repairing old leather

[phil]

I have these chairs that I'd like to do some minimal repairs to.
they have thick leather seats. I'm sure they are original and the leather is so thick.

when I got them someone had put little metal brackets near the front edge where they ad torn.

I thought maybe I can sew the old bits back and also add a strip of leather or maybe a canvas strap to the underside of the leather. Im not sure if I should attach it to the leather or what...

the strap could go under the metal brackets that were there, I might modify them a little to get rid of the sharp edge and round it over near where it supports the leather and the strap. I dont really mind that the metal bits were added.

last year I revitalized a couple of things. I got an old carpenters tool pouch that was old and very dried out. I used some oil that I got for my boots but it took all of it , about a pint or so.

the second thing was an old electricians tool belt. since I ran out of boot cream I tried mineral oil.

I figured if someone here has horses they might know what to use to revitalize the seats, maybe a saddle soap or a different oil? i know that if I revitalize them with some oil it will help the leather. my tool pouch worked out well and it isn now supple and strong again but I wasn't quite sure if that's the right thing to use. there is a product called lexol that might work too. I have a soap that is supposed to neutralize the PH but I only have a little bit.

i thought of using glue , like maybe speed sew to join the strap to the leather, but then I thought gee maybe if the supporting strap were just loose it would still add the same support and I might not need to attach it to the leather.

once I look after the leather I could put some linseed oil on the chairs, they are oak maybe they had shellac on them. they dont need much, the finish is ok they are just a little dried up from age.

as you can see they are sort of parlor chairs. not really dining room chairs and they barely fit under the table. the table and the hutch are about the same age though and also oak so they sort of tie in... I like the design it is quite robust so they go with my house quite well Im suspecting they are 20's or 30's but who knows really.

I have a secod set but those are off to the side as sitting chairs so with these it makes 4 seats in the kitchen which is good for us. I decided not to have a whole bunch of chairs. the other two have horse hair stuffed seats I have leather to redo them but they dont need this super thick leather. they need the seats re-stuffed then new leather.

I think the best restoration for these is minimal, so I just want to to keep the original leather and repair just the problem at the front edge if that makes sense. the backs droop a bit maybe it will tighten up but the backs aren't really a problem. they are just dry. the problem is obvious in the last picture.

anyone know more about the style or the era?