frequently asked questions

Hopefully you are here looking for answers, not solutions! If you've had an issue, you can find many answers on my Troubleshooting page or email me directly at Bluebelly@ bluebellybalm.com!

Does it waterproof?

There are 4 ingredients in my leather balm that work together to help waterproof: Lanolin, beeswax, carnauba wax and mink oil. Although leather cant be fully waterproof without completely sealing it unnaturally, these ingredients work together to make it as waterproof as possible.

Lanolin is naturally produced by sheep to waterproof and moisturize their hide.
Beeswax has been used for millennia to coat leather products naturally
Carnauba is the strongest natural wax on earth, naturally found on special palm trees only found in brazil
Scientifically speaking, polar and non-polar substances repel each other. So mink oil acts as a non-polar object that repels polar water. Using mink oil alone to repel water isn't half as good as using a balm.

Will it darken leather?

Yes, any and every oil or liquid you saturate leather with will darken leather. For instance, let's picture water soaking leather... it darkens until it evaporates or sinks deeper into the fibers. Essentially, balms do the same because the oils are saturating the leather but remaining within the fibers. The color of your leather will affect how visible the affect is, and the period of change can vary, although I've witnessed leather returning to its natural color in under an hour with my balm. However, the darkening shouldn't ruin the appearance of your leather item. Any variances in darkness should even out to an equal tone.

/How often do I apply?

For balm, it's difficult to specify a point in time to apply. You can certainly under-apply or over-apply, but it's not much to worry about. Depending on your item and how often its used, as well as what it is used for will affect how much natural oils it looses. Daily-use boots and belts may need applications every 2-4 weeks. Items that are wet molded like holsters may need oils a lot less frequent than that.

Honestly, I am trying to find better answers and trying to test these situations out myself so I can know better. I will over the next year have better answers while I run oil-weight, heat and water tests!

For soap, it's a little more dependent on cosmetic choice. Certainly dirt and grime on leather can be abrasive and damage your leather, but I wouldn't find it concerning. However if you can brush it off with a horsehair brush, soap isn't fully necessary unless you want it to look clean. Just remember that saddle soap can push oils out of your leather with water and soap, causing dryness. I personally suggest applying oil or balm after using soap, every time.

Is your soap Ph neutral?

Soap generally has a pH range of 8-10. Leather has a pH of 4-5.5. That makes most soap 10,000 times more alkali than leather, while distilled water is 7, which is neutral but 1,000 times more alkali than leather. If remaining in the realm of natural soap, you can't lower the pH without compromising for poor cleaning power. After all, soap is supposed to lather and sud and adding more oils or waxes will take away the alkali cleaning power of soap. The only soaps that can clean with a pH below 7 are detergents.

I add extra oils and wax to my soap, however I haven't measured pH due to the fact that it is relatively difficult to get an accurate measurements without expensive scientific equipment. This is why I recommend using a balm afterwards because the pH value (although not technically measurable by definition of pH, and instead by pka) is going to be more closely acidic to leather.

do you provide discounts for...

To support all groups of awesome people we support at once is relatively difficult to keep track of and with every one "group" you announce support or discounts for, another "group" wants to be recognized as well. We only currently apply discounts to military, law enforcement and firefighters, although I will provide some discounts for EMS if asked. Nurses, doctors and other awesome tax-paying citizens, I appreciate you as well, but I can't provide discounts to all right now. Unfortunately I have to choose a focus and this is the only focus that I can personally handle. No one group of people are ever better than another, I just want to recognize particular professions that face severe hardships!