About Leather Grades for Furniture

Full Grain

• When leather furniture falls under the full-grain grading, it is the highest quality. Slight imperfections show through, such as where the cow may have rubbed against a branch or where it wrinkled from fat rolls. The feel of full grain is soft and malleable. It will have a stronger leather smell. The hides are dyed with a clear aniline dye so that the natural beauty of the animal can show through. Over time, the full-grain leather will continue to age and change depending on its exposure to sunlight and other environmental factors.

Top Grain

• Unlike its name, top-grain leather is not the highest grading for the hides used to make furniture. Instead, the top grain is an imitation grain that is stamped on top of the dyed hide. The purpose of top-grain grading is to mask imperfections and to give the chair or sofa a uniform look. While many consumers say they want the best leather on their furniture, they don't like the uneven coloring that shows through on natural materials. A top-grain coat is put onto the dyed hide after the real grain is sanded away to provide a smooth surface. While top grains feel stiffer to the touch, they are just as durable, if not more longwearing, as higher-end full-grain coverings.

Split Grain

• Like top-grain leather, split leather is heavily treated once the hide has been tanned. The grain is sanded off and the hide is dyed. Split-grain leather comes from the innermost parts of an animal's body, unlike the top grain and full grain that are taken from the sturdy outer layers of hide. Split grain still provides a sturdy material for furniture makers. Most often ,when a product carries the label "genuine leather," it is made from split-leather pieces.

Bonded Leather

• Bonded leather is sometimes recognizable by the patchwork look of the piece. The material is from the undersides and smaller areas of an animal. Excess pieces that aren't big enough to make a seat or cushion are stitched together and then dyed. Most often, though, the pieces are fused together in a chemical process that makes them look like solid leather. Furniture made from bonded leather is the least durable of all the grades. Bonded leather is used more for clothing, but furniture made from bonded leather offers consumers options that are relatively inexpensive.

Care and Cleaning

• While heavily treated leather can be cleaned with water-based products, it's best to stick with leather cleaners on all leather furniture. It's not always clear what grade of leather is on a piece of furniture because manufacturers mislead consumers sometimes with unclear labels and wording. Stay on the safe side and dust leather with a dry cloth, and rub leather cleaners and conditioners into the material to clean and maintain the durability of the furniture.