Care and Repair
leather.
Leather is a beautiful product of nature.
For upholstery of furniture, panels and wheelhouses we mainly uses the hides of cows and bulls (cattle) but also calve hides and sheep hides are used. The hides are processed at a tannery. In a time frame of about 3 weeks a skin is preserved, greased and finished.
There aren’t a lot of different kinds of leather, but there are many different types of leather, partly based on the finish of the product.
Based on the of finishing we can distinguish the following types of leather :
• Full-aniline leather• Semi-aniline leather
• Corrected-grain (pigmented)
• Nubuck leather
• Old Saddle leather
• Sheep Leather
• Wax and / or oiled leather
• Pull-Up leather and bi-cast leather
• Pilots Leather
Full
aniline leather
Full aniline leather is a type of leather dyed
exclusively with soluble dyes without covering the
surface with a topcoat paint or insoluble pigments. The
resulting product retains the hide's natural surface
with the 'grain', i.e. visible pores, scars etc. of the
complete original animal's skin structure. These dyes
show the natural texture, but do not protect the leather
from damage. This type of leather is particularly
sensitive to dirt, grease, moisture and perspiration,
making it necessary to very well protect this type of
leather. Also, direct rays of sunlight. UV radiation
must be avoided in order to prevent discoloration and
dehydration.
Care: It’s better to avoid exposure to direct rays of sunlight. UV radiation must be avoided in order to prevent discoloration and dehydration.
This type of leather is particularly sensitive to dirt, grease, moisture and perspiration, making it necessary to very well protect this type of leather. We are working on developing a special care and clean product and will update the site soonest with our professional cleaning products.
Semi-aniline
leather
Semi aniline leather is produced through a very similar
process to full-aniline, but has a thin protective top
coat added to protect it from wear and staining. The
natural features of the hides are still visible (the
holes in the hairline for example, can still be seen).
It’s better to avoid exposure to direct rays of
sunlight. UV radiation must be avoided in order to
prevent discoloration and dehydration.
Care: It’s better to avoid exposure to direct rays of sunlight. UV radiation must be avoided in order to prevent discoloration and dehydration.
We are working on developing a special care and clean product and will update the site soonest with our professional cleaning products.
Corrected-grain
(pigmented) leather.
Corrected grain leather is any leather that has had an
artificial grain applied to its surface. The
imperfections are corrected or sanded off, and an
artificial grain embossed into the surface and dressed
with stain or dyes. It’s better to avoid exposure to
direct rays of sunlight. UV radiation must be avoided in
order to prevent discoloration and dehydration.
Care: It’s better to avoid exposure to direct rays of sunlight. UV radiation must be avoided in order to prevent discoloration and dehydration.
We are working on developing a special care and clean product and will update the site soonest with our professional cleaning products.
Nubuck
Nubuck is a top-grain cattle hide leather that has been
sanded or buffed on the grain side, or outside, to give
a slight nap of short protein fibres, producing a
velvet-like surface. Although the finest hides are used,
it is possible that for example, insect bites, blasts,
neck wrinkles or pores are visible. This type of leather
is particularly sensitive to dirt, grease, moisture and
perspiration, making it necessary to protect this type
of leather well. It’s better to avoid exposure to direct
rays of sunlight. UV radiation must be avoided in order
to prevent discoloration and dehydration.
Care: It’s better to avoid exposure to direct rays of sunlight. UV radiation must be avoided in order to prevent discoloration and dehydration.
This type of leather is particularly sensitive to dirt, grease, moisture and perspiration, making it necessary to protect this type of leather. We are working on developing a special care and clean product and will update the site soonest with our professional cleaning products.
Old
Saddle leather
Old Saddle leather is a patinated, vegetal-tanned,
leather type. It is made of the best Western European
cattle hides and has a waxy finish. Through a
sophisticated tanning, dyeing and greasing process a
leather type is made which has a very well rubbed and
sufficient light authenticity. Nevertheless, this type
of leather can not be put in direct sunlight, as the
leather will discolour. Throughout the time this type of
leather will obtain its final patina and will develop
it’s own character. Given the waxy patina finish, this
leather should not be treated with a damp cloth or
cleaning product. It’s better to avoid exposure to
direct rays of sunlight. UV radiation must be avoided in
order to prevent discoloration and dehydration.
Care: It’s better to avoid exposure to direct rays of sunlight. UV radiation must be avoided in order to prevent discoloration and dehydration.
Given the waxy patina finish, this leather should not be treated with a damp cloth or cleaning product. We are working on developing a special care and clean product and will update the site soonest with our professional cleaning products.
Sheep
Leather
Sheep leather is a vegetal-tanned leather (full-aniline)
without a protective layer. Originally the sheepskins
are drier and stiffer than cow hides. The sheepskin
hides are tanned and manually rubbed with an, often
brownish, water stain and usually finished with a
wax-based product. This produces sheep leather which
almost always has the so-called "Cloud effect" (light,
dark coloration). Partly because of the relatively small
hides, colour and structural differences can not be
avoided between the various parts of the furniture. From
the start of the use of sheep leather the hides may
develop small hairline cracks. This contributes to the
unique appearance of the leather and the antique look.
It’s better to avoid exposure to direct rays of
sunlight. UV radiation must be avoided in order to
prevent discoloration and dehydration.
Care: It’s better to avoid exposure to direct rays of sunlight. UV radiation must be avoided in order to prevent discoloration and dehydration.
We are working on developing a special care and clean product and will update the site soonest with our professional cleaning products.
Wax
/ oil leather (leather
finished with a wax and / or oil layer).
This type is usually a
full-grain aniline leather type. This full aniline
leather is treated with vegetal oils to make the surface
darker in colour. In the last processing phase in the
tannery hot oil or wax is rolled on the grain of the
leather. Usage of this leather will in the course of
time lighten the colour (in some places). Referred to as
the so-called "Pull Up" effect. It’s better to avoid
exposure to direct rays of sunlight. UV radiation must
be avoided in order to prevent discoloration and
dehydration.
Care: It’s better to avoid exposure to direct rays of sunlight. UV radiation must be avoided in order to prevent discoloration and dehydration.
By treating the leather about two times per year with a leather wax and oil product the leather will regain it’s original colour. During application of this maintenance product the cloth or sponge will sometimes stain. This is common for this type of leather. Given the oil or wax layer of the leather, it is recommended not to intensively clean the leather. Cleaning is possible, but use a light hand and do not press too hard on the leathe. We are working on developing a special care and clean product and will update the site soonest with our professional cleaning products.
Pull-up
aniline leather and bi-cast leather
Pull-up aniline leather
is a type of aniline leather that has an additional top
treatment of oil and/or wax effects. These Pull Up
leathers are designed to become "distressed" looking
through time and use. Its properties are similar to full
aniline but in places of heavy use, the oils will be
pushed away leaving lighter areas - particularly on the
seating areas.
Bi-cast leather is a material made of a split leather
backing and a layer of polyurethane (hence the term "PU
leather") that is applied to the surface and then
embossed. Because it is only used for the backing, the
leather portion of this material is generally not
visible on finished goods made from bicast. The end
product has an artificially consistent texture that is
easier to clean and maintain.
There are also types where the pigmented cow leather,
usually a split leather, has a film layer with Pull Up
effect pressed onto the surface.
Care: It’s better to avoid exposure to direct rays of sunlight. UV radiation must be avoided in order to prevent discoloration and dehydration.
We are working on developing a special care and clean product and will update the site soonest with our professional cleaning products.
Pilots
Leather
Pilots leather is a
corrected-grain (pigmented) semi-aniline quality leather
that has been sanded at a later stage. The leather
exhibits a robust and fairly rough / velour-like
appearance. The leather is naturally better protected
than a nubuck leather. Despite this, it is important
that the protective layer is kept intact, without
effecting the appearance of the leather.
Care: It’s better to avoid exposure to direct rays of sunlight. UV radiation must be avoided in order to prevent discoloration and dehydration.
We are working on developing a special care and clean product and will update the site soonest with our professional cleaning products.