Leather Sofas

Many people buy Leather Sofas, but have they really bought a Leather sofa ?
Unfortunately the specifications on calling a product Leather in Britain are quite vague and because of this many people who believe they have a Leather sofa or suite when in reality it is Not Leather or it is a very poor grade of Leather.
And don't think asking staff at the stores will necessarily negate that problem, because most are very poorly informed about Leather and of course many are on commission and so are more interested in a sale.
There are many adverts for "Bonded Leather" sofas and suites, under British regulations this can be advertised as a "Leather Product"
And there by stands one of the biggest problems, "Leather Product" means it is a product that contains leather !!
Bonded Leather contains leather fibres; tiny little fibres, that are then mixed into polyurethane or PVC which is formed to make a roll of material. Bonded Leather can actually contain as little as 10% of the leather fibres, although it is usually about 18%. So Bonded Leather is not really Leather it is Plastic !!


Many Shops or Manufacturers used number or letter grades, but they mean nothing to anywhere else.
The main proper grades of Leather are :-


1) Aniline Leather - This is a completely Natural Leather and is the top layer of the hide, it is sometimes called Full Grain Leather or Top Grain Leather. (This Leather may contain scars or injury marks or even stretch marks that occurred when the animal was alive because it is the very to layer of the hide.
(I say animal because Leather is not always Cow Hide; it can actually be the hide of any animal, although it is usually Cow Hide) and because it is natural it can easily be scratched or marked.
Occasionally Aniline Leather may be waxed to offer the hide a little extra protection. But because Aniline is the natural hide it will absorb any fluid that it comes into contact with, which will include sweat, body oils, natural oils from your hair etc and this will change the colour of the hide which will over time become the "patina" of the Leather and if treated right Aniline Leather will last a lifetime and the "patina" will give it real character.


2) Semi-Aniline - This name is a bit of a misnomer, because "Semi" suggests it is only partly Aniline. However, Semi-Aniline is a fully Aniline Leather, but it then has a very thin layer of polyurethane coating put on it to give it a protective layer so that it will not mark or scratch quite as easily as the completely natural Aniline Leather.


3) Corrected Grain - This is usually made from next layer of a hide and as the name suggests it is pressed to "correct" the grain, the process impresses the pattern of a hide into the Leather and is the coated with a fairly thick layer of polyurethane to give it good protection. This Leather is sometimes mistakenly also called Top Grain Leather, which is misleading because it makes it sound as if it is the top layer of the hide when in fact it is the second layer of the hide.


4) Split Leather - This is the lower/last layer of the hide which is also pressed to give the leather a "grain" pattern, because it is the lower layer and is not as good a quality it needs harder pressing to give the grain and it also requires an even thicker coating of polyurethane to protect it and make it stronger. This leather can also be called Bi-Cast Leather, although sometimes Bi-Cast leather can be made up of several different bits of the lower layer of hide.


5) Bonded Leather - Which I have already explain really is not leather at all, but Polyurethane or PVC with some leather fibres mixed into it.


Then to make things even more complicated the sofa or suite may only include whichever type of leather you have been told about on what is termed the "wearable" parts of the furniture, such as the seat cushions, the upright cushions and the arm rests. The other parts such as the sides and back are covered with a PVC that will be called "Match Leather".
Match Leather is Not Leather, it is PVC formed to match the type of leather used on the wearable parts of the Sofa.


Just to make matters even more difficult, the "Best" Leather available is not necessarily the best leather for you !! The best leather for you is dependant upon your circumstances and lifestyle, after all if your had several young kids and cats and dogs in the house an Aniline Leather Sofa would be ruined within a week, so you need to take all these things into consideration.


As I have said many stores and salespeople do not know much about Leather; there is one exception and that is Sofaworks, where all their staff are taught about the differences and they are quite knowledgeable.
Have a stroll around one of the well known Furniture Stores looking at the Leather sofas and ask a few questions, and then do the same in a Sofaworks store, I'm sure you will be surprised at the difference, although you will find Sofaworks does not do "Sale" items and perhaps appear a little more expensive...........but are they when you find out exactly what your chosen Leather Sofa really is ?


By the way I have no connection whatsoever with Sofaworks or any other Store, I am going fully on personal experience.