Huckleberry Bush on Cream Medium Leather Gloves

Huckleberry Bush on Cream Medium Leather Gloves

Artist: Nicolette Kaliebe

Medium Size, genuine goat skin leather glove

Hand Painted with huckleberry on a cream background. 

8 1/2" by 4 1/2" wide

From the Artist: It begins with saving something headed for a landfill

In the pursuit to repurpose leather apparel and accessories, pre-owned leather gloves are typically too “far gone” to save. But occasionally a new pair of gloves might have a blemish or factory mistake that renders the item not fit for retail. This is where I come in!

Most often the leather has a small puncture, or a spot of the leather may be thinner than the rest. These gloves are simply thrown away but now they can be saved, and reinforced to become more durable (and beautiful) than the original.

Small holes and compromised leather spots are filled and textured using a combination of leather glue and putty. Those areas are now stronger than they were before! But because those repaired areas do not perfectly match the surrounding texture, hand painted designs are utilized to successfully mask that any repair had occurred.

Each pair of leather gloves starts out as raw, white hide. To achieve a fresh-looking pair, 2-3 coats of leather paint is applied front and back (and all those fingers too!) to cover up any discoloration and seal in any repair areas. The paints are specialized for leather, and penetrate the surface far better than a surface-printed design. Multiple thin coats are painted not only to enrich the color but also to ensure that the painting is as permanent as possible.

The final step of the painting process is to coat the gloves in a polyacrylic sealant meant for leather, which not only gives a polished luster but also waterproofs the surface. Once dry, the gloves are still pliable and soft to the touch. Ready for stylized wearing! The hand-painted gloves can be cleaned with soap and water, gently rubbed with a microfiber cloth. 

CS