Leathers Used for Furniture

Tanning

• The process of tanning leather prevents the decomposition that would naturally take place. Higher-grade furniture leather usually undergoes vegetable tanning, which uses tannin, a substance found in tree bark, to preserve the hide. Vegetable-tanned hides retain greater flexibility than chrome-tanned hides, so called because they've been treated with the mineral chromium. Budget-quality leather furniture may contain leather tanned with this quicker, less-expensive process.

Grain

• Top-grain represents the gourmet selection from the leather menu. Tanned hides, which are too thick for most uses, get split into two or more layers. The outer, or top, layer yields the most durable but also the most supple, most naturally detailed leather. The inner, or split, layer retains fewer markings and typically costs less. Bi-cast leather refers to thin layers from the inner hide coated in polyurethane. The resulting low-cost furniture resembles leather but feels synthetic. Similarly, bonded leather contains hide scraps glued together and sealed in polyurethane or another synthetic coating.

Pigmentation

• Aniline-dyed leather retains the softest feel and the most natural look, revealing markings, blemishes and color variations on the hide. The most expensive type of leather, it also shows stains, fading and other signs of age and wear. Semi-aniline leather adds a protective, translucent coating that evens out the color and works as sunblock. This finish doesn't mask the natural markings of the hide but it does increase the leather's stain resistance, reducing the suppleness a bit. Pigmented leather falls on the cheapest end of the scale, though it's also the most durable and won't soak up spills. A heavy coating of protective color on the surface of the leather makes this leather the most consistent in appearance but also gives it a plastic-like feel.

Correction

• Corrected-grain leathers undergo buffing, polishing or other abrasive processes that obliterate the natural grain and alter the surface appearance. Top-grain leather can be buffed to reduce some of the natural discoloration and markings, creating an open-nap, suede-like effect known as nubuck. True suede comes from the inner layer of the hide. The term "full-grain leather" usually means no buffing or sanding took place. Full-grain leathers typically come from hides that display desirable natural markings -- such as branding scars, insect bites and neck wrinkles.