Features and Types of Leather Furniture
Two of the benefits of having leather furniture is that it’s breathable and easy to maintain. The material adjusts quickly to your body temperature, providing the ultimate comfort. Leather living room furniture is durable and timeless too.
When considering leather furniture, you should think about its durability, longevity, and ability to coordinate with colors and various finishes. Leather can come in many colors due to a special dyeing process. This process ensures that the dye absorbs into the material and creates rich and bright colors. You can achieve a shiny luster even with a synthetic blend of leather. Some come with an extra layer of polyurethane topcoat to create a more genuine look and feel.
Here are a few types of leather to choose from along with their pros and cons.
Full-Grain Leather
Full-grain leather is high-grade leather that’s used in furniture production. Each piece of this type of leather is unique. Full-grain leather is made of the most durable part of the hide, which makes it long lasting. However, it’s more expensive and sensitive to imperfections. The material can be very stiff due to having both top and secondary layers, but it has a natural sheen that improves with age.
Top-Grain Leather
Top-grain leather isn’t as durable as full-grain leather, but it’s more affordable and can conceal a few imperfections. The material is much thinner than full-grain leather because it only has one layer of leather. With this type of leather, you want to ensure there’s a topcoat for a protective finish. It’ll stand up longer against stains and dirt. Top-grain leather is flexible and softens over time. This pairs well with luxury living rooms and large vintage-style areas.
Other Options
For more-affordable leather furniture that isn’t made with faux leather, consider other types of fabric, such as bicast or bonded leather.
Bicast leather is a leather byproduct with an easy-to-maintain and uniform surface. This material isn’t as durable as other types of leather, and you’ll need to treat it regularly to prevent cracks from forming.
Bonded leather is a mixture of faux and real leather that’s rolled and bonded to a paper backing. It has a smooth and consistent texture with a variety of colors and styles to choose from. It has a short lifespan and isn’t very durable, but using leather-care products on it provides for a luster and feel similar to that of genuine leather. This adds style to a finished basement or game room.
Leather Furniture Maintenance and Placement
Maintaining your leather furniture is a breeze. Make sure you dust it regularly and keep it away from heat. Too much heat exposure can cause drying and cracking in the leather. To remove dirt, use a soft cloth with a 1-to-1 vinegar and water solution or a specialized leather cleaner. Proper maintenance can extend your leather furniture’s lifespan and offer timeless style.
Be sure to spot test before using cleaners or leather-care products for the first time.
Leather furniture works well with French, bohemian and modern styles. You can pair warm leather tones with chocolates, yellows and golds to create an inviting atmosphere. As for placement, there are several rooms that benefit from leather furniture. You can place a leather sofa or armchair in an all-white modern living room to add a contrast of color and texture. This timeless aesthetic pairs well with gold-finish accent pieces. In the bedroom, adding a leather headboard serves as a focal point and pairs well with midcentury wooden furniture. Spaces with eclectic interiors benefit from leather furniture by also creating a focal point.
Overall, most rooms in your home can come to life with a leather furniture set. High-quality leather has the longest lifespan and can have a classical and timeless appeal. Plus, the smell of leather adds richness to the space and invites guests into your cozy home.