Good quality leather furniture is timeless and creates an ambience in your house that no other type of upholstery can rival. If you are dedicated to leather care, this investment can become a family piece that will appear in many of your favourite memories.

Leather is durable and easy to clean and maintain. Spills can simply be wiped off and unlike most material and fabric furniture, true leather improves with age. A leather sofa looks better with a fine patina of wear, and that only comes from being used (and loved) for many years.

Invest in Leather Care to Save

Leather, more so than other furniture, can be (and should be) an investment. The best thing you can do to make your leather furniture last and age well is to make sure that it is real leather and good leather at that. Learn to spot inferior leather by looking out for the following tell-tale signs.

Smell: Real leather will have an unmistakable leathery smell. To test this, rub a patch of the furniture and then take a deep sniff of the rubbed patch. (You can also smell the seams and stitching.) If you smell chemical-like paint, dye and glue, it might indicate that lower quality, over-processed leather was used.

Touch: Press the palm of your hand into the seat or padding of the furniture. The leather should feel rich and soft. Firm, but mouldable and luxuriously heavy. It should not feel thin, plastic-like, and hard (crackly/crinkly).

Look: Stay away from coloured leather for furniture. Colours like green, blue and bright red are usually created by finishing or dying the leather at a later stage, and not added during the tanning process. This means the colour could fade, peel and show wear and tear in an unattractive way during the lifetime of your sofa. Usually, it will take a couple of years to happen, but when you’re investing in leather furniture you don’t want to have to reinvest in 5 years.

Understand: Learn the terminology. There is a difference between “full grain leather” (the highest grade of leather goods), furniture “made from full-grain leather” (includes full-grain leather but has parts made from less good leather) and “genuine leather” (still made entirely of leather, but the lowest grade of leather).

Price: If you’re buying from a reputed seller, take price into account. A three-seater corner unit selling for R6000 usually points at lower grade leather and craftsmanship. Do your research and be particularly careful of simply ordering online without getting hands-on with your purchase.

Leather Care Prevention is Better Than Cure

Ok – so you’ve done your research and found your dream sofa. Now the loving starts. Leather care is simple.

To clean spills, wipe up any excess and clean with a damp cloth. Avoid soaking with soap. Rather take a long-term approach of wiping firmly and buffing with leather cream or polish until the mark fades and becomes part of the general “loved and used” – the look of your sofa.

Apply leather cream or polish to the whole sofa every couple of weeks. This will keep your leather hydrated and prevent cracking, while also protecting the colour.

What if the Worst Has Happened?

Damage does occur. Particularly if you have children or pets.

Leather can be damaged in two main ways. Wear and tear in the form of scratches and fading, and more direct damage like stab and slash accidents.

Wear and Tear (DIY)

Scratches and fading aren’t a big deal it’s part of the magic of leather. The “repair” process is also easy. For a deep scratch simply give some extra attention to it by rubbing in a good quality leather treatment with a good oil content with your finger or a soft cloth, and repeating the process until the scratch fades. (This can take a couple of days of regular application. Be patient)! Fading can be dealt with similarly but take care to protect your leather from harsh direct sunlight. (Just cover with a throw or keep the curtains closed during the few hours a day that the sun hits your leather directly).

Violent damage (It depends…)

Stab and slash damage is trickier to fix, but still not impossible. The first step is to assess the damage. Clean up the area and immediately mitigate further damage by covering the hole or removing the furniture from use until it is repaired. There are some very good DIY leather repair kits available and minor punctures and cuts/tears can usually be fixed at home. Here it helps if your leather is a standard colour. Black is easy, but most browns and natural colours are also easy to match. Once again do your research, read reviews, and pick the best quality product that you can afford. Read the instructions carefully and take care to follow them!

If you’re not sure about fixing it yourself, don’t worry! 

There are many reputable leather and upholstery repair companies who will be able to restore your sofa to its prior glory!

For a full list of leather repair guys in your area, follow this link to our website.