Jacket Maintenance: How to Keep Your Irish Jackets Lasting Longer

When you live in Ireland, a good jacket maintenance, the practice of cleaning, repairing, and protecting outerwear to extend its life in harsh conditions. Also known as coat care, it’s not about luxury—it’s about survival. Your jacket isn’t just fashion; it’s your shield against rain, wind, and cold that never really leaves. Skip the care, and you’ll be buying a new one every winter. Do it right, and it’ll last a decade—or longer.

Most Irish people don’t treat their jackets like delicate items. They treat them like tools. A leather jacket, a durable outer layer made from full-grain or vegetable-tanned hides, commonly worn in Ireland for its weather resistance and longevity. needs conditioning every few months, not just when it looks dry. A waterproofing jacket, any outerwear treated or designed to repel rain, essential for Ireland’s constant damp. loses its coating over time—especially if you toss it in the washer. And wool coats? They don’t need washing at all. Just hang them outside after a rainy day, brush off the dirt, and let the air do the work. You’ll find this in nearly every post here: people in Galway, Dublin, and Cork aren’t following brand instructions—they’re following what works in real life.

There’s no magic product. No expensive spray that fixes everything. It’s simple: clean gently, dry properly, store smart. Don’t hang leather jackets on wire hangers—they stretch the shoulders. Don’t store wool coats in plastic bags—they trap moisture and invite moths. And never, ever put a waterproof jacket in the dryer unless you want to ruin the membrane. These aren’t tips from a magazine. These are the rules passed down by people who’ve worn the same coat through five winters and still wear it to the pub.

What you’ll find below isn’t a list of products. It’s a collection of real stories from Irish households—how someone saved their favorite leather boots by using beeswax, why a Dublin nurse washes her work jacket by hand, how a Galway fisherman re-waterproofs his coat every spring with a homemade mix. These aren’t fancy guides. They’re the kind of advice you get from a neighbor who’s been there. And if you’ve ever had a jacket fall apart after one bad season, you’ll wish you’d read these sooner.