In furniture upholstery fabric selections, bonded leather is a fairly new product. Lots of folks have the mistaken notion that if a leather upholstery cloth is not genuine leather, it is going to seem cheap and not hold up to wear. That may have been the case with”faux” leather furniture before, but this newest material is a superb alternative to leather. It shares some of those qualities which make leather a top choice for furniture but at a less expensive price.
What’s Bonded Leather?
What makes this substance unique is that it comprises a percentage of real parts of recycled leather. These are combined with a bonding agent, like latex. The elements are then shaped into rolls coated in polyurethane and undergo a drying process. The drying reduces the moisture content. The rolls of material are then embossed to give it this leather-grained appearance.
Basically, only the back of the cloth is made from leather. However, the way this cloth is processed makes the end product exceptionally durable.
Desirable Features
The most desirable component of buying furniture that is upholstered in this material is its worth. Bonded leather is roughly half of the price of genuine leather. If your budget can not accommodate leather upholstery, this can be an attractive choice.
Other features which make bonded leather a Great choice include:
Recycled materials: When going”green” is important for you, using recycled materials in this cloth makes sense. Using recycled leather bits reduces the demand for new cowhides and the production is relatively free of waste products.
Durability: While not as durable as genuine leather, bonded leather can stand up to a lot more than another upholstery fabric choices.
Look and Feel: Modern bonded leather is almost identical in appearance and has a very similar feel to that of real leather. Most people can’t tell the difference.
The most recent edition of bonded leather is combining it with a matching vinyl. For many years furniture manufactures have provided furniture with real leather on the surfaces you normally touch (the chair, back, arms, and footrest) with a matching colour vinyl everywhere else (external arms and outside back). The advantage to the customer is less cost because the furniture isn’t 100% leather. Most individuals are delighted with this trade-off so long as the”fitting” vinyl is almost identical to leather in appearance. Though this leather/vinyl mix is sold under a number of trade names, most companies refer to the product as”leather match”.
The same idea is currently being used with bonded leather. Bonded leather is used everywhere the body touches with matched vinyl everywhere else. Since vinyl is less costly, this reduces costs and makes the furniture less expensive.
Learn the Difference
When you start your furniture shopping, educate yourself about the differences in the appearance, feel, and pricing of bonded leather 100% genuine leather leather/vinyl vs. bonded leather/vinyl. A fantastic customer service-oriented furniture shop will happily show you the differences.
NOTE: Most stores will combine these products together on the selling floor. This can be quite confusing to the consumer. Make certain to check at labels and ask questions to ascertain what material(s) that you are really purchasing. Being aware of what substance is used to pay for the furniture is the only way you can make an educated comparison between different pieces of furniture to ascertain which is ideal for your dwelling.