How can you check if a leather jacket is really made from leather?

bunnykins

As the title suggests........is there a way to test to see if something labelled as leather is genuine?


My son has bought a jacket in TK Maxx and the labels state that it is genuine leather but I'm not convinced as it doesn't smell or feel like leather hence my question


Thanks in advance for your advice and apologies if this is posted in the wrong place.


Happy New Year


bunnykins xx

arbroath_lass

You might not want to try some of these but...


http://purchasingoriginal.blogspot.co.uk/2008/12/real-leather.html

jemb

Risky one but the only one I know is to put a lit lighter next to it, if the flame deflects it's leather. It wont burn.

Ames

I was told at a tannery in Morocco that the best leather doesn't smell. Could have just been salesman bs though.

Lunar_Eclipse

DD2 has a reasonably good leather jacket and it doesn't smell in the way I remembered leather smelling (same with my car seats now I think about it, though they are years old.) It does feel soft like leather though, unlike some of the man made ones that we also came across on our shopping trip.

Not sure what else to add, except does it matter? You can get nice 'fake' leather jackets now, which can be expensive and preferable to many on ethical grounds.

Edwardia

Lunar_Eclipse wrote: »

DD2 You can get nice 'fake' leather jackets now, which can be expensive and preferable to many on ethical grounds.

OK so some people object to leather because an animal died. Some leather comes from animals specifically reared for their hides and some is from animals killed for meat. As long as we eat meat, there will be the potential to make leather. Leather being natural, eventually biodegrades.

Fake leather is mostly either PVC or polyurethane. Not only will these not biodegrade, the raw material for PVC and polyurethane is the fossil fuel, oil.

Fake leather is a man-made non-biodegradable product using a non-renewable natural resource and AFAIK, PVC and polyurethane in the form of fake leather aren't yet recyclable.

It's entirely up to us as individuals whether we think killing a non-endangered species and getting max use out of it before biodegradation is preferable to using chemicals derived from a dwindling natural resource to make something that will go in landfill to contaminate the planet.

There certainly is a cas to say don't kill an animal to make a jacket, as well as a case for saying don't use dwindling resources to make a jacket.

http://www.ebay.com/gds/How-to-Tell-the-Difference-Between-Faux-Leather-and-Real-Leather-/10000000177636273/g.html

Errata

Fake leather has an obvious fake backing, real leather doesn't.

BitterAndTwisted

Is there a reason to disbelieve the labelling? As far as I'm aware, if something is manufactured for sale in this country and is labelled as real leather it has to be.

Anselm

See if there is a mark like this printed on the leather anywhere:

Lunar_Eclipse

Edwardia wrote: »

It's entirely up to us as individuals whether we think killing a non-endangered species and getting max use out of it before biodegradation is preferable to using chemicals derived from a dwindling natural resource to make something that will go in landfill to contaminate the planet.

Agreed, hence why (I said) some people prefer fake jackets for ethical reasons.

(It's worth bearing in mind though that there is often a correlation between those people who avoid wearing leather and those who don't believe in eating animals either. To some it doesn't matter that the leather is not the cause of death of non-endangered species: lots of people just don't agree with it! I'm writing this objectively in case you assume I'm a non leather wearing vegetarian.)

judyb

It is illegal in the UK to sell something labelled leather that is not.
Can you get to the inside of the jacket? The reverse if leather will be suede. If it is fake it will have a fabric backing.
Most animals that are used for garments, furniture etc are killed for their meat and not their hides so it is a by product. Hides are better used this way and are actually far more Eco friendly than producing fake leather.
Hope this helps
Judyb