Pros and Cons of Leather Furniture

RE: Pros and Cons of Leather Furniture Post By Leather Guy (Guest Post) (08/13/2007) The leather market has gone through many changes lately. You get what you pay for.Cheap leather made to look high quality is the worst. We recomend doing some research first. You will see wild swings in price. If you cant jump up a little, we suggest you jump back and get fabric. Here is a couple educational links for the leather consumer to read: Leather Types http://www.mobileleatherservice.com/LeatherTypes.html http://www.mobileleatherservice.com/Leatheterms.html http://www.mobileleatherservice.com/Colorloss.html RE: Pros and Cons of Leather Furniture Post By Tina S (Guest Post) (07/03/2007) I have a 10 yr old cat who ignores the scratching posts and scratching boxes and continually scratches on my couch and chair. I will be purchasing a new livingroom suite and wonder if cats scratch on leathr? I love my leather seats in my car but don't want to put out a lot of money, only to see it destroyed by the cat. Suggestions? RE: Pros and Cons of Leather Furniture Post By este (Guest Post) (06/20/2007) How does a white leather couch hold up over the years? I just love white. RE: Pros and Cons of Leather Furniture Post by Lynn Beth (177) | (06/20/2007) Contact Leather is NOT sticky in hot weather because it BREATHES. Don't confuse it with cheap vinyl which IS sticky. RE: Pros and Cons of Leather Furniture Post by cookwie (801) | (06/20/2007) Profile | Contact I noticed that people are commenting about "highest quality possible". This makes a big difference. You have to take into account where they live as to the leather's comfort (stickiness and clamminess). What works for one weather zone does not work for another. For instance, leather in a desert situation would be sticky unless you can afford to waste airconditioning energy and keep your house very cold. RE: Pros and Cons of Leather Furniture Post By Diane (Guest Post) (06/20/2007) We also have all smooth leather. Ours is a burgundy brown and the highest quality we could afford when we bought it 8 yers ago. Use the cleaners and conditioners at least once in awhile otherwise just dust it. It has stayed soft and pliable, not noisy. Ours s also over-stuffed and comfy to sleep on and not hot in the summer or cold in the winter. My husband is almost 400 lbs and his chair is still in great shape and that says something in itself. RE: Pros and Cons of Leather Furniture Post By Dena, LA (Guest Post) (06/20/2007) I don't think I would buy any NEW furniture in a light color unless, my boys were out of the house, made that mistake once and it only took 2 years to turn a beige couch brown, however it was not leather, so you may be better able to combat wear and tear and your children may not be Tarzan and Darth Vader...mine still jump on the couches RE: Pros and Cons of Leather Furniture Post By Karon (Guest Post) (06/20/2007) I brought a new Leather suite back in October and I am delighted with it. The only advise that I can give you is pay as much as you can afford as the quality of the leather and how much of the suite is actual leather does matter. My suite if all genuine leather but I discovered that some of the cheaper leather suites only have actual leather on the arm rests and seating cushions - the sides, back etc are PCV or another leather subsitute. I know that my leather suite costed me alot of money around £ 2500 but if I clean it and oil it reagularly then it will last me for many years. RE: Pros and Cons of Leather Furniture Post By (Guest Post) (06/20/2007) Well, what a varity of opinions...maybe my set was cheap, but I did NOT like it, developed tiny, tiny little "cracks" in it over time where all the dirty and oils laid. Was scratched by the pets and was sticky and hot and HEAVY. my vote would be NO...in fact we just redid the WHOLE living room and went with fabric. Medium price range, so you don't have to live with it for the next 20 years...change is good!! RE: Pros and Cons of Leather Furniture Post By Lynda (Guest Post) (06/20/2007) Hm-m-m, my mom had a 9'cinnamon Suede sofa that was a dreadful problem, sagging, soiling, collected EVERYTHING, fit everyone in size but was WAY too expensive for a home with teens. She paid over $2500 for it way back when and passed it to a grandchild after it got slick spots, streaks of damage, and smelled like dirty feet from the beginning. What I learned about leather from a friend who worked at a Leather House is that one doesn't want to get leather that is smelly. I was told the smell is from horse urine which is used in the tanning in foreign countries. New leather auto smell is what it should smell like. Deersoft leather will sag and tear. Watch for uniform finishing, not patched anywhere, and look for zippers on poly-wrapped cushions ( in case it ever needs repairs or cleaning?) My daughter found a real steal/bargain at an antique shop for $60 with a hole, but got it repaired professionally and the nailhead tough antique leather is seen in Designer mags for over $8000. It is dark reddish brown, with wrapped arms, and not too much nail studding on front of arms. Lots of leather and no tufting, which only collects dust and the buttons eventually fall out. Study classic styles from better stores/magazines, then decide what you'd like first, second, third, then go shop for a cheaper mid-quality of that design. It should sit firmly but not too stiff. Wet a finger and place it on an area near the bottom back to see if it has been finished properly with repellent spray and top dressing. Don't go flashy or too neutral. Try to find a way for the naturals, warm browns, grays, or black to work for you. I dream of having a med. golden beige with no tufting/buttons, one day, or perhaps a dark natural for my older contemporary home. Warning: ANIMALS ARE ATTRACTED TO LEATHER ANYTHING, so never allow them near it or it might get "marked as their's". The movie "Wolf", I think, recommends that one gently "marks" their leather as their own with THEIR urine, IMMEDIATELY. I don't know how this could be done safely unless sprayed underneath and on the outer edges of the bottom cloth, not the leather. I'd spray it only in one corner of the bottom, and lightly to see if it worked before doing the other three corners, if you did it at all. Unless you can watch your dogs 100% of every day, it's risky NOT to mark your own leather furniture. My cat, too, destroyed our four wingback chairs when we left the home, by sharpening her well-manicured claws on the top edge of the high backs! I was merciful by not getting her declawed when I could afford it years ago, then paid the horrible price of ruined expensive all leather furniture I'm stuck with. Good luck and God bless you in your decision. : ) RE: Pros and Cons of Leather Furniture Post by coreenhart (144) | (06/19/2007) Profile | Blog! | Contact We saved for three years and found our darkish leather love seats at Costco in 2000. They are always comfortable, no matter what the temperature. They are easy to keep clean, and our guests exclaim over how comfy they are. When I get a cold, I sleep on them to keep from disturbing my husband all night. Even though they are 5 feet long and I am 5'8", they give me a good night's sleep. We paid $1500 for the two of them, and they are going to last a long time. They still look new after 7 years. We don't have indoor pets, but we both weigh about 200 pounds, so that should tell you something. The leather is from Sweden, and is very soft. RE: Pros and Cons of Leather Furniture Post By joesgirl (Guest Post) (06/19/2007) I have a leather couch, chair & matching ottoman & they were purchased over 20 years ago. i just adore all the pieces. We paid over $2000. for the set, which 20 years ago was a lot of money for a leather set. It has turned out to be an investment comparable to an oriental rug. I have never had a problem with it being sticky in the summer & cold in the winter. Rather it is so soft it feels like I have sunk into a marshmallow. Maybe it's because we bought the most expensive grade of leather. We have one tiny area on the arm of the chair that looks like a tiny crack starting. I think of that as giving the chair character. If you can afford leather buy the best your pocketbook will allow. Occasionally I will take a cotton dustcloth that is lightly dampened with water & lightly wash it. Good luck & if you go through with your purchase I hope you enjoy your set as much as I do mine. RE: Pros and Cons of Leather Furniture Post By Kim Ch (Guest Post) (06/19/2007) Well, long as we're talking 'thrift', I go the route of buying what the rich people are offloading at their garage sales. I have a dark green pillowback sofa that I really like, can kick back and relax with it, very inviting, guests seem to go right past my other chairs and fall backward into that pillowy stuff. When the time comes, I'll either start scouting more sales or slipcover another couch. I'll never spend more than $100 for a couch, and mine looks just fine. Happy couch potato here! RE: Pros and Cons of Leather Furniture Post by cookwie (801) | (06/19/2007) Profile | Contact Whatever you get, you are asking for trouble if it's in a light color. They show dirt, hair and body oils... Leather is sticky in hot, humid weather and cold in winter. What's your weather like? My personal favorite is a durable textured cloth with a minute pattern so you can't see stains. If the store sells extra head rest area cloths and arm rest cloths, get them and use daily. I get the feeling that you think you are going to buy a sofa and have it last forever. This is unlikely. Just figure you are going to be lucky if you get 12 years out of it before the color/pattern/material wears on your nerves and clashes with your new room design. RE: Pros and Cons of Leather Furniture Post By Carol in PA (Guest Post) (06/19/2007) I once read that if you have pets you should buy furniture in the same shade as their fur. That way you dont see the pet hair as much. I have a cat. I'd never buy a light colored piece of furniture. I'm going to buy chocolate brown. I feel leather should be the best of "fabrics" for furniture and the longest lasting. It wears well and is water resistant. Think about it. Do you have a leather coat? How does that wear compared to cloth coats you've had.. Leather purse.. the same thing. My son works for a textile manufacturing company that sells to furniture manufacturers. We';re buying our new sofa in sensuede... best of luck RE: Pros and Cons of Leather Furniture Post By Amity (Guest Post) (06/19/2007) Hi. My husband and I have a leather couch. Actually we didn't choose it. It came with our furnished apartment. We have some complaints about this couch. One is that our cat scratches it -- not on purpose, but when she plays. So we keep the couch covered in a constantly slipping slip cover. The other major complaint is that the couch is noisy. Whenever one of us moves, the leather creaks. In short, I'm pretty sure I'll never buy a leather couch. RE: Pros and Cons of Leather Furniture Post By TR (Guest Post) (06/19/2007) Yes don't buy fabric... if you have one near you, you can get reasonably priced, high quality leather from Costco. Another choice is pleather (plastic leather) or leather substitutes... they all clean well and wear well... they look much more sophisticated that they used to... Also, you can look second hand on craigslist and what not. But buying fabric or "micro-fabric" or whatever they are calling fabric these days is a total waste of money. RE: Pros and Cons of Leather Furniture Post By melissa (Guest Post) (06/19/2007) 6 months ago I bought my first leather couch and loveseat. I highly recommend you get the extra warranty plan, if one is offered. You should get a leather cleaner and conditioning cream to use for cleaning and protecting your leather. Before weekly dusting with a lint-free cloth, I use my Hoover vacuum attachment wand to get crumbs that have fallen in the cracks. I have no regrets in my leather furniture purchase. Good Luck to you! RE: Pros and Cons of Leather Furniture Post by tthompson (30) | (06/19/2007) Contact While I have never had leather furniture in my house I have it in my cars. I love it! I would buy leather furniture. It is so easy to clean! Spills come right up and you can spot crumbs and dust on it easier then fabric furniture. Some may consider that a con but I like clean furniture. All you need is a swiffer duster. As far as some scratching and wear and tear some people say it gives leather its distinct look. I worked in a furniture store for four years and when we had a leather piece that had a scuff we would take a hair dryer and turn it to the lowest setting and blow it on the scuff for a few seconds then rub a clean cloth over it. Works like a charm on miner scuffs. Good luck! RE: Pros and Cons of Leather Furniture Post By jojo (Guest Post) (06/19/2007) We had a light fabric suite (bad choice!) which was my worst ever decision. We replaced it about 6 years ago with an all leather black suite (goes with any other colour). I absolutely love it, it's a very comfortable design, still looks as good as new and I admit that I have hardly ever conditioned it although this is recommended. I've wiped smudges off with a damp cloth. We did get one or two 'wear' marks on the back of one chair which rubbed against a wall. These were very easily repaired. I now keep a throw blanket over the back to protect this area. This is the best suite we have ever purchased, I have not regretted it, very low maintenance. I don't know how lighter coloured leather would wear though! RE: Pros and Cons of Leather Furniture Post by michawnpita (283) | (06/19/2007) Profile | Contact Leather is hot and sticky! Not comfortable (in my opinion) to sleep on or lounge on. But I've seen some really nice ones, but I think that the lighter ones don't do as well. If you sit for any amount of time, the oils from your head will make a mark that no leather person will be able to get out. And you can keep blankets on them, they slide off. Can you tell we don't have leather? RE: Pros and Cons of Leather Furniture Post By Linda (Guest Post) (06/18/2007) Hi, we have a taupe color leather living room set. (Couch, loveseat, chair, rocker/recliner) Many may not agree with my opinion but.... I would not have any other kind of furniture. They say that there are some easy to clean ones out there? But we have the (shiny) leather and I love it. Spills wipe right off, pet friendly, kid friendly you name it. We purchased extra protection for any rips or hole that might happen to it. Once there was a cigarette burn that they had to come and repair. If you looked close you could see where the repair was but you had to be looking for it. They also sell repair liquid for car interiors and such that if you want you can repair it yourself. The only thing I would recomend is to get all leather, some of the furniture is leather only where you touch it like the seat and arms then its sewn on an imitation leather. This does NOT hold up and will rip at the seams over time. We have raised 4 boys and 3 dogs. I have had couches ruined from play dough, spills you name it. But the leather one has been a blessing in our home. Good luck and enjoy your new furniture.