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I've got a coat I wore every winter for like eight years but didn't use this fall because a rain of macroplastics would follow me wherever I go. I can strip the pleather, flaking-paint material off to replace it with something but the fabric underneath is sort of thin and stretchy so I'd need to find something that'll help seal it against wind and rain again. I know they sell pleather paint but reviews said it's short lived or meant for patching lesser damage. It's probably a long shot but is there another option for doing the whole outside of the coat?
Otherwise it's still in great shape.
I have never done this myself, but you could try thinning some transparent silicone with a synthetic solvent and brush that onto the fabric. The silicone is highly hydrophobic so fabric soaked in it becomes somewhat water proof. This technique is sometimes used for DIY tarps and tents.
That's a really cool idea! Tbh when I asked the question I'd been thinking of the old 'oilskins' used by sailors in fantasy books (and history) which I think were sailcloth or canvas coated in tar, so this would actually be pretty close to what I had in mind.
One of my favourite YouTube DIYer NightHawkInLight has a detailed video on it. I'm not sure if it will work for your exact case, but I think I would have gone the same way if I was in your shoes. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HedRbIsM75M
This is really cool! I'll do some more reading and tests first but this might be what I go with for an answer. If it's as effective and non-oily as he says, it sounds perfect. Plus the fact that it's just wax and oil and can be remelted if it scrapes or leaks, makes it sound pretty fixable long term.
Edit: also I don't usually watch nonfiction YouTube stuff but I think I'm going to check out the rest of his content, thanks!
I hope it works out for you. It would be nice if you put in a comment back here in this thread once you do for someone in future to know if it works or not. I'll be curious for sure.
If it works I'll definitely post a step-by-step writeup here in the zerowaste community, and I'll link from this comment if I remember!