Leather Sofa Information
When you understand leather, you’ll be better able to appreciate the dramatic benefits of leather furniture. Understanding leather as a natural material is one of the most important factors to consider before purchasing leather furniture.
In a world of man-made materials, leather remains a natural product that is ideal for home furnishings. Leather is a versatile, durable skin that is resistant to tearing, cracking, peeling, punctures, and will not lose its shape over time. Leather breathes during all seasons and never has a sticky texture like vinyl or “leather look” products.
Quality differences between promotional and higher end leather furniture are very dramatic. One might have difficulty evaluating how these differences impact on the beauty, comfort and durability of an individual piece.One of the major determinates of the quality of a leather sofa is the type of leather used.
All leather is the product of animal hides. However, these hides vary greatly in their quality. The origin of the hides, the way in which they are converted to leather and the method used to dye the hides all contribute to their value.
Leather in its natural state is soft and supple. Before the hide endures the finishing process it is considered “raw”. In other words, it has not been dyed or treated for spills, stains or other safe guard matter. Once your leather has been treated it is ready for active household use. Treated leather allows for day-to-day use, as well as prevention of spills, stains, and mishaps by one’s family and friends.
Even the finest quality leather has markings analogous to fingerprints. It is, after all, a natural product and like anything natural, leather is not always perfect. Its markings should be considered nature’s signature, and are our guarantee that the product is genuine. Leather often contains surface blemishes referred to natural scars. These scars are a part of the beauty of natural leather. Scarring is indicative of a natural skin, which in turn represents authentic leather.
Other natural marking that are often found in leather hides include insect bites, healed scratches, barbed wire marks, stretch and vein marks, and age wrinkles. Furniture 24/7’s leather furniture will need very little maintenance. In fact, regular dusting and wiping is enough. It's a good idea to use a moist cloth occasionally. If leather becomes soiled with grease, beer, wine, coffee, or other liquids, wipe immediately using a sponge or chamois with lukewarm water.
Many of the large warehouse sofa stores offer very cheap leather sofas in some ranges. They are able to do this because they use a grade of leather called “Splits” or “Pony” which is essentially a much lower grade of leather.
Typically, this leather is harder, less pliable & flexible. This in many cases leads to cracking of the high traffic areas of the sofas i.e. The seats and the back support.
At Furniture 24/7 we source our suites from factories in Southern Italy who only use top grade leather in their products. As an internet business we do not want our customers to have leather that is cracking after only a few months use.
We are able to match and even better the prices of the large sofa warehouse stores whilst selling only top grade hides because of our low overheads, (no showrooms, no brochures, no high street stores) and pass on these savings to you. Our customers get top grade Italian leather suites and sofas at less than any high street store.