Anyone that knows me understands that I adore all shades of purple. I also love stationery, and really enjoy using Midori TN where I have my brain dump and interchangeable notepads that complement my purple Malden Filofax diary.
I use a limited edition blue Midori TN, as it seems closer to purple than either black or brown, but I really want a purple one. Yes I know there are plenty of faux Midori TN out there, but I do really like the genuine original construction!
So last week, on payday (when there is still money in my account before bills), I bought a brown Midori TN, I chose brown as it was cheaper than either the blue or black, and frankly this is an experiment, so I want to go as economical as possible.
Steps
1. I bought / gathered my supplies:
- Midori TN, least expensive I could find
- Vinegar to clean the Midori TN prior to painting
- Angelus Leather paint/dye in Violet
- Angelus Leather paint/dye finisher to waterproof and ensure flexibility of the paint/dye
- disposable gloves
- disposable plastic drip protector to stop me painting the kitchen table purple too (although that does give me inspiration..)
- Original Nivea creme which i use on all my leather and faux leather products to keep them flexible and in good condition, i have been using this for years.. for me and all my leather and faux leather products and all of us find it beneficial as a moisturiser!
2. Opened up my brand new brown Midori TN, removed the closing elastic, but left the rest of the hardware in place. hmm that is a nice chocolate brown kind of makes me sad to colour it purple..but hey that is why I bought it afterall.. so purple here we come!
 |
| 1. readying my supplies |
|
 |
| 2. Opened up the Midori TN |
|
|
|
3. Using vinegar and a soft cloth I wiped over the Midori TN (front of it only) to remove any grease or dust that may be on it, and left it for a few minutes to dry.
4. I opened the Angelus purple paint, realised the brush on the cap was far too tiny to be practical, so grabbed a paint brush and painted a thin coat vertically on the leather. I left the paint to dry for 20 minutes, and applied a second thin coat horizontally, after another 20 minutes i applied another thin coat vertically.
5. The Angelus paint dries to a semi gloss, but I want to make sure I have locked in that colour and made my Midori TN cover's new colour flexible and waterproof. So this is where the Angelus leather paint finisher no. 600 comes in! I applied a thin coat to the cover, allowed to dry for 20 minutes, then applied a second thin coat ...oooh shiny! The paint finisher provides a gloss finish that is flexible and waterproof, and a small amount goes a loooong way!
 |
| 5. Angelus finisher No. 600 to make this paint job flexible and waterproof and glossy!! |
|
 |
| 5. The finisher goes on opaque and dries clear |
|
|
|
6. After the paint finisher has completely dried, I rubbed in some original Nivea creme to the surface (keeping clear of the suede inside of the cover). I have used this method for years to keep leather and faux leather supple and it has not failed me once. I am sure you all have your own ways to keep leather and faux leather flexible and strong, and restore old leather/faux leather, so in this step use whatever works for you! (Dubbin is another good one I have used before)
 |
| 6. This is the original formula thick Nivea creme, not any of the fancy Nivea versions with super sonic promising youth ingredients. This is the original and still the best ;) |
|
 |
| 6. treating my Midori TN to some TLC. (that paint looks a wee bit streaky but after the notepad has had some use i won't even notice given how scratched i get them!) |
|
|
|
7. Time to get the Midori TN with its new coat of paint fitted out! I am using an elastic that was a spare from my blue Midori TN as the dark blue looks better on the purple than brown does, and a charm from one of the Tim Holz ranges. I will use this Midori TN as a scrapbook, smash book, happy type journal, so the charm I am using has stamped on it 'Capture life's moments', I thought that would be apt! I have a couple of spare Midori refills I will fill the notepad with, I often sew up my own, but I have some spare of the genuine ones, so I will use them. I undid the blue elastic, threaded the charm through, re-knotted it and slid it through the hole in the back of the Midori TN. I placed the refills in, and some page markers a friend sent me (thank you Lisa of The GDC!) and I am very happy with the result!
