a horse and hobby leather worker person here. We have a lot of trouble with this with our harness. wet winter and hoppa you polish the whole weekend, especially now in lockdown we don't use everything. vinegar works fine, sunlight or UV super to prevent it. Do not forget to grease the leather sometimes, keep it supple and there is a protective layer on it so that the fungus has no hold. Please do not use iron brushes .... with this you make small cuts in the leather where the fungus will hold more firmly next time. hard brush and then grease well with grease or beeswax etc. I would recommend. Leather is a product of nature and will one day perish, it happens. hope i don't sound like i know everything better this is what i / we know and do. thank you for the super interesting videos, keep them coming
I adore vinegar! ❤ And most of the time I don't bother to dilute it. The scent of vinegar is much easier to live with than that of what I'm cleaning up. Nothing that an extra rinse of water won't cure.
Thanks so much for this video! I am doing a college internship at a university library, and we're based in a very humid climate where mold is an issue for our collections. I found moldy leather items in the archives recently, so when my supervisor asked if I know of any resources on cleaning mold from archival materials, I sent her this video! I'm afraid a metal brush would be a bit too intense for some of the other moldy items, though... we have books that are afflicted as well. For that side of things, I asked some archivists I know, instead. But as far as leather goes, you're my go-to. Thanks again for this wonderfully simple cleaning guide!
Ew! Those poor, poor shoes. :'D For next time, mould also hates UV light, so if you are in a location and season where strong sunlight is available, you can leave them out to sunbake between the vinegar wash and applying the conditioner. That will kill any live mould still lurking and help gas off the vinegar smell.
If you're in the US, after the vinegar, you can use Murphy's Oil Soap. We use it on tack all the time, cleans and protects the leather at the same time. Glycerin is a good emollient in place of lard.
The last time I went to Estrella War I forgot about my damp muddy boots in my suitcase for a week and had to do something similar. I'm glad you were able to save them
Great video! I'll probably have to do this for my turn shoes at some point, since I live in a really damp, temperate place (Humboldt County, CA) where everything is mouldy (including the last house I lived in, it was so mouldy it killed my parakeet). The lard/wax stuff is also really close to a rustic Victorian shoe polish, and it's what I use to keep my packer boots looking nice as well!
It's finally happened to me (not even in a car or plastic bag or owt, just in my room sitting on the carpet for some reason) so I'm very glad to have this video to come back to!
I never thought it would happen to us...but here I am checking out this video again lol luckily it's only a tiny bit of mould from getting damp in the shed, but once again, thanks for the info!
When I was a cub scout nearly 1/2 a century ago we used to waterproof our boots with the bees wax and lard mix. Good call on the double boiler to melt it as mixing them significantly lowers the flash point, my eyebrows grew back eventually but the kitchen ceiling needed a repaint. Never tried using it but vegans could use vegetable suet but why have they got leather shoes anyway?
There are quite a few vegans/vegetarians who wear leather shoes because they are more sustainable (no plastic) and they don't fall apart after a bit of rough wear.
I have handmade leather sandals which molded as well. I just cleaned them with soap, even droped them in water, let them dry and then greased the shit of out them (grease made for horse equipment). It's been years since the incident and they are still the only shoe I wear every summer since a decade. :) Of course grease is regularly needed to avoid further "mold incident"
I always have a massive bottle of acetic acid 12-24% at home because we have a massive bread mold problem in the kitchen and I just feel like it's more reliable than vinegar (and less sticky) on kitchen counters. Also who doesn't like to spice up their pressed cucumber or pizza salad with a lil extra acid zing? Vinegar and water solution also takes care of burnt plastic smoke! I did not learn that the hard way as someone managed to literally melt glass in the microwave recently! Nope. Didn't happen.
The red spot might be a residue from the tanning process. I had red spotts popping up on a lower quality vegetable tanned leather when you wet it. Never this big though. But like someone already suggested you might try making them darker. If you're into things that would be available to vikings I believe you'd love the iron dying. I don't know the process well, but apparently soaking the leather in a water full of bits of iron will make the leather go black.
Once spent an entire afternoon at the barn rehabilitating chaps for someone which had been forgotten at the bottom of a trunk whose bottom rotted out. Roommate was shocked I managed to save them. Thankfully they were black so discoloration was covered by using a dark buffing wax. 0/10 would not do it again.
I'm curious if that little red spot ever went away? It looks like it was caused from the mold. Some strains of mold, especially on natural material like leather, will leave a permanent red stain. I used to ride horses in a very humid environment and have seen that quite a lot on tack (saddles, bridles, etc) unfortunately. For future reference, plain old saddle soap and neatsfoot oil will usually also work without being so rough on the leather (for any leather product) and will help reduce discoloration. The vinegar kills the mold, but should only be needed if the soap doesn't work. Usually plain old saddle soap with a little bit of water will be enough to do the job and be much more gentle on your leather. My experience has mostly been with modern chemically treated leather, but all the principles for cleaning should be the same.
Oh also, in case this is helpful to you or anyone reading this in the future, if that little red spot never went away but is bothering you, you could try making the leather darker. I don't know if neatsfoot oil was a thing in viking times, but that's what I'd use in modern times to make the leather slightly darker (and hide stains). I can't tell you the number of times I've had to hide sweat stains on leather that way lol So the entire process if I were trying to get mold off leather shoes would be: 1) saddle soap and a little bit of water, scrub until the mold is gone (any gentle soap will work, saddle soap is just very gentle soap specifically designed to not take too much moisture from leather) 2) neatsfoot oil to condition and soften the leather (cleaning it with soap or vinegar will take a lot of the moisture out of the leather and potentially damage it long term if the moisture isn't quickly replaced) This is what the lard and/or tallow is for in your historic recipe, but those usually don't darken the leather as much, if at all 3) beeswax mixture (or shoe polish if you're wanting a more modern approach) Edit: Last thing, an old toothbrush will work if you don't have one of those wire brushes. It will be gentler on the leather too. Or a boar hair bristle brush, just like what you'd use for modern shoe polishing purposes.
I reckon so! I used wire as my shoes were in such a bad state, but boar would probably be less likely to scar the leather, which can make the problem worse.
I've had to clean mould from AC my parents gave me, after spraying down with a ~10% bleach solution. I've had to hide in my bedroom from all the mould spoors attacking back.
“If you’ve got a dirty soul, there’s something wrong with you.” Very mediaeval sentiment, that.
also, twenty one pilots
Discoloration adds character. Vikings definitely had character.
a horse and hobby leather worker person here. We have a lot of trouble with this with our harness. wet winter and hoppa you polish the whole weekend, especially now in lockdown we don't use everything. vinegar works fine, sunlight or UV super to prevent it. Do not forget to grease the leather sometimes, keep it supple and there is a protective layer on it so that the fungus has no hold. Please do not use iron brushes .... with this you make small cuts in the leather where the fungus will hold more firmly next time. hard brush and then grease well with grease or beeswax etc. I would recommend. Leather is a product of nature and will one day perish, it happens. hope i don't sound like i know everything better this is what i / we know and do. thank you for the super interesting videos, keep them coming
I adore vinegar! ❤ And most of the time I don't bother to dilute it. The scent of vinegar is much easier to live with than that of what I'm cleaning up. Nothing that an extra rinse of water won't cure.
Thanks so much for this video! I am doing a college internship at a university library, and we're based in a very humid climate where mold is an issue for our collections. I found moldy leather items in the archives recently, so when my supervisor asked if I know of any resources on cleaning mold from archival materials, I sent her this video! I'm afraid a metal brush would be a bit too intense for some of the other moldy items, though... we have books that are afflicted as well. For that side of things, I asked some archivists I know, instead. But as far as leather goes, you're my go-to. Thanks again for this wonderfully simple cleaning guide!
Ew! Those poor, poor shoes. :'D For next time, mould also hates UV light, so if you are in a location and season where strong sunlight is available, you can leave them out to sunbake between the vinegar wash and applying the conditioner. That will kill any live mould still lurking and help gas off the vinegar smell.
That's what I thought. A good time in some serious sun wood do good. But maybe that's not available in the UK?
If you're in the US, after the vinegar, you can use Murphy's Oil Soap. We use it on tack all the time, cleans and protects the leather at the same time. Glycerin is a good emollient in place of lard.
Murphy's is so great, I use it for cleaning all my leather boots, etc., all the time. Salted pavements in winter are harsh on leather.
Good tip!
@@sekhmara8590 I use it to clean brushes, too.
"It might be blood!" I cackled. I have used basically this to clean non-shoe garments, but I'd not actually used the lards/beeswax steps! Great video!
The last time I went to Estrella War I forgot about my damp muddy boots in my suitcase for a week and had to do something similar. I'm glad you were able to save them
"I haven't got one; I'm a Viking" I've said so many variations of this to so many people 😂😂
Great video! I'll probably have to do this for my turn shoes at some point, since I live in a really damp, temperate place (Humboldt County, CA) where everything is mouldy (including the last house I lived in, it was so mouldy it killed my parakeet). The lard/wax stuff is also really close to a rustic Victorian shoe polish, and it's what I use to keep my packer boots looking nice as well!
So sorry for parakeet! Lard and wax is a glorious and cheap combination! Works on most colours as well
I found you thru CoCoVid, and I'm glad I did--I needed to see this video! :-( Thanks for the how-to!
Oh no! Well, it happens to the best :) A repeat might help, and some good dubbin or a beeswax treatment
It's finally happened to me (not even in a car or plastic bag or owt, just in my room sitting on the carpet for some reason) so I'm very glad to have this video to come back to!
my medieval shoes go mouldy nearly every winter, but not that mouldy! I shall remember the vinegar trick :)
An excellent job in resurrecting those shoes. Some great tips. Thanks.
I never thought it would happen to us...but here I am checking out this video again lol luckily it's only a tiny bit of mould from getting damp in the shed, but once again, thanks for the info!
When I was a cub scout nearly 1/2 a century ago we used to waterproof our boots with the bees wax and lard mix. Good call on the double boiler to melt it as mixing them significantly lowers the flash point, my eyebrows grew back eventually but the kitchen ceiling needed a repaint. Never tried using it but vegans could use vegetable suet but why have they got leather shoes anyway?
Funnily enough, there is no record of any successful human attempt of building and sustaining a vegan civilization...
There are quite a few vegans/vegetarians who wear leather shoes because they are more sustainable (no plastic) and they don't fall apart after a bit of rough wear.
Lessons of te Ancestors! PRIMAL CONAN DRUMS
Wisdom of the Old Times!
I have handmade leather sandals which molded as well. I just cleaned them with soap, even droped them in water, let them dry and then greased the shit of out them (grease made for horse equipment). It's been years since the incident and they are still the only shoe I wear every summer since a decade. :)
Of course grease is regularly needed to avoid further "mold incident"
Learned something new!
I always have a massive bottle of acetic acid 12-24% at home because we have a massive bread mold problem in the kitchen and I just feel like it's more reliable than vinegar (and less sticky) on kitchen counters.
Also who doesn't like to spice up their pressed cucumber or pizza salad with a lil extra acid zing?
Vinegar and water solution also takes care of burnt plastic smoke!
I did not learn that the hard way as someone managed to literally melt glass in the microwave recently! Nope. Didn't happen.
The red spot might be a residue from the tanning process. I had red spotts popping up on a lower quality vegetable tanned leather when you wet it. Never this big though. But like someone already suggested you might try making them darker. If you're into things that would be available to vikings I believe you'd love the iron dying. I don't know the process well, but apparently soaking the leather in a water full of bits of iron will make the leather go black.
Lard and beeswax for the win
Thank you, this was useful
Once spent an entire afternoon at the barn rehabilitating chaps for someone which had been forgotten at the bottom of a trunk whose bottom rotted out. Roommate was shocked I managed to save them. Thankfully they were black so discoloration was covered by using a dark buffing wax. 0/10 would not do it again.
I'm curious if that little red spot ever went away? It looks like it was caused from the mold. Some strains of mold, especially on natural material like leather, will leave a permanent red stain. I used to ride horses in a very humid environment and have seen that quite a lot on tack (saddles, bridles, etc) unfortunately. For future reference, plain old saddle soap and neatsfoot oil will usually also work without being so rough on the leather (for any leather product) and will help reduce discoloration. The vinegar kills the mold, but should only be needed if the soap doesn't work. Usually plain old saddle soap with a little bit of water will be enough to do the job and be much more gentle on your leather.
My experience has mostly been with modern chemically treated leather, but all the principles for cleaning should be the same.
Oh also, in case this is helpful to you or anyone reading this in the future, if that little red spot never went away but is bothering you, you could try making the leather darker. I don't know if neatsfoot oil was a thing in viking times, but that's what I'd use in modern times to make the leather slightly darker (and hide stains). I can't tell you the number of times I've had to hide sweat stains on leather that way lol
So the entire process if I were trying to get mold off leather shoes would be:
1) saddle soap and a little bit of water, scrub until the mold is gone (any gentle soap will work, saddle soap is just very gentle soap specifically designed to not take too much moisture from leather)
2) neatsfoot oil to condition and soften the leather (cleaning it with soap or vinegar will take a lot of the moisture out of the leather and potentially damage it long term if the moisture isn't quickly replaced) This is what the lard and/or tallow is for in your historic recipe, but those usually don't darken the leather as much, if at all
3) beeswax mixture (or shoe polish if you're wanting a more modern approach)
Edit: Last thing, an old toothbrush will work if you don't have one of those wire brushes. It will be gentler on the leather too. Or a boar hair bristle brush, just like what you'd use for modern shoe polishing purposes.
Where do you get Viking shoes?
I use white vinegar to clean up puppy pee from my carpet. It really does work!
These came from a Yorkshire maker called Merchant of Menace, but there are lots of other excellent makers out there. I also make my own nowadays.
I'm hoping to make my own turn shoes soon. I have made gillies 3 times and absolutely loved the process!! Any good references for turn shoe patterns?
❤❤❤❤❤
I did the leave damp boots in plastic bag, the insoles where really nasty.
Would a boar bristle brush work well?
I reckon so! I used wire as my shoes were in such a bad state, but boar would probably be less likely to scar the leather, which can make the problem worse.
@@TheWelshViking Good to know! I haven't dealt with mouldy shoes (yet), but want to be prepared. Thank you!
Re: mask for the smell. Yeah you should actually be wearing a mask to keep mold spores out of your lungs too...
Thanks
I've had to clean mould from AC my parents gave me, after spraying down with a ~10% bleach solution. I've had to hide in my bedroom from all the mould spoors attacking back.
I'm surprised I already know about this.
Hey look, Draugr shoes!
If you want a vegan version of this, I ain't got one cause I'm a viking. 😂 If they are vegan they probably don't have leather shoes either. Lol. 🤣
Loved your vegan comment.
0:04 her POV when u forget to warn her
"If you want a vegan version..." Those... are leather shoes...? There is nothing vegan about that anyway :D