How to Rehab Your Tieks with Chamberlains Leather Milk

Do you have a beat up pair of flats that are just begging for a rehab? I'm going to show you how Chamberlains Leather Milk can give your leather new life!

We all have a pair or two of well-worn shoes sitting in our closets. You know the ones. The shoes that fit so perfectly that you can't bear to part with them. Well, turns out you can rehab them and bring them back to life if you have the right products. I recently discovered Chamberlain's Leather Milk at the suggestion of Tracy, a leather expert from Legend Costumes and Leather, and I'm so impressed with the results. I took a pair of well-loved Mocha Snake Tieks and really improved their appearance with Chamberlains and a little bit of Frye Weather Proofing Cream.

I absolutely adore Tieks ballet flats, and in case you haven't read it already, you can check out my full Tieks review to see why I love them so much. You can also check out my post about how to pick the perfect pair of Tieks shoes to see all the fun colors and prints they come in. Tieks are really an investment. They cost a pretty penny, but they're totally worth it. But, what do you do when your leather shoes have become a bit lackluster? You grab some products and fix them up. That's exactly what I did with this pair of Mocha Snake Tieks.

I got a great deal on these shoes, but they were SUPER dry. I knew I could give them new life with a little bit of elbow grease. I ordered some Chamberlains Leather Milk No. 3 from Amazon.com after I'd read great reviews about it on various Tieks community posts.

What are the different types of Chamberlains Leather Milk?

Chamberlain's Leather Milk comes in a variety of different formulations. There are 6 different varieties to choose from and they all do something a little different.

• Chamberlains Leather Milk No. 1 - Leather Conditioner and Cleaner. This water-based leather cleaner will fix dull and dry, scratched up leather.
• Chamberlains Leather Milk No. 2 - Straight Deep Cleaner. This alcohol-based leather cleaner will clean dirt, oil spots, and denim transfer without the use of harsh chemicals. Just know that if you use No. 2, you'll want to follow it with a conditioner to keep the leather hydrated.
• Chamberlains Leather Milk No. 3 - Leather Water Repellent and Protector. This wax and oil-based formula will deeply condition your leather and repel water.
• Chamberlains Leather Milk No. 4 - Auto Refreshener - This water-based leather conditioner and cleaner is specially formulated for cars and trucks since it also has UV Protection.
• Chamberlains Leather Milk No. 5 - Furniture Treatment - This water-based leather milk will deeply condition and clean sofas, couches, chairs, ottomans, stools, recliners, sectionals and more.
• Chamberlains Leather Milk No. 6 - Boot and Shoe Cream - Like formula No. 1, this one will fix dull, dry and scratched leather without making your fine leather footwear greasy or sticky, like other products might.

The No. 3 formula was perfect for this rehab project. You can see the before photo on the left. The scales are very dry looking and you can see the dryness in between the individual scales, especially in the front. The after photo on the right shows a great improvement!

Before (left) and After (right) Chamberlains Leather Milk No. 3 (one coat).

I am thrilled with the results. There were some especially dry spots on around the edge of the opening that I dabbed with Frye's Weatherproof dressing leather conditioning cream. I've been using this for years to condition my Frye boots and it's a bit more heavy-duty since the consistency is more like a balm. I knew it would work great to hydrate and protect those really chapped spots.

What you should know before choosing Chamberlains.

Chamberlain’s Leather Milk recipes will likely darken the color of naturally tanned leather products, like boots and purses, but it may return back to its natural color once the product is dry. The exception is Chamberlains Leather Milk No.3. This will darken lighter leather and it's not recommended for suede or very soft and light leather products.

You should definitely spot test before applying to any of your leather items to be sure you can live with the results. Most, if not all, leather conditioners will change the color of natural leather goods since the conditioner is absorbed into the pores of the leather. It is skin after all.

Also, a little goes a long way. A bottle of Chamberlains should last you quite a while. You can get single bottles or combo packs on Amazon.

Here's a video to show you how I used Chamberlains:

Do you have any leather shoes or bags that need to be rehabbed? If you've got a pair of shoes that are a little tight, I've got a helpful post about how to stretch leather shoes. If you need help with your Tieks, I've got a whole post about how to polish Tieks with color matches and a post about how to take care of your Tieks flats. You should also check out my post about how to add moleskin to Tieks and why you might want to.

Have you tried Chamberlains yet?
I'd love to hear your thoughts or questions.