Leather furniture suits many residential and commercial interiors. Like all furniture, it requires its own particular care and maintenance to maintain its appearance and stay looking its best. However, this should not make it an inhibitive choice or a burden. It is a matter of being fully informed and ready. Leather furniture may be perceived as difficult or tedious to look after, and especially prone to damage from children or pets. Fortunately, there is no real merit in these concerns. Caring for leather furniture is in reality no harder than caring for other types of upholstered furniture. As animal hide, it only requires simple but gentle and consistent care to keep looking its best, year after year.
Instyle Seating has come up with some easy tips and guidelines to help keep leather furniture looking and feeling its best.
Clean furniture regularly and appropriately. Use a clean, dry cotton cloth to wipe furniture down regularly. This ensures it looks its best and removes the dust which gathers over time.
Get into the furniture’s crevices. Use the pointy, fine-end attachment on your vacuum cleaner’s hose attachment to remove the build of debris, dust, food crumbs and pet-hair and such that gathers in furniture crevices and under cushions. Vacuuming the furniture should not result in any damage or scratching and is the best way to remove dust and debris.
Use a leather conditioner regularly. One of the major differences between caring for leather as opposed to fabric is the need to condition leather regularly. Leather conditioner, a creamy substance, is specifically designed to be buffed into leather. This keeps the leather in peak condition, stops it from drying out and developing cracks. It can also reduce the appearance of scratches and marks. Leather conditioner can be purchased from furniture stores and auto parts stores. The guidelines for use will vary between products and may be patch-tested in an inconspicuous area on the furniture. Generally, leather furniture should be conditioned once every 6 to 12 months to keep it in peak condition.
Be vigilant with spills. Be sure to wipe away any spills as soon as they occur. Using a dry cloth or sponge, remove as much of the spill as possible. Use a moist cloth only if necessary. Use as little moisture as possible to clean and be sure to wipe the area dry after.
DO NOT soak leather. Leather is different to fabric upholstery. Cleaning by prolonged soaking in soap or water can lead to even further damage than that caused by the original spill.
Use specialised leather cleaning products. Regular cleaning products like detergents, all-purpose cleaning sprays, ammonia, bleach, solvents, furniture sprays, can all be harmful to leather and are not recommended. Avoid using products not intended for leather care or cleaning. Use dry towels, clean cotton cloths or a sponge.
Buff away small scratches. As leather furniture is made from animal hide, it has the capacity to “heal itself”. This means small cracks and scratches may be treated with a microfiber cloth and gently coaxed away by careful buffing. Simply rub the area with a microfiber cloth until the scratch or crack fades.
Avoid exposure to direct sunlight. Like any hide or “skin”, leather upholstery does not respond well to direct sunlight. Sun damage causes drying and colour fading. Try and position leather furniture away from windows where it is exposed to direct sun light, using fabric-upholstered furniture in these areas instead. Close the curtains or blinds to create shading where possible during the sunniest times of the day.
Just treat your leather furniture a bit like your own skin and it will last you well… the few signs of age will just add to its character
