Upholstery Leather Terms:
ANILINE LEATHER: Leather that has been dyed through with aniline dyes. Pure aniline leathers represent approximately 5 percent of all upholstery leathers produced worldwide. Sometimes topped with a resin, or lacquer protective coating; can also be waxed or oiled. These are quality upholstery hides that mark, fade and change with use, they absorb oils.
BELT LEATHER: Vegetable-tanned leather can be used in the construction of furniture generally over 3mm
BUFFED : Leather which has been buffed or lightly sueded. This can be referred to as snuffed, nubuck leather, or grain-sueded leather.
CHROME TANNAGE: Leather tanned in chromium salts, generally chromium sulphate resulting in soft, mellow hides receptive to excellent colour variety. Currently the most widely used tannage in the world.
CORRECTED GRAIN : The outside skin or top grain is sanded/buffed/snuffed or abraded to minimize faults. It is then pigmented to cover the sanding and printed with an artificial grain. A spray sealer topcoat is then applied.
CRUST (SEMI-FINISHED LEATHER): Leather which has been tanned, re-tanned, dyed (or not), fat liquored, dried and softened, but not finished. Such leathers referred to as being crust.
DRUM DYING: The application of dyes to leather by the immersion of the leather in a drum that is tumbled. This process allows full dye penetration into the leather fibre.
EMBOSSED LEATHER: A pattern is applied by extreme pressure in a press to give a unique design or imitation of full grain characteristics (light grain pattern or hair cell prints. Sometimes leathers are embossed to make them appear to be exotic leathers, such as embossing an alligator pattern into cowhide or a floral pattern.
FINISH: Surface applications on the leather to colour, protect, or mask imperfections. More specifically, all processes administered to leather after it has been tanned.
FULL GRAIN: The term used for the outside original skin or hide which has had the hair removed, but otherwise has not been corrected or altered. Full-grain leather possesses the genuine original grain of the animal.
GLAZED FINISH: Similar to an aniline finish except that the leather surface is polished to a high luster by the action of glass on steel rollers under tremendous pressure.
GRAIN: This term is used to describe the surface of leather. The hides finished surface consisting of pores, wrinkles and other characteristics which constitute the natural texture of leather.
GRAIN, EMBOSSED: An artificial grain pressed into the surface of top grain leather from which the original grain has been removed.
PATINA: A surface appearance of something grown beautiful, especially with age or use; an appearance or aura that is derived from association, habit, or established character.
PERFORATED: Leather with small holes cut in the hide. Perforated leather is achieved by die cutting small holes in the leather to form a pattern in the hide. Commonly used in the Auto industry.
PIGMENTED: The process of colouring and coating the leather surface with pigments dispersed in film-forming chemicals called binders which can be tailor-made to produce surfaces that are highly resistant to wear and fading. Leathers that have been sprayed with a pigmented, opaque finish. This is usually done to cover imperfections in leather.
RECONSTITUTED LEATHER: Material composed of the collagen fibre obtained from macerated (chopped up) hide pieces, which have been constructed into a fibrous mat. Warning - often found on cheap imported furniture & sold as 'pleather or bi-cast leather'. This usually has a fine layer of vinyl adhered to it and delaminates very quickly. Avoid furniture covered in this if possible.
SIDE: Half a hide cut along the backbone.
SPLIT LEATHER (SPLIT): Skin sliced in layers to give uniform thickness to the piece (grain side). Split leather (inside) s trimmed and finished as suede (suede splits). Cheap leathers are sometimes pigmented splits with embossed imitation grain.
SUEDE: Leathers that are finished by buffing the flesh side (opposite the grain side) to produce a nap. Term refers to the napping process, and is unrelated to the type of skin used (referred to as splits or suede splits by wholesalers).
* The headings underlined are terms used most commonly at O'Connell Furniture Specialists.
BELT LEATHER: Vegetable-tanned leather can be used in the construction of furniture generally over 3mm
BUFFED : Leather which has been buffed or lightly sueded. This can be referred to as snuffed, nubuck leather, or grain-sueded leather.
CHROME TANNAGE: Leather tanned in chromium salts, generally chromium sulphate resulting in soft, mellow hides receptive to excellent colour variety. Currently the most widely used tannage in the world.
CORRECTED GRAIN : The outside skin or top grain is sanded/buffed/snuffed or abraded to minimize faults. It is then pigmented to cover the sanding and printed with an artificial grain. A spray sealer topcoat is then applied.
CRUST (SEMI-FINISHED LEATHER): Leather which has been tanned, re-tanned, dyed (or not), fat liquored, dried and softened, but not finished. Such leathers referred to as being crust.
DRUM DYING: The application of dyes to leather by the immersion of the leather in a drum that is tumbled. This process allows full dye penetration into the leather fibre.
EMBOSSED LEATHER: A pattern is applied by extreme pressure in a press to give a unique design or imitation of full grain characteristics (light grain pattern or hair cell prints. Sometimes leathers are embossed to make them appear to be exotic leathers, such as embossing an alligator pattern into cowhide or a floral pattern.
FINISH: Surface applications on the leather to colour, protect, or mask imperfections. More specifically, all processes administered to leather after it has been tanned.
FULL GRAIN: The term used for the outside original skin or hide which has had the hair removed, but otherwise has not been corrected or altered. Full-grain leather possesses the genuine original grain of the animal.
GLAZED FINISH: Similar to an aniline finish except that the leather surface is polished to a high luster by the action of glass on steel rollers under tremendous pressure.
GRAIN: This term is used to describe the surface of leather. The hides finished surface consisting of pores, wrinkles and other characteristics which constitute the natural texture of leather.
GRAIN, EMBOSSED: An artificial grain pressed into the surface of top grain leather from which the original grain has been removed.
PATINA: A surface appearance of something grown beautiful, especially with age or use; an appearance or aura that is derived from association, habit, or established character.
PERFORATED: Leather with small holes cut in the hide. Perforated leather is achieved by die cutting small holes in the leather to form a pattern in the hide. Commonly used in the Auto industry.
PIGMENTED: The process of colouring and coating the leather surface with pigments dispersed in film-forming chemicals called binders which can be tailor-made to produce surfaces that are highly resistant to wear and fading. Leathers that have been sprayed with a pigmented, opaque finish. This is usually done to cover imperfections in leather.
RECONSTITUTED LEATHER: Material composed of the collagen fibre obtained from macerated (chopped up) hide pieces, which have been constructed into a fibrous mat. Warning - often found on cheap imported furniture & sold as 'pleather or bi-cast leather'. This usually has a fine layer of vinyl adhered to it and delaminates very quickly. Avoid furniture covered in this if possible.
SIDE: Half a hide cut along the backbone.
SPLIT LEATHER (SPLIT): Skin sliced in layers to give uniform thickness to the piece (grain side). Split leather (inside) s trimmed and finished as suede (suede splits). Cheap leathers are sometimes pigmented splits with embossed imitation grain.
SUEDE: Leathers that are finished by buffing the flesh side (opposite the grain side) to produce a nap. Term refers to the napping process, and is unrelated to the type of skin used (referred to as splits or suede splits by wholesalers).
* The headings underlined are terms used most commonly at O'Connell Furniture Specialists.