Leather Furniture Buying Guide

By Author: Jane Cooper
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Before investing in leather furniture is better to understand what it is you plan to invest in and how you will need to preserve it. Buying leather furniture involves the consideration of a few factors, so you are urged to invest the time in reading this article, which covers the buying and preserving of leather furniture to help you make informed decisions.

Buying leather furniture is actually making quite a big commitment and if you buy the right kind you will be making a life time investment. Poor quality leather will not last the distance and leave you with a dead investment. So we begin by learning about the different types of leather available so that you can shop with confidence.

Top grain leather is not just cowhide or any other animal hide. The hide is split into two to give an outer layer and an inner layer. The outer layer or the top grain leather is the best quality, highly durable and softest leather available and will cost you quite a bit.

Split leather is the bottom part of the hide and is referred to as split leather. This leather is created by the melding together of several pieces ...
... of leather and is not as durable as the top grain. You will get dyed and stiff and it tends to crack quite easily. As a more inferior quality of leather it is not so expensive.

Aniline finish is a one dye process with very little or no buffing done to its surface. An aniline finish is applied to the top grain leather to give its natural beauty. Aniline leather is very much in demand for its elegance and stylish look but be prepared to pay for top quality.

Now that you know about the types of leather available we will move to the grades, finish and texture. There was a time when leather furniture was the privilege of the rich and famous, not any more. Leather furniture has become very popular and certainly more affordable; you have plenty of styles and colors to choose from but you need to know something about the grades, finishes and textures to be able to make a good investment.

Grades

Durability and price depend on the grade of the leather.
Top grain comes from the hide’s outer surface †split grain comes from the lower surface of the hide
Good, expensive leather furniture comes from top grain leather, which is graded based on manufacturing style
Aniline leather is derived by soaking it in aniline dye only; only the best hides go through this process to make them really soft.
Semi- aniline is coated to protect it from stains and fading.
Pigment leather comes from poorer quality hides, is dyed, stiffer in texture and very much affordable.

Finish - the leather is graded based on the finish for market. Perfect or near perfect, mark free hides are extremely rare and hence very expensive. Aniline you will find mostly has marks or wrinkles and this gives it a very natural look. Leather is finished and pigmented to protect it from stains and sunlight.
About Author:
Jane Cooper writes about Dallas modern furniture and Dallas contemporary furniture.