Wednesday, 5 September 2012

Leather Maintenance Strategy For Newbies

By Ethan O. Tanner


Leather constitutes a natural substance that takes special handling for assorted repairs.The lone way to un-crack leather is to replace it. One attack that leather repair specialists apply comprises cleaning the leather then re-color it. The final result is that the leather will have a consistent appearance. The cracks will still be there but will be less obvious. You can as well have a leather repair professional person replace the cracked regions and match the new leather to the original coloring. This works best when you're working with a panel of leather, e.g. on a automobile seat or the surface of a furniture cushion.

Dog and Cat Scratches can easily damage a valuable piece of leather furniture. For dogs, most damage occurs while climbing on and jumping off. If you are a cat owner, leather fillers or tanner's resin will cure the symptoms but not the problem. You might consider buying your cat a scratching post and put it near the area where the cat is scratching before using the filler.

You perhaps be capable of repairing little scratches on leather furniture. Spraying water on the scratch and covering it with a lesser square of 1000 grit soaked sand paper purchased at the hardware store. Sand very gently till the surface is smooth and you can't feel the tear from the scratch any longer. You might end up wanting to re-color the piece of furniture if the scratch damage is large. That would represent a chore for a professional.

If your leather has a small tear and it is not highly obvious, (and if the color is black) any leather restore kit should be adequate if you abide by the directions. Nevertheless, there are a few items to be mindful of just in case you encounter troubles. The repair textile might not bond well with the leather. This occurs whenever the leather is old or whenever the heating element supplied with the kit (if it's included) isn't hot enough.

Usually, a leather repair kit will contain grain papers that you rub over the repaired area to imprint a grain-like finish. The idea is that the grain will resemble that of the original undamaged leather as much as possible. Some grain papers are also pigmented. It's difficult to match color but it's even more difficult if the leather is old. Experts say that unless the leather color is black, the repair will show.

You may need to place a small piece of cloth and padding under the tear to help hold the edges together. You can place a piece of material under the tear and glue it with the edges to be repaired as close together as possible. Hold the edges together while the adhesive dries, or use a hair dryer (very carefully) to speed up the process.

Using a leather repair kit will usually hide the tear and hopefully prevent further damage. The problem with using a leather repair kit is the damaged area will always be weaker. The other thing you can do of course is have someone replace the damaged section of leather and match the color professionally. This is the best repair, but also the most costly.

Stuck together leather confronts a challenge. If you've a leather article with sides, such as a pocketbook that appear to be stuck together, looking inside to ascertain if you'll be able to tell precisely where the sides are binding. Hold the item over a pot of boiling water ? but not too closely and don't let the pocketbook to get too wet. The heat and humidity will expand the pores in the leather and may allow for you to work out the sides free, but don't force them if they will not shift. You could also try to work some leather cleaner in 'tween the sides. If there is grime or other grunge that's holding the sides together, this might loosen it. In conclusion, if getting the sides apart does not appear easy, take it to a shoemaker for restoring.




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