COCO RIBBON GILET CARE

Storage; please keep your sheepskin item in a clean dry dark place, preferably in a sealed dust bag, poly bag or garment cover.

Unfortunately, moths can get into sheepskin, especially if it is stored for long periods with other fabrics that attract moths.  Similarly, if boxed in a garage for any length of time, rodents may attack it for bedding.

Do not store uncovered in open natural or fluorescent light, both will fade the exposed skin quite quickly.

Sheepskin – Sueded

Overtime if your sheepskin needs cleaning, we would suggest the following:
Buff the suede with a DRY scouring pad; the kind that you use for washing up, with the rough texture on one side and the foam on the other.

We suggest you use the scouring pad to brush off any markings and revitalise the ingrained flattened suede nap. When brushing, try to use longer more fluid strokes rather than concentrating on a small area. Make the area you are working on quite generous, then you won’t strip the colour from a single patch.

Please use the foam side first, and only progress to the tougher rough textured side if very dirty and the foam isn’t having any impact.
Shake and vacuum! After you have done the above, you will be surprised how a good shake and a vacuum will lift the dirt and dust.

Rain spotting and rain in general

Always let your Gilet dry naturally in an airy warm environment but away from direct heat. When dry, if there are rain spots on the suede, use the same scouring pad method above to brush the suede this will level the rain spots out and revitalise the suede nap.

Rain downpour; If you get your Coco Ribbon sheepskin piece saturated, let it dry naturally in a warm airy place but still well away from direct heat. When it is dry, you may find the pelt has become rigid so you have to “break it open”.

You do this by manipulating it, twisting it around, kneading it and basically opening up the fibres of the pelt to make the skin softer and more flexible again. Now take your trusty scouring pad (above) and start revitalising the nap. Brushing will bring back the velvety suede that has been flattened by the rain.

Other things

Fading: As sheepskin is a natural product, prolonged exposure to light will cause it to fade.

Leaving a product static and uncovered is eventually going to cause it to fade (electric lighting as well as natural light will do this), moving product and regular usage will diminish this, and whilst not necessarily stop it completely, will ensure that any colour change happens at a more organic pace and is balanced across the item.

Red wine, fruit squashes etc – all of these types of stains will benefit from spot washing ASAP, use a tepid mild soap or colour free gentle shampoo solution.

Spot wash and spot rinse with clear water – DO NOT IMMERSE.
Don’t focus on just the stain in a small area,  it is better to work on a larger area, concentration in one place could have the effect of bleaching colour as you remove the stain.

Grease, oil & ink-based stains are NOT good and are very hard to remove. If you do get any of these onto your product, it’s best that you contact us directly, as different stains need specific help.

Sheepskin: – Napalan or Hurricane finish; both are leather-based
finishes. These finishes should offer an amount of natural dirt repellent protection as a matter of course, however, if you get anything ugly on the napalan, please contact us directly for help.

Sheepskin: – Wool side; all the above suede treatments can apply to the wool side but use a comb or brush instead of the scouring pad. The only exception, if your product has tight curly wool, this will fuzz if you start to comb it. So, it is better just vacuuming, shaking and spot washing.

DRY CLEANING – Coco Ribbon does not recommend dry cleaning. However, if none of the above has produced the result you want, then you could consider specialist dry cleaning;

Please note sheepskin & leather does not benefit from dry cleaning because whilst the cleaning process might remove dirt and grime from the skin, this process also removes some of the natural oils that soften the skin and the substances that colour the skin. This means your sheepskin garment will no longer feel the same and it is very likely there will be some colour change.

Please use a specialist dry cleaner to diminish the risk but there is always a very high likelihood of some change. The standard dry cleaners response to this change is to blame the quality of the skins, not the process or the chemicals they use. You will also be asked to sign a waiver – we don’t feel that this is the best solution.

In light of all of the above, if you need any further help or advice, never hesitate to contact us.