sprays help protect the leather from the vicious wet/dry cycle that comes with winter wear, but eventually your boots are going to start to show some wear. They’ll look a little dusty and sad, usually down around the feet and ankles where they suffer the most abuse. That’s where this leather balm comes in.
The darker boot has had the leather balm applied.
It’s a simple recipe, basically just a modification of my massage bars. Whereas the massage bars are 1:1:1 beeswax, cocoa butter (USA / Canada), and liquid oil, these are 1:1:2, giving the balm a slightly softer texture as opposed to being a very determinedly solid bar. This is still a balm, though; if you want more of a cream, I’d recommend a 1:1:3 ratio.
Once you’ve made the balm, massage it into your dried out leather boots with a rag. It’s easiest to apply while you’re wearing the boots. Watch the leather darken and come back to life with a beautiful shine. When you’re done, the leather will be beautifully soft and supple, and you’ll wonder why you didn’t do this earlier. Don’t overdo things, and be sure to wipe off any excess. Follow up with a waterproofing spray.
The boot on the right has been ‘balmed’, the one on the left hasn’t.
Homemade Leather Balm
25g | 0.88oz beeswax (USA / Canada)
25g | 0.88oz cocoa butter (USA / Canada)
50g | 1.76oz sweet almond oil (USA / Canada) (or other not-too-greasy liquid oil)Melt everything together in a small saucepan over medium heat. Pour into a 125mL/4oz mason jar and let cool until solid, 20–30 minutes. Use whenever you like. Also makes a nice body balm!
Thanks. This is a great idea. I am finding more and more reasons to buy these ingredients and I think you just gave me another one. I am also a fellow eBayer and you should also try the Shopgoodwill.com site. I have bought a lot from this site in the way of boots and coats. You can find some real treasures… sometimes for a lot and sometimes the same item is going for almost nothing.
Again, thanks for the info.
I Like the leather conditioner! And now I Need a recipe for a cold process saddle soap to clean boots saddles and leather goods.
On your homemade leather balm could you use Neat’s foot oil instead of the almond oil, and if so would it work better?
Just that I understand Neat’s foot oil is used quite a lot in the shoe making industry.
I’d never heard of “Neat’s foot oil” before, so I went and did some research. Wikipedia tells me it’s “neatsfoot oil”, “neat” being an old word for cattle. Meaning it’s the oil of the lower shinbone of cows. It’s liquid at room temperature, and it sounds like that’s what makes it good for treating leather with. The article also mentioned that most neatsfoot oil these days is actually made from lard, which is solid at room temperature.
So, if you could get pure, original, liquid at room temperature neatsfoot oil, I’d recommend substituting it for the liquid oil in this recipe and seeing what you think. If all you can find, however, is the lard stuff, I wouldn’t bother, since what makes original neatsfoot so good is it’s liquid room temperature consistency, which lard does not match. Hope that helps!
Hi! Is this balm also a waterproofer? I need a waterproofing substance for leatherwork. What could I add to make it a waterproofer .. If it isn’t?
Thanks!
Hi Bev! This will help add water repellancy, but nothing you apply to a finished leather product will make it truly waterproof. For that you’ll need a waterproof membrane (like GORE-TEX) and ensure all seams are sealed. I work in the outdoor industry, so we are pretty picky about what “waterproof” means 😉 True waterproofing is baked directly into something and can’t be added afterwards.
Instead of using cocoa butter, can coconut oil be used instead? as in use for muscle rubs, bars, and balms?
I really wouldn’t recommend it, Asia. Cocoa butter has the texture of chocolate—it’s hard and brittle at room temperature, and even if you rub it on your skin, it takes quite a bit of time to melt. Coconut oil, on the other hand, is very soft at room temperature, and liquifies as soon as it touches the skin. If you want to use coconut oil instead you’ll need to add more beeswax, but even then it won’t be the same due to the texture differences.
Hi There, there are so many great reviews of Doc Martens Wonder Balsam that includes Coconut oil in it I wonder why you say it’s not the best oil to use? Their balsam’s ingredients include coconut oil, lanolin and beeswax. I want to make my own but am kind of confused! Thanks for any education on the matter.
Hi Larry! There’s a couple factors here. One is that cocoa butter and coconut oil are vastly different, so in this recipe that swap would drastically alter the final product (think about using olive oil in a recipe that calls for butter). Second, coconut oil is a really thin oil. The balm you mentioned counters that with the addition of heavy, greasy lanolin, but this formula doesn’t. It’s not so much that coconut oil is a bad ingredient to use in a leather balm, it’s just that you shouldn’t use it as a direct swap in this recipe 🙂
Hi there. I was looking at other options instead of sweet almond oil, and in the link you supplied, if I read it correctly, coconut oil would work. I’ve the cocoa butter and beeswax, just no sweet almond oil. So in this case would the coconut oil sub work? Thank you.
What you’re mostly looking to match would be the liquid state—is your coconut oil liquid where you live? If so, that’ll work pretty well, though coconut oil is quite a lot greasier than sweet almond oil.
What do you recommend if I can not find sweet almond oil? BR,
Grapeseed, olive, and canola oil would all be great choices 🙂
I plan to try this balm on a saddle that needs some TLC. It sounds like just the ticket. Thank you for posting.
Enjoy it! Your saddle will look beautiful 🙂
where do you get cocoa butter?
I get mine from New Directions Aromatics.
Dear Marie,
I am a subscriber to your newsletters and follow your blog and must say that I find the information provided by you quite useful, I have been thinking for sometime to make a beeswax based leather conditioner for my leather products. here in India we do not get very good leather care products, I had been using Mink oil made by Terrago but only one shop in my town imports it and the supply is not consistent. I had originally planned to make it out of Beeswax and Sweet Almond Oil in a mixture that would have a cream like consistency.
A friend suggested that if I could bring the cost down maybe I can sell this stuff locally, so I started asking around for alternatives to sweet almond oil, I was told that out here Cottonseed Oil is very cheap and easily available. So I am writing to ask you about cottonseed oil, is it appropriate to use that as a replacement to almond oil? and also would like toknow anything that you can tell me about this oil.
Thanks and Regards, Mehram
Hi Mehram! I have never used cottonseed oil before, but according to NDA, it is really quite similar to sweet almond oil. The description of the scent and absorbency are identical, and the reviews are good. So yeah, go for it! Do a test batch first, of course, but I think it should work out quite well 🙂 Have fun!
Thanks a lot Marie, will let you know when I make the product. Mehran.
Have you had a chance to make it yet? How did it go?
Not yet, will inform u as soon as i make it.
🙂
Have made it, worked out prettywell.
I’m glad!
One quick note: Cottonseed oil should be certified organic, because Cotton is heavily sprayed with Lead/arsenic – the only minerals that are toxic to the insects. Just a heads-up, Just want you to be successful with your work & products. Cheers, DonK.
i followed your recipe and it turned out nicely. just treated one of my boots and it looks good! thanks much.
I’m thrilled to hear it, Annie! Thanks for reading and DIY-ing with me 🙂
Hi, what temperature do you recommend for melting the ingredients and for how long? Thank you.
Never mind: 30-40 mins over medium heat. Thanks.
Wrong again: melt over medium heat and let solidify in a mason jar for 30-40 mins. Can you tell I’ve never done this before?
Yup, there we go 🙂 No worries, sounds like you’ve got it now. Pretend like you’re melting butter over the stove, it’s more or less the same idea, just different ingredients. Let me know how it works out!
Please don’t do this without a double boiler—your ingredients will likely catch on fire! 😛
Medium to medium-low heat is best, and just until everything has melted. The beeswax will take the longest to melt by a fairly wide margin—you can help speed that along by ensuring the bits of beeswax you’re working with are fairly small (big chunks will take ages to melt).
Hi,
I have a few questions (here we go!). Will this not block the pores of the leather? What is the long time effect on say bridle leather? Won’t the natural oils start to decompose with time? Do you think this recipe is somehow close to this all natural Leather Balsam
http://www.otterwax.com/product/leather-salve-reg-tin/
They say they also use Shea Butter and Flaxseed Oil. I want to create my own little leather balsam with all natural ingredients and just want to make sure that I do not make any mistakes. Would you use Olive oil (does it have to be virgin?) as a substitute for sweet almond oil?
Apparently there is another maker of all natural Leather care and their mix includes tallow (what is that?), oils and beeswax.
Thank you for coming back to me on this – sorry for the long line of questions. Much appreciated – I love your blog!
Lara
xx
Hi Lara! I regularly put these ingredients on my skin and they don’t clog my pores, so your leather should be fine. The long term effect is the leather will stay soft and supple, rather than dry out. Yes, natural oils will break down over time, but that’s why you don’t absolutely drown your leather in the balm—you massage in a small amount and carefully buff off any excess. I’ve used this on boots and I promise they don’t start to smell like old chips after a year 😛 Plus, most natural saddle/leather balms will be made from similar ingredients. The one you mentioned says it’s from all natural ingredients, which means plant and animal based oils and waxes like these 🙂
You can definitely use any kind of olive oil you like instead of sweet almond oil—and feel free to get the cheapest type 😛 Tallow is rendered beef/cow fat, you can learn how to render your own here. I would probably avoid flaxseed oil as an ingredient as it tends to go rancid faster than most carrier oils, meaning your balm won’t last as long.
Thanks for reading & DIYing with me!
What are your thoughts about using this leather balm for brand new leather? I make some simple leather products, and have been looking for a natural softener and protector of my leather.
I have seen another recipe of using olive oil and orange turp (not sure what that is). Any thoughts of this recipe as well?
I’d say go for it, I can’t think of any reason not to. Orange turp is probably d-limonene, which is citrus terpenes (a natural solvent). I use them to clean with, so I’d hypothesize that recipe would be best for cleaning dirty leather.
Thanks for the recipe. What do you use to clean the boots before conditioning,
Hi Val! Generally just a damp cloth 🙂
Hi! I’ve got some old vintage boots (from the 60s or 70s) that need some TLC and I’m all about the handmade DIY remedies. Quick question though, I’ve read in some places that oils can have a longer term damaging effect on leather – mostly that the oil pulls back to the surface after some time and creates ugly spots. Since you’ve been doing this for awhile, I was just curious if you’ve experienced that at all with this conditioner recipe?
Hi Whitney! I haven’t seen any ugly spots on my boots after about 2 years 🙂
Hi!
Thanks for the recipe!
I have tried it and the balm has started to crack a bit on top as it cooled of. Can it be fixed? If yes, how?
Thank you!
Hey Carmina! This is strictly a cosmetic thing, but you could blast the top of the balm with a hairdryer to remelt it and remove the cracks if you’re fussed with how it looks 🙂
Is it ok to add leather fragrance to this or will it harm the leather? Thanks
I’m hardly a leather expert, but I think it would probably be ok. I’d stay away from photosensitive oils like citrus, though, so you don’t sun-bleach your leather!
Where might you suggest I source these materials? I live in Virginia. Thanks! John
Hey John! Amazon is actually a great, easy place to get most of this stuff, especially if you don’t want to order enough to justify the shipping charges from a specialty shop. Just click the links in the recipe (all the ingredients are links) to take you straight to everything you need 🙂
I bought some homemade leather balm for my saddle, scented with lavender and rosemary. I love the scent so much – like going to a spa! – that I now condition my tack much more regularly. I’d like to make my own and gift to friends, too, but I’m wondering if it’s possible to get deodorized cocoa butter? I don’t want the chocolate smell in there…
You can definitely use the deodorized stuff instead; it’s readily available 🙂
Thanks for your reply. While waiting for it, I read more user feedback (on Amazon) about deodorized cocoa butter – every person said it still smelled of chocolate. So I decided against it and bought shea butter instead. Any feedback on that choice?
In this application it’ll be ok, but in general they are not great alternatives for one another—watch this video for more info 🙂
I made this today and my shoes are looking good! I wonder if a different wax would create a shinier finish? I’m interested to see how this reacts to spring rain here in the UK.
It’s definitely worth a try! I’d probably give one of the c-waxes a go at 80% as a starting point 🙂
Hi there, I have a vintage hard leather satchel that looks like it hasn’t had care for some time, would the ratios/consistency of this balm be OK for this?
Thanks
It should be! I had a reader send me some photos of some seriously old saddles and tack they rescued with this balm 🙂
So, this will sound weird, but I’m nearly finished painting a Naugahyde chair with chalk paint. Obviously it dries very matte and needs to be protected. There are waxes specifically for chalk paint, but I’m curious if you think this recipe would work as well. The idea of adding scents like lavender and rosemary really has me intrigued.
I’m afraid I have no idea; this would certainly not give a matte finish as it will make wood gleam.
Hi Marie,
I’m looking for a good alternative to dubbin made with animal fats.
The 3 ingredients seem to always be a wax – a fat – an oil. I came
across your recipe a few days ago before searching for dubbin
recipes. Would you consider this a dubbin? Thanks so much 🙂
From what the internet says about dubbins, it should be!
Hey has anyone used this on a vinyl couch? i was wanting to prevent any cracking…
I’m afraid I haven’t—have you tried asking the manufacturer for advice?
Hi, Really interesting website here. I’ll be checking it more thoroughly over the next while for “added value” recipes to use with my beeswax..
After reading through all the comments here, I don’t think I’ve come across this bit of info: Many have been asking about different carrier oils. I make a boot balm using these same ingredients and ratios except I use castor oil as the carrier oil. My preparation is very stiff so you have to work at it to get it on the cloth – which I like as it prevents buyers from gooping it on and wasting it.
I know some do like a bit softer paste but coconut oil makes it too soft for my liking. I was wondering if you’ve use shea butter instead of Cocoa butter OR tried a different ration of the original recipe to make a touch softer paste?
I haven’t tried all the different carrier oils, but I do generally find the amount of wax will have a larger impact on the hardness than the carrier oil (though of course, a butter will offer more hardness than a liquid oil). I have done lots of ratio experiments with different waxes/hardeners and oils—you can find them here 🙂 Happy making!
Hi there! Great post! It’s really helping.
So I plan to make it, but I’m gonna use refined shea butter instead of cocoa butter. The problem is, my shea butter’s expiry date is a year from now. I’m wondering will it be safe to apply this to my leather goods like my boots, if one of the ingredients is expired?
Is this homemade leather balm good for making leather? I will be making fish leather soon & leather balm is one of the items needed.
I have no idea, sorry!
could i use a fragrance oil instead of the canola oil??
also could i make a big batch of it or would that not work?
also does it have to be melted in the jar or can i melt it in the pan with out the container?? if so how would i do that?
Please read this and this re: the first two questions. For the third question: you can melt it right in the pan, but that’ll make a much bigger mess and you’ll still have to package it at some point in time unless you’re willing to sacrifice the pan to being a leather balm holder 🙂
could i add in fragrance oil in it aswell along side the essential oil??? i would like it to have some amazing scents if so how much should i put in?
Hey! You’ll find the answer to your question in my FAQ Happy making!
in my country we do not have fragrance oil, could i use flavouring essence instead of fragrance oil in the mixture to give it a smell?
You could try it, but I would honestly just leave it unscented (as I’ve done). Scented shoes don’t really appeal to me LOL.
I make it. This product will use only Leather shoes or items.
If I use it on synthetic leather than it is not good. Sticky nature continuously and catch dust very fast and no gloss on products.
Can you give any idea to make
high gloss cream for synthetic and natural leather.