A Guide On Buying Leather Sofas

Leather sofas are great for adding a touch of class and elegance to any room, but you need to know what you’re looking for before you go shopping.

To help you out in this endeavor we’re prepared this guide which should explain everything there is to know about leather upholstery in the UAE.

1.     The different types available in the market

To an untrained eye, bonded and full grain leather sofas will look the same, but there’s actually quite a huge difference in quality!

There are four major types you should be aware of:

i.                    Full Grain

Full-grain is the strongest and most durable type of leather you can find in the market. It’s incredibly soft and develops a lovely patina as it ages. 

The surface, however, isn’t suitable for rough use. It scratches very easily as the thick hides it’s made from haven’t been buffed, sanded or given any kind of protective coatings. This is why the surface retains the original marks and imperfections from the animal it came from.

Full-grain is the most expensive type of leather sofa Dubai has to offer, so only buy one if you know it’ll be in a room that won’t be used much except by guests. We also recommend keeping it away from long exposures to sunlight.

ii.                 Top Grain

Top grains are made from the same part of the hide as full grain, but the top surface is sanded, buffed, and treated with a protective coating to make it more resistant to stains.

Top grains have a beautifully consistent appearance, but they aren’t as durable or strong as full grain. It all comes down to whether you want to pay a little extra for the natural blemishes and durability, or less for a surface that’s free for any imperfections but isn’t as strong and won’t develop a patina.

iii.               Split

Split comes from the fibrous part of the hide that is left over once the top grain is removed.

The hide’s surface is usually combined with laminated polyurethane, giving it a more plastic feel that is far less durable than the two types listed above.

It’s cheaper and easier to clean than top grain, but the surface is prone to cracks, so care should be taken during use.

iv.               Bonded

Bonded upholstery is almost purely synthetically made, with only 15-17% natural leather added to give it that familiar look and feel.

Its plastic coating means it doesn’t breathe like a natural product would, which makes these sofas uncomfortable to sit on for long periods of time. The surface is also highly prone to cracking.

Two great things about bonded sofas are that they’re extremely cheap and repel stains very well, so they’re ideal for users who have pets or young children running around the house.

2.     How it’s dyed

 

Next, you need to know how the leather was dyed! There are primarily three different kinds of dyes used :

i.                    Pure Aniline

Pure aniline dyes are reserved for full grain upholstery.

They are transparent, so all of the natural markings and blemishes on the hide remain visible, giving the sofa a rich, deep color.

This process of applying the dye doesn’t add any protective coating to the surface, leaving it soft and supple to the touch, but highly prone to staining and scratching.

ii.                 Semi-aniline

Semi-aniline dyes are much more versatile for use with leather.

They retain the natural look with a transparent color, but also apply a protective coating that is more effective against stains and spills than Aniline dyes.

Semi-aniline dyes are usually added to top grain leather, but some manufacturers use it with split upholstery as well.

iii.               Pigmented

Pigmented Dyes are added to finished leather upholstery to impart various types of sheens like matte or gloss.

Pigmented products don’t feel as soft or supple as the other two, but they have a strong protective coating which lets sofas go through the rigors of children or pets.

These dyes are also hard to stain, easier to clean and fade away very slowly, and almost exclusively used with bonded leather.

3.     The quality of construction

Lastly, you need to check the quality of construction.

No matter how good looking a sofa may be, it won’t last very long if it hasn’t been constructed properly and using premium heavy woods.

Good quality sofas use kiln-dried hardwood which is held together by industrial glue and nails. The process of kiln-drying removes all the moisture from the wood, enabling it to retain its shape and strength for a long period of time.

There are a few tests you can do at the shop to quickly check the quality of a sofa frame:

• Ask the salesperson what kind of wood was used in its construction. You ideally want to go for hardwoods like Birch, Oak, Maple, Ash, and Teak.
• Hold the side of the sofa and move it back and forth. A well-constructed frame shouldn’t wobble or twist.
•  Lift up one corner of the sofa about 15cm off the ground, and see if the other corner follows. If it doesn’t the frame could be too weak.
• Try lifting the entire thing alone. Hardwoods are pretty heavy, and one person alone shouldn’t be able to do the job.