Dyeing antler buttons

[Tony]

I'm going to replace the chrome buttons on a charcoal tweed Braemar jacket.
I got some natural antler cross section buttons that I think wil work well.

Question for the educated rabble is - how do I dye them a darker grey colour?

[Chas]

I have used bleach to lighten antler before with great success. I would be tempted to use a 'Dylon' fabric die. I think you could expect varying success - parts of the antler would be more dense than others and parts would be more porous. There are 'natural' dies for brown, red, yellow, blue and green, but none, I think, for grey. There are wood stains, but I have not seen any grey coloured ones. Good Luck.

Regards

Chas

[Jock Scot]

Antler buttons should be left in their natural state and colour.

[dfmacliam]

I would experiment with a couple pieces and soak or boil them. I have had good success dyeing bone in coffee and tea to get an antiqued look.. Horn and bone are very similar. As I suggested, try it out first on some scrap pieces to ensure you get the effect you are looking for.

[JSFMACLJR]

I agree with Jock; antler horn buttons should be their natural colour. How can you improve on that?

[Tony]

Thanks for the suggestions.

With respect to the au naturel proposal - I got a feeling they look way too light compared to the charcoal.

[Jock Scot]

Er well sorry, that is how they are supposed to look. Don't forget we are talking highland wear here and not Walmart! With the greatest of respect, Scots highland attire traditionally use antler buttons and accept the contrast as how it should be.

[MacKay71 Wife]

Sorry - have to totally agree with Jock on this one!

[Piper]

While I agree that the antler buttons look best natural, I'll suggest trying Fiebings Leather dye, applied carefully. I've used it to good effect on horn, bone and antler. It comes in a wide range of colors, although anything beyond black and brown will likely require finding a leather craft supply. Black and brown can usually be found in shoe stores. One final caveat, wear gloves. Once the dye gets on your skin, it pretty much has to wear off.

[skauwt]

it might be worth trying something other than deer antlers ,
there is plenty of species out there that have darker horns without the need to dye it would just be a matter of sourcing the right horn/antler