On looking after a piece once it’s yours
AQUELARRE is where we begin. And this is the first thing we want you to know about it: how to look after a piece once it’s yours.
A piece made by hand doesn’t ask for much. It asks for attention, in small doses. What follows is less a list of instructions than a few habits, the kind that become automatic after the third or fourth time.
Know what you’re holding
Both Merlot and Midnight are cut from full-grain napa leather: the outer layer of the hide, kept whole, soft under the hand. Its surface carries a thin protective finish, a veil that gives the color its depth and shields it from daily life. This changes how you care for it. This leather doesn’t need to be fed. It needs to be kept clean, dry, and unhurried.
Each day: one pass
A soft, dry cloth, one gentle pass, the way you’d clear a table. What dulls a surface over time is rarely an accident. It’s dust, and the oils from our own hands.
A soft-bristled brush is always a friend to your piece, and to any other leather you own. It reaches the seams, the edges, and the small hollows a cloth can’t.
Carry it light
Napa is soft, and it gives with weight. A wallet filled past its pockets stretches, and doesn’t fully come back. Let each piece hold what it was made to hold, and a little less.
- Passport holder, envelope wallet, envelope cardholder: cards and papers, not receipts by the handful. If it no longer lies flat, it’s carrying too much.
- Coin purse: keys mark a finish. Give them their own pocket.
- Glasses case: the same rule. Keep it away from keys and other hard objects in your bag.
- Charm: it hangs against zippers, hardware, and denim, and it travels with everything. Check the embroidery now and then, and keep perfume at a distance.
When it rains, or something spills: blot, don’t rub
Press a soft cloth against the water and lift. Rubbing pushes it in and spreads the mark. Let the piece dry in the open air, at room temperature. Never beside a radiator or under a hairdryer: heat is the quickest way to stiffen soft leather.
When it rests: how to store it
Store it flat, in its dust bag, somewhere dry and away from direct sun. Never in plastic, which traps humidity. Nothing heavy on top.
Once a season: look at it
Empty it completely: cards, coins, receipts. Wipe the inside and the outside. Check the edges and the stitching. Soft leather remembers how it’s used. Notice what yours has remembered.
Creams: optional, never required
The finish already protects the leather, so a cream isn’t something AQUELARRE needs. If you’d like to use one anyway, choose a neutral leather cream or conditioner and read the label first: no fragrance, no alcohol, no wax, no silicone, no added dye. Try it first on a hidden spot, such as the inside of a strap. Then use a very small amount on a soft cloth, in a thin layer, and let it rest for a few hours.
Less is always more.
What we don’t do
No hand cream or body lotion, no oils, waxes, polishes, or shine sprays. They sit on the surface of the finish, leaving a film that attracts dust and can mark. Keep your pieces away from perfume, hand sanitizer, alcohol wipes, and solvents. Be careful with new dark denim against lighter colors, which can transfer.
Warm thoughts,
Laura | Pombo Studio