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Wednesday, November 15th, 2017
American Leather Living Room Three Cushion Sofa ALE-SO3-ST
Leather products’ prices are often determined by the kind of leather used and how it was also produced. The one that is considered to have the highest quality is the full grain leather. The lowest type is bonded leather and, surprisingly, the ones that are referred to as genuine leather.
Expect to see sofas and other seating units to be cheaper if they were just made of bonded leather. High fashion producers such as American Leather provide you with full grain leather or what’s known as calf leather. There are even manufacturers who offer unique leathers like ostrich. The cheaper animal leathers include buffalo and goat.
Leather Colors and Dyes
It is also not surprising that the more expensive types of leather are fully dyed. The semi-dyed types are easier to prep and paint, hence, these are more affordable.
There are now producers of leather who machine spray their products. These are cheaper but you should choose the ones that have been antiqued manually.
White leather is the most difficult to produce, thus, a white leather bag, jacket or couch is sure to cost more but you will surely have a unique piece to be proud of.
High-quality leather furniture often uses vegetable tanning. This is tanning that does not use chemicals to dye the leather. Natural methods are used such as coloring with tannin and tree bark. While these methods take a lot longer as compared to chrome tanning, the products are a lot more beautiful and durable.
Italian leather is also often associated with high-end products. This is true. Italian industry is centered on treating leather in a lengthy process. They also use only quality hides unlike buffalo or goat hides (which originated in India) which have thinner, more odorous skins.
Understanding Leather Grades
In a world where product replication is widespread, it seems acceptable for everyone to have like-looking materials. Yet handmade leathers are the best kinds that are known to last for many, many years.
To know what you are paying for, here are the different leather grades –
Full-grain leather. This sits at the very top of the chain. It is referred to as full-grain because it has not been buffed out or sanded down. The marks as well as imperfections that came with the hide remain. The thickness of the skin is also kept intact.
Some may find sanding down this hide as a more appealing way to manufacture the product. Only the highest quality luggage, footwear, and furniture are produced from full-grain leather types.
Top-grain leather. The second one on the list is top-grain leather which shows a split layer with the imperfections no longer seen. Since the skin has been sanded down, it also becomes thinner making it a lot more workable for manufacturers.
The top-grain leather products are smoother to the touch and they are more resistant to stains. While the breathability is affected because of the finish, the fact that you won’t have to worry so much about cleaning it up offsets this negative aspect.
Suede. This is the one that has that napped surface when you look at its underside. This type is formed by using split leather with the top-grain rawhide taken off and the drop split left behind. When sanded down further, this can reach the right thickness that is required for the furniture, shoes or bags.
Cow leather is rougher to work with which is why goat, deerskin, and lamb are often chosen instead.
Though suede may feel great, it is not that durable because it can easily absorb liquids due to the pores on its surface.
Nubuck. This is generally regarded as the more durable counterpart of suede. It is manufactured by using top-grain leather hide that was slightly sanded. This feels velvety to the touch.
Tags: leather, leather shopping, leather types, manufacturing leather, McCreerys, McCreerys Home Furnishings, shopping for leather, types of leather
Posted in Furniture, Interior Design 101, Interior Design Elements | Comments Off on All About Timeless Leather
Saturday, January 30th, 2016
Hooker Furniture Living Room Cognac Entertainment Sofa with 2 Glider Recliner-Stg Console
For hundreds of years now, cattle hide was used to cover books, even to bind them. Cowboys from the West also used this material as a huge part of their outfit. Later on, leather became a luxurious addition to pricey car interiors. Today, it has dominated the world of fashion and interior design.
Many people just dream of owning a leather sofa situated inside their spacious family room. The smooth Italian leather can be used on a long sectional or that cute ottoman.
Leather can be mixed and matched or you can just pick a piece to balance the fabrics in a room.
Leather furniture pieces have the capacity to stand on their own in terms of aesthetic appeal and quality. Mix it with other fabrics or use it as base for fabric or silk covered cushions. It can also add a twist to your home if you use it on architectural detailing or finishing.
Leather has gone a long way from being a cowboy hat or boot. It is now the star of many furniture shops. McCreery’s Home Furnishings offers the best leather sofas and chairs. If you want to go beyond furniture pieces in utilizing this wonderful material, then have it installed as a part of your flooring or walls.
Wood wainscoting may be a lovely design idea but you can surprise everyone by using leather tiles. What you will get is a unique and sophisticated look. You will be amazed on how this wall finishing can make a bland place appear more elegant if not sophisticated.
Wesley Allen Bedroom Headboard with Surround HB1231. Who says leather should only be installed on sofas?
As to interior decor, there isn’t a material out there that can be more adaptable than the good old leather. It is versatile, meaning, you have the leeway to use it in modern settings or on timeless dwellings.
This is a wonderful neutral piece that should be used sparingly. It can be easily mixed and matched with different furniture groups which consist of upholstered pieces. Remember that too much leather can also make a room appear daunting and cold. Avoid this result by including just a single leather furniture as a feature piece. You can finish off with colorful accent pillows.
Leather also gets better with age so you won’t have to worry about replacing it soon. Leather furniture bought today will look amazingly wonderful two decades from now.
Shopping for Leather Furniture
Not all leather items come with the same standard. Some leather grades have a higher quality than the rest that are being sold in the market so it is up to you to distinguish which ones you will take home.
Identifying genuine leather is a matter of getting used to the touch and appearance of this material.
Uttermost Accessories Brunella, Magazine Holder 19543. This living room piece depicts class and elegance
Full grain leather is the la creme dela creme of all leathers. This is also the toughest kind. A basic way to find out full grain leather is to search for scars and other small imperfections. If nothing has been done to hide such, then these natural imperfections will point to the genuineness of the material.
Top grain, on the other hand, is a notch below full grain. The split layer is taken off from the layer of the top grain. Majority of the imperfections have been removed, thus, making the piece look a tad like plastic.
Corrected grain leather is manufactured hides that contain bite marks, scars and many imperfections. Such imperfections are unsuitable for sofas, hence, they were removed through buffing and pigmentation.
Lastly, faux leather can also be a great alternative but your concerted effort should be centered on inspecting edges, examining the pores, and touching the skin. Real leather can have a course feel and it has a distinct smell that can never be replicated in any manufacturing shop.
Tags: genuine leather, history, history of leather, leather, leather couch, leather design, leather furniture, leather shopping, leather sofa, leather upholstery, McCreerys, McCreerys Home Furnishings
Posted in Interior Design Elements, Interior Design Themes | No Comments »
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