Make leather soft

I've got a new martingale collar which I adore. However, it's made of rather stiff leather that chafes and I was wondering if there are any tips or tricks on making it soft enough to reduce marks. I wear fabric underneath, which helps, but isn't really aesthetically pleasing.

Hi there, wannabe bootblack here. One of the best ways to soften leather is time- it absorbs your oils and softens. However, since it is stiff, there are a couple options.

First, go to Walmart or Target and in the shoe department there is a shoe care endcap. Purchase a can of saddle soap. Just plain old fashioned disk of saddle soap. When you get home take a drop of water and place it in the middle of the saddle soap, just enough to create a small lather on top. Use an old toothbrush to take a small amount and brush it on your entire collar in gentle circles. When you're done use a clean rag and clean water and wipe the soap off. Let it dry completely. It won't fix the entire problem but it will condition and soften it a bit.

If this doesn't make it comfortable, you can buy a product called Huberds Shoe Grease (https://www.amazon.com/Huberds-Shoe-Grease/dp/B000MLBCWM?ref_=ast_sto_dp)
Start off by following the instructions above and waiting for it to dry. Once dry apply a small amount to the collar and massage it in. The leather will soak it in and you'll be able to tell when it's enough. Don't coat the whole thing- you don't want it greasy. Essentially you're lotioning the cow hide, lol

Finally... Stay away from other products in the shoe care aisle. They are crap and can ruin your leather. Feel free to reach out if you have more questions!

Continuing on a little bit from simplylaura’s advice, on all our leather tack and horse gear, we used saddle soap to clean it which was awesome, and then would follow on with a beautiful conditioning oil that would be brushed on and left to absorb in, which is where I found it made the leather very beautiful and soft and supple. A saddlery or whatever they may be called in your area can be a great place to find leather care products also.

Oils are good, but consider you should be working with 2 sides of leather. Yes, if you don't feel suede on the underneath then it's cheap. Either way I'd say your best bet is to contact a local expensive shoe store. See what they say is best for conditioning interior and exterior for subtle material without cracking. Don't just treat it like a baseball mit.

I use special oils. Made a mistake once and took something cheap on a very old, beloved leather jacket. I use Ballistol today. This corresponds to an acid-free white oil and is used for weapons. What you use may not matter as much as the fact that it is acid-free. Some oils gum up and you have a white smear on your leather. It's not that important on small areas, but not fun on larger parts.

You can also soften edges by taking a coin and rubbing it along the hard edges to round and soften them.

To make the leather more mailable, you can also heat it- like put it under a hot water bottle to warm the leather and flex it in your hands- or use conditioners like the others have suggested.

Good luck.

Lexol is a long standing leather conditioning liquid available from Amazon and in bulk on line if you need to do more than a few items. Letting the leather soak overnight usually softens and conditions it to a more compliant and flexible feel that keeps the leather usable for many years.