Leather is a popular choice of material used in upholstery furniture. Though durability is one of its strongest suits, it’s not exempted from damages. To protect the quality of your leather furniture, you need to know the basic leather upholstery repair methods.
But before understanding the upholstery leather repair method, it’s smart to understand first about the leather itself. This will help you understand how to handle the material and what to find when you shop at furniture stores.
What is leather and where does it come from?
Leather comes from animals’ rawhides. Manufacturers created this as a fabric with several processes which includes tanning the animal rawhides. For upholstery fabric, manufacturers created different leather type and this includes top grain, corrected grains, and split grain.
- Top Grain is the upper layer of the animal hide. This layer becomes the best leather type because of its natural thickness. Making it tougher and durable.
- Corrected Grains come from the layer of the animal hide that contains scratches and scars. It called ‘corrected’ because manufacturers run this through on several processes to smoothen it and make it look naturally flawless. If you can’t find top grain leather furniture, you can always seek this leather type as it is the next best thing.
- Split Grain is the type of leather to choose if you are on a budget. Some may think that cheap means low-quality, but it is not the case for split grain. Split grain is part of the top grain, so it is a guarantee that it is durable and functional wherever you placed it.
How to carry out a leather upholstery repair?
Unlike with linen type of fabric, the patching method is the only recommended upholstery leather repair method to use. For you to perform the repair properly, here’s a step-by-step guide on how to do the leather upholstery repair with burn holes.
Step 1: Cut the burn areas using a scalpel
Step 2: Put the sub-patch of your choice inside the leather using tweezers.
Step 3: Using a scalpel, spread the glue on the hole’s edges. Make sure to apply it evenly for the patch to stick. The standard time to wait until the glue set in is around 20 minutes.
Step 4: Choose a heavy filler to apply into the hole.
Step 5: Insert the heavy filler and fill the hole. Wait for the heavy filler to dry off before adding new layers. Once dry, press it down lightly then fill another layer of heavy filler. Repeat this process until you reach the right amount of layers to apply.
Important Note: The size of the burn will determine the number of layers of heavy filler to insert the hole.
Step 6: Choose a leather dye to apply
To ensure the new patch will blend in perfectly to the original, you must apply a leather dye. You can apply the dye using a cotton bud or pad, then spread it gently. Wait until it dry before reapplying the dye.
If you have no idea on what colour to use, you can always buy an upholstery leather repair kit or ask a professionals upholsterer’s advice.
Leather proper care and maintenance
After the leather upholstery repair, the next main task every homeowner need to do is to maintain it. Cleaning it regularly is the main key to keep the furniture upholstery last long. Here are the few things you must remember when cleaning your furniture upholstery.
- Clean the leather upholstery with clean, dry cloth.
- Use a soft bristled brush or vacuum in cleaning the corners of the furniture.
- Use the proper leather cleaner (according to the leather’s type) in cleaning
- Detergents and other chemical-based cleaning solutions are harmful to leather.
- Lastly, always read the furniture manual regarding the proper care and maintenance. Strictly follow them all.
In handling proper maintenance and upholstery leather repair, there is always a designed option for DIY, and other for professionals. To ensure you are choosing the right option, you must identify the scope of the problem. If it is too big or complex to handle, it’s best to let the professional upholsterers do the job.
Featured Photo Courtesy of Timothy L Brock via Unsplash
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