Caring for your leather sofa

There’s something about a leather sofa that defies logic. It’s just another piece of furniture, right? Hardly. A leather sofa is not only furniture, but a statement about who you are – elegance, comfort and sophistication, all rolled into one.

Contrary to popular opinion, leather sofas are more affordable and easier to care for than you may think.

Cost

Top quality leather furniture may appear more expensive at first glance, but its durability and ease of maintenance means you will be able to enjoy your sofa longer. While your fabric furniture may begin to fade and wear over time, leather furniture will continue to look new for years, if not decades, to come. So, in the long term, leather sofas are a better investment than fabric living room furniture.

Maintenance

Now for the cleaning side of the equation. To keep your leather looking new, you should wipe it down with a dry cloth once a week to remove dust and oils. This will also keep the pores in the leather from collecting dust, dulling the look. If something gets spilled on the leather, wipe it immediately with a wet cloth with some liquid hand soap on it.

When you first get your leather sofa, you’ll want to add a protector to it to keep it looking

good and reduce the chance that an inadvertent spill will stain the leather. Every three months, you should use a professional leather cleaner to give the sofa a full cleaning from top to bottom, and then reapply the protector.

Got Kids?

Speaking of cleaning, you’re probably wondering if a leather sofa, loveseat or sofa set is a good idea if you have children. The answer is, surprisingly, yes. Its ease of cleaning is the main reason. Unlike fabric furniture, leather is a snap to clean compared to fabric, which stains more easily. In addition, leather is more rugged. It’s five times stronger than even the best fabric on the market. If you have rambunctious, energetic kids, a leather sofa will stand up to rough housing and daily abuse with ease.

What leather is best for you? There are two popular types: full grain leather and suede. Full grain leather is smooth to the touch. The grain is the real star here. Every effort has been made to not only retain the natural grain of the leather, but to match pieces so you can’t tell where one piece of leather ends and another begins. Suede, on the other hand, has had the grain entirely removed, giving it its characteristic fuzzy feel. If you want a durable sofa set, go with top grain leather. It will last a lot longer and not show wear spots like suede or cheaper types of leather. Top grain costs more, but is worth it in terms of quality, wear and longevity.

When looking for the sofa, loveseat, chaise or grouping of your dreams, you can’t go wrong with fine leather. It has the durability, sophistication and beauty today’s discerning homeowners are looking for.