Manufacturers use different fabrics when making recliners. Among so many fabrics, leather is one of the most popular choices.
Different kinds of leather have different characteristics and prices. If you prefer leather, and if you want to buy a chair for someone or for yourself, here’s something about different types of leather that you might like to know:
Natural Leather/Real Leather
Real leather is natural, and processed from animal skin. There are mainly pig leather, cow leather, sheep leather, horse leather, donkey leather, fish leather, reptile leather, amphibian leather, camel leather, etc.
Full grain leather
Among the many leather varieties, full-grain leather should be at the top of the list, because it is processed from high-quality raw leather with fewer marks. The leather surface retains its natural state intact, and the coating is thin to show the natural pattern beauty of animal skins.
Top grain
The top grain is the upper layer of the bovine body, which has the original skin characteristics and is composed of a fibrous layer resembling villi and a slightly looser overlayer closely connected to the fibrous layer.
Pros & Cons: It has good natural properties with clear surface pores and texture. The texture is solid and elastic, but it is relatively easy to damage.
Maintenance:
- Clean it frequently to prevent the pores of the leather surface from being blocked by dust.
- For daily cleaning, please use a dampened cotton cloth or silk to gently wipe it, then you can choose to wax it.
- If there is a ballpoint pen mark, it can be removed by gently wiping it with an eraser within the effective time.
- Do not expose it to the sun or contact with chemical solvents; prevent it from being scratched by sharp objects.
- Keep it dry and stored in a cool and ventilated place.
Split leather
Split leather is the looser part of the fibrous tissue, which is processed by chemical spraying or coating with PVC and PU films. Similar in appearance to top grain.
Pros & Cons: Its texture is looser, with a certain degree of elasticity and plasticity, and the price is relatively cheaper than top grain, but the durability and strength are not as good as top grain.
Maintenance: Try to use a damp cloth to clean off the dirt from the leather surface. If it happens to be oil-based stains, you can add some usual cleaning essence to the damp cloth and wipe it with a clean cloth.
Artificial Leather/Faux Leather/Synthetic Leather
Artificial leather is made of various materials such as PVC and PU with different formulations on a woven cloth base or a non-woven base, through foaming or lamination processing. It can be made according to the requirements of different strengths and colors, luster, patterns, etc.
PVC artificial leather
PVC artificial leather is made by processing fabric coated with a mixture (consisting of polyvinyl chloride resin, plasticizers and other compounding agents). In addition, there is also double-sided PVC artificial leather with plastic layers on both sides of the base material.
Therefore, the color and brightness of this kind of artificial leather can be adjusted according to the customer’s demand, which can replace real leather to some extent, and can be used to produce luggage and shoes, etc. The price is much cheaper than the real leather, which has high-cost performance.
PU artificial leather
There are mainly two kinds of PU artificial leather.
One is a multi-layer structure formed by adding a base cloth to the obtained multi-layer film after volatilizing the solvent from the solvent-based PU resin solution.
The other is the multilayer structure with good air permeability and moisture permeability and continuous porous layer obtained by using the film formation method in water with solvent-based PU resin.
PU artificial leather also has the characteristics of breathability and warmth, and the clothes made of it are comfortable. It is also widely used in the decoration of luggage, clothing, shoes, vehicles and furniture.
Recycled Leather
Recycled leather is a high value-added product made from recycling tannery waste and scraps from leather goods processing.
Like real leather, regenerated leather is hygroscopic and breathable. Well-crafted recycled leather also has a softness and elasticity comparable to real leather. It is light, wear-resistant, and has strong resistance to extreme high and low temperatures. Its disadvantage is that its strength is worse than that of real leather of the same thickness, and it is also worse than PU, so it is not suitable for leather goods that are subject to high forces such as shoe uppers. However, the production process of recycled leather is more flexible and can be adjusted
As long as the leather is of good quality, it can be your choice. It is important to note that different leathers look and feel different, so Irene House recommends that you ask the manufacturer for a fabric sample (usually free) before you buy, which will effectively avoid returns and exchanges.
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