Common Customer Questions
WILL MY SUITE BE EXACTLY AS SEEN HERE IN THE SHOWROOM?
You can be sure that the quality, style, design and construction will be the same as you see here in the showroom. As far as the leather, this may not be the case: All leather is unique. No grain structure is identical to another. No fiber structure in a hide is equal. This means that the color used for dying the leather and pigments for dressing the leather penetrates unequally into the leather. The color is more or less equal for a lot produced at a time. With a new lot it is possible that a slight color difference will appear. You will notice a slight difference in color between the color swatch and the color of the exposed suit. This color difference may be more noticeable when a customer orders, for example, a footstool as a complement to a suite he bought the year before. Each leather hide also tells a story of how the cow lived or its life on the range. Scars, barbed wired marks and differing grain patterns make each leather hide truly one of a kind.
IS LEATHER COLD? IS LEATHER HOT?
Leather adapts its temperature to what is nearest to it. When the room temperature is 60 degrees, the leather will seem cold as our body temperature is 98.6 degrees. When the room is 90 degrees the leather will seem hot. Leather will adapt itself more or less slowly to body temperature depending on what type of leather you are sitting on. Nubuck adjusts the quickest, pure Aniline less, semi-Aniline even less and corrected grain adjusts the slowest. The less dressed the leather is, the better this temperature regulating system works.
IS LEATHER A DURABLE MATERIAL?
When treated in the right way leather is VERY durable. Old Egyptian archeological discoveries include shoes still in a perfect state, showing its long lasting effects. However, leather needs protection from external aggressive factors, such as, perspiration, hair grease, hair gel, etc.
IS LEATHER RESISTANT TO ANIMALS SUCH AS DOGS AND CATS?
Cats and dogs can damage your leather suite. Leather is particularly resistant, but is not made for the sharp claws or teeth of dogs and cats. However, leather is more resistant to animals than fabric furniture. Leather does not absorb animal odors and cannot be penetrated by animal hair.
WHAT IF STAINS ARE DETECTED WEEKS AFTER THEY OCCURRED?
There is one golden rule when cleaning stains: CLEAN THEM RIGHT AWAY! Lets say you discover stains after some time. In that case, depends on the leather type and if the leather has been protected or not.
Pure Aniline and Nubuck/Suede if not protected can stain easily. Try to clean all leather immediately after a spill occurs using mild soap and water. If you have trouble removing a stain contact a specialist before you start trying your own more abrasive method.
On semi-Aniline and corrected grain use a soft cleaner and wash out the now dried up stain. There should be no problem.
ARE THE ANIMALS USED IN MAKING THIS LEATHER FUNITURE BRED AND KILLED FOR THIS PUPOSE?
Absolutely not! Leather is a by-product of the beef industry. If the hides were not used to make leather products they would be disposed of as waste.
DOES LEATHER CRACK AND SPLIT OVER TIME?
Not anymore. With the use of natural and synthetic oils in the processing, drying out and breaking down of the leather, there is no worry of cracking and splitting like there was in past years.
WHAT IS A SPLIT HIDE?
Splits are the layers of skin below the surfaced. The surface layer is top grain leather. Splits are used in some cases on the non-seating areas of leather furniture. They are corrected to look like top grain and offer a cost savings to the consumer. Only the second layer is used in quality leather furniture. The rest of the splits are used to make shoe soles, belts and other inexpensive leather products.
WHAT IS ANILINE DYING?
Aniline is a colorfast, highly penetrable dye used in all high quality leather furniture. There are three types of Aniline dying:
1. Full Aniline: This process uses only the dye as the visual color.
2. Semi or partial Aniline: In addition to the Aniline color in the leather, a slight surface color may be used to achieve a consistent coloration. Also, a protective finish may be applied to the leather, which also puts the piece into this category.
3. Surface dye: In this process, the color you see is entirely surface applied. However, Aniline dye is still used to give the leather its initial coloration.
SHOULD I BE CONCERNED IF MY NEW LEATHER FURNITURE HAS MARKINGS SUCH AS SMALL LINES OR BLEMISHES ON THE SURFACE?
No. These marks are signatures of nature, your assurance that you own genuine leather.
WHY IS ONE LEATHER GRADE MORE EXPENSIVE THAN ANOTHER?
Since raw hides come from animals from all over the world, the climactic and range of conditions very greatly. Animals from arid, semi-harsh environments have tougher, more exposed hides than that of those from cooler, more temperate climates. Since the process of correcting a hide to remove the effects of a harsh environment is less costly than the cost of a clean hide, the pricing generally reflects the animals origin. However, other factors, such as special surface treatments and the age of the animal affect the final cost.
WHY CAN THE PRICE OF LEATHER FURNITURE VARY SO MUCH?
The single most important reason for this is size. Since as much as 40% of the cost of the finished product is in the leather itself, a couple of inches in its dimensions can add dramatically to the price. Also, the grade of leather, split hides and additional style details will contribute to the price equation.
