Shopper Explorer
So you’re here to find out more about leather, what type of leather sofa should you be looking and buying?
Well, there are a few different grades for leather as well as different type of finishes for them.
Let’s start of with leather grades, from top to bottom:
- Full Grain Leather
The best part, and essentially the most expensive one out there. - Top Grain Leather
Second best is still very good, it’s also relatively pricey for this grade, and you’ll find it hard to find a bargain for any top grain leather goods. - Corrected Grain/Genuine/Split Leather
There will be some leather that is not perfect, but with some skill and touches, it’s adjusted to remove or smoothen out the imperfections. - Bonded Leather
This is formed with the leftovers, which is bonded together with polyurethane or latex. - Faux Leather (PVC or PU Leather)
In case you’re wondering, it’s just fake leather; which usually does not last very long. Overtime, it’ll start forming cracks and crumble away, but great for animal lovers!
Here’s a useful image to imagine the grades:
(Source: https://www.octaneseating.com/leather-buying-guide) – As shown in the above image, it’s very common for retailers to use ‘genuine leather’ tag on their products, but it’s not a measurement of quality of the leather – always try to find out what grade leather it is.
Pricings for these leather grades?
Full grain and top grain leather sofas easily go for for thousands of pounds, though it’s quite hard to put a price on it, as it’ll depend on how big is your desired sofa, but can easily start from £2,000 – £4,000+
Corrected grain leather is reasonably priced, but still relatively more than what most people want to buy it for, it still goes for thousands of pounds, around £1000+, you might get a few retailers who try to hit the £2,000+ mark for this leather grade.
Bonded leather is most commonly sold and relatively in the prices that people want a sofa for, whilst this is the lowest grade leather – is it really that bad? Not at all, as time has progressed, techniques, machinery and processes have all advanced. Though this usually goes for a couple of hundred to maybe £1,000+
The durability of the leather is dependent on other factors other than it’s grade, such as how well has it been processed and made, how thick is the leather, and what finish was used on it.
(We’ll talk more about the finishes later).
Types of finishes:
Aniline
No pigment is used for aniline leather, which tends to be the top grade leathers, as it’s usually durable and soft. However, due to no pigments used, this means the leather is absorbent, soft and warm. Not entirely a bad thing, as most people like aniline finishes due to its natural change in shape and colour overtime, but vulnerable to stains and fading.
Semi Aniline
This has a thin layer, yet not a full cover of pigments on the leather. So whilst this provides some protection against spillage, it’s not entirely immune to stains. This is essentially the best of both, it’ll have some resistance and retain its ability to change and be soft.
Pigmented
A full and fine layer of pigment is used on the leather, so the colour on the leather should not change or fade overtime, it’s more resistant and much easier to clean and maintain. Due to the pigmented layer, it’s initially cold when touched, and due to the pigment, the breathability of the leather is reduced – which may cause you to sweat when sat/slept overtime!
(Usually good for large families, and with kids too)
What to do?
It’s still down to your budget, and buying the best possible product or goods for yourself and hopefully it’ll serve you well in the long term.
The worst possible case scenario is that you spend a fortune on something that won’t last you, which could be better spent elsewhere.
Shop around instore, get a feel of the leather, the thickness, the patterns, softness and always ask the assistant on what grade leather it is, and you’ll soon know what you want and what you would like to pay for it.
After all, the grade of the leather does not always guarantee long term use, it’s how it’s processed and made, but ultimately how you treat it, use it and maintain it too.
