Six Practical Tips for Caring for Leather Furniture

Protect your furniture

Even the most pleasant and durable leather is also the most demanding in care. You shouldn’t eat fruit, drink wine or coffee on leather furniture: it will be difficult to remove stains from dropped drops. If the leather upholstery is light (beige or white), you can’t sit on it in jeans: poorly dyed fabric can leave dark stains. The same applies to bright pillows, blankets, coloring magazines and toys. It is also not recommended to place a sofa or armchair near a window if the room is on the sunny side: under the influence of rays, the leather will quickly lose elasticity.

Cleaning from dust

To care for the leather of the sofa, use a vacuum cleaner, which rids it of its main enemy – dust. If you do not clean the upholstery once every two weeks, the dust will clog the pores of the leather, and it will become even more difficult to get rid of dirt. An abundance of dirt significantly reduces the service life of leather products. When cleaning, you should use a soft nozzle, which will remove dust from folds and crevices. Both a home and a car vacuum cleaner will do. If you do not have any devices, you can use a special broom or a damp cloth. To add shine, you can soak a cloth in a weak lemon solution and wipe the leather sofa with it.

Regular care

Immediately after purchasing the furniture, you should get a leather sofa care product. Once a month, it is necessary to wet clean the surface, but it is prohibited to use aggressive detergents! Do not rub the upholstery with brushes – it will leave scratches. A special composition is selected for leather care, which depends on the type of material. Detailed instructions for caring for the product should be provided by the store along with the purchased furniture. You should not skimp on cleaning agents that can damage the material: it is much more profitable to buy an expensive product and keep the leather in its original form than to watch the upholstery age day after day despite constant care. It is recommended to first try an unfamiliar composition on an inconspicuous area.

Prevention is better and cheaper than “treatment”. In order for natural leather furniture to look presentable for longer and not become a breeding ground for harmful bacteria, it must be provided with regular care throughout its entire service life.

Once a year, leather furniture should be impregnated with a special fat composition so that the material does not dry out and remains soft longer. If you do not follow this rule, the upholstery will quickly “age” and crack. Do not treat a leather sofa with shoe creams and impregnations.

Maintaining the right microclimate

When caring for leather furniture, it is important to consider two indicators to which the material reacts – temperature and humidity. Do not place the furniture near radiators and heaters: the upholstery may become deformed. A leather item that is constantly exposed to hot appliances wears out faster and takes on an untidy appearance.

In addition, genuine leather absorbs moisture from the air, which means that in the room where the “capricious” furniture is located, the humidity levels should not exceed 70%. Dry air makes leather less wear-resistant: the fatty layer is damaged, cracks appear on the material, and even the most expensive pieces of furniture begin to look cheap.

During a long absence, you should not cover the sofa with plastic film, which will create a greenhouse effect.

Getting rid of stains

If a stain appears on the upholstery of a leather sofa or armchair, do not apply chemical solvents, polishes, stain removers, abrasive pastes and powders to it: this will not only damage the structure of the material, but also deprive it of its original color. The stain must be immediately blotted with a napkin. If water doesn’t help, apply a special leather cleaning compound. Drying the stained area with a hair dryer is strictly prohibited! Also, experts do not recommend using a soap solution too often: it washes away protective oils from the leather.

If something bad happens to your leather sofa and hard-to-remove stains appear on its surface, it is best to take it to a dry cleaner. This should be done as quickly as possible, because the longer the stain is on the leather, the harder it is to remove later.

To get rid of simple stains at home, use the advice of professionals:

• Ink or felt-tip pen stains can be carefully removed with cotton wool soaked in alcohol.
• Wine stains can be easily removed with a damp sponge or rag. Pink stains will come off if you wipe them with lemon juice.
• Fresh blood can be quickly cleaned with a weak soap solution. Dried stains can be removed by carefully cleaning the leather sofa with vinegar or lemon.
• Fresh chewing gum can be easily removed with a spoon, and dried chewing gum will come off if you first apply ice to it.
• If a greasy stain appears on a leather sofa, you need to cover it with talc, and after a couple of hours, wipe it with a dry absorbent cloth.

Protect from Scratches

Caring for leather furniture involves not only regular cleaning, but also protection from all kinds of damage. If you have pets in your home, the most reliable way to protect leather furniture from claws is to keep your pets out of the room. If this is not possible, consider a different type of upholstery.

You should not sit on a leather sofa with your feet without first taking off your shoes. You should also protect the furniture during renovation.

You cannot restore a sofa by yourself, having gotten rid of severe damage – you will have to contact specialists for re-upholstery and restoration. Minor defects on leather furniture can be eliminated with professional products, such as “liquid leather”. They are sold in stores related to car repair, as well as on the Internet. In order for the scratch to become invisible, it is necessary to select a shade as close to the material as possible. And you can completely restore the color of the product using a special spray paint.

Caring for a leather sofa or armchair is a task that requires organization and accuracy. But the result is worth it: upholstery made of natural material, even after 10 years, will look as if the furniture was purchased just yesterday.