Causes Of Leather Wear And How To Prevent It From Happening To Your Leather Accessories
Leather is an extremely resilient fabric that offers a high degree of comfort when it is worn and can last for years, with the right kind of maintenance. However, despite its versatility and sturdiness, leather is not indestructible.
It will end up showing signs of wear and tear, especially under certain circumstances. If you want to prolong the life of your belongings made out of leather, you need to know what could damage them.
Below you will find a list of factors that can trigger wear and tear in leather items and what you can do to fix the problem if that is possible. Still, a strong recommendation is to take good care of your leather items if you want to keep them in great shape for as long as it is possible. This means using adequate cleaning and maintenance products and minimizing the presence of factors that could produce any kind of damage to the leather.
Leather Wear by Passing of Time
Many people choose leather because it does so well when it comes to resisting the passing of time. However, leather items will show, sooner or later, ageing signs. The more you enjoy wearing your leather belongings, the sooner time will leave marks of their surface. Lines, folds, even peeling are all signs that your leather item was affected by wear and tear over long periods. But it is worth knowing that you can restore a damaged leather item, even if it starts to peel if you take it to the right professionals. So, don’t throw away items that display leather peeling at the surface. With an adequate amount of TLC, worn-out leather products can be brought back to life.
Meanwhile, do your best to take good care of your leather belongings, especially if you enjoy wearing them often. Leather can be affected by time, and the more you own a leather item, the bigger are the chances for it to be damaged by extended use.
Water-Related Damages
Even though leather is quite resilient, it can also get damaged by water. This can happen, especially when leather is exposed to prolonged contact with water. Because leather features pores, even after it was processed, it is capable of absorbing specific amounts of water, if it manages to sit on its surface long enough.
When this happens, leather can lose some of its properties, getting softer and failing to offer the kind of protection it used to. But probably one of the most undesirable problems related to water is the appearance of stubborn stains. Once the leather has been stained by water, it is challenging, if not even impossible, to restore its even colour and appearance. These stains appear when water pools on the surface of the leather, drying out this way, without being wiped off.
So, the best way to avoid leather being stained by water is to wipe it as soon as possible, not allowing water to dry on its surface. Also, do your best to minimize the exposure to water of your leather belongings. In the case of leather shoes and jackets, using superior coating products that create an impermeable layer at the surface will help protect the leather even in harsh weather conditions.
Leather Wear by Sun Exposure
If water is bad for leather, so is the sun, at least too much of it. Sun exposure can lead to severe damages when it comes to your leather belongings. So, think twice before choosing to bask in the sun while wearing your favourite leather jacket. What makes the sun so dangerous for leather? When exposed to the sun, the leather is also exposed to the heat radiated by the sun’s rays. This will cause the formation of water within the leather, which will trigger the evaporation of the leather’s natural oil. The result will be leather that is dry and stiff, cracking easily at every touch.
But a dry and cracking leather is not the only problem caused by the sun. If you allow leather to spend too much time in the action of the sun, its colour will also fade. And the worse part is that it won’t fade consistently. More precisely a faded spot will appear where the sun managed to touch the surface of the leather. It is worth mentioning that this can also happen to leather sofas, chairs, and armchairs that are in the reach of the sun, even if it’s coming through the window.
Thus, it may be worth positioning furniture items covered in leather in a way that the sun can’t reach them during the day. How fast can the sun cause fading of colours? Just a few months of continuous exposure to the sun can damage the aspect of the leather. So, it is recommended to keep leather away from the sun if you want to maintain it in a pristine condition.
Unwanted Accidents
Rips, scratches, and scuffs are things no one wishes to see on the surface of items made out of leather. However, they can happen, out of accident or completely without you even knowing. Children, animals, even the action of your nails on leather, can leave behind marks that will further deteriorate in time. However, the best part is that you can fix scratches, if they are not that severe, with the help of olive oil. By simply rubbing a small amount of olive oil on the affected area, you can help leather regain its beauty and integrity.
But, when rips happen, it’s time to let the professionals handle the matter. Even if we don’t want this to happen, there are situations when our leather belongings can be damaged severely, usually by rough or sharp materials. In case a rip occurs, only sewing can fix such a problem. So, unless you can do this really well and have all the tools to complete this kind of task, it is best to choose professional services to redeem the beauty of the leather.
Grease and Sweat Stains
Leather accessories are always vulnerable to bodily fluids from the skin. Oils from the hair can also stick to the leather surface. Constant regular contact with grease and sweat can oxidize and deprive the leather to the effect of tannins. With time, these leather fibres lose their structure and start to lose their form.
The most common type of these damages is seen on armrests of cars, steering wheels and furniture. With regular cleaning and maintenance, this can be delayed significantly. There are other measures as well that is suitable to prevent degradation of leather wear. For example, use blankets and pillows on areas of the furniture that is suspectable to direct skin contact.
Dye Transfer
If there is one thing that is the most annoying type of damage, that is dye transfer from a brighter fabric to luxury leather. The main culprits of this are bright colour jackets, trousers and leather belts. Some low-quality cushion can dye furniture and even socks can also heavily damage leather wear shoes. Jeans can also heavily penetrate the surface of the leather, and such dye transfer damages cannot be removed with standard cleaning.
Leather Wear Solutions
People buy luxury leather thinking it will last them generations, yes they do but only when taken care of. We encourage our customers to take good care of their leather products as they become a valuable piece over time. If you are looking for a good read on how to care for leather, we got you covered. Check out our article to make leather wear cleaning and caring easy.
For people who are thinking of starting their own leather business/brand. CreateLab Nosakhari provides exceptionally leather manufacturing and prototyping service. Also, with our years and knowledge about the leather industry in the world, most noticeably Europe, we provide consultation for leather business owners. Contact us.
