how do i care for italian leather sofas?

Question

just bought new sofas..how do icare for them? Its a natuzzi italian leather sofa.

Answer 1

My first thought was to say... "With soft strokes and a kind word in Italian... " But, that would not be nice so, here are the instructions for caring for such nice furnishings.

Regular Care
Do NOT use saddle soap or mink oil! Also, the leather used in cars is generally a different grade and uses a different type of dye than leather used in upholstery. You cannot necessarily use the same leather products on both your car and your sofa. You will find some people who insist that saddle soap or mink oil is the best way to clean and/or condition your leather, regardless of what type of leather you have. However, oil-based cleaners will stretch the leather near the seams, changing the color and pulling the leather away from the stitching. Upholstery leather should be cleaned with a water-based cleaner to avoid stretching and changing the color of the leather.

You should dust leather furniture once a month. Use a soft cloth damp with warm water to lightly rub any areas frequently used – pay particular attention to head and arm rests. You also need to use a leather conditioner on the furniture every two to three months. Most leather workers will recommend Leatherique® or Lexol-pH®. These are both high-quality cleaner/conditioners that should work on either aniline dyed leather or pigmented leather. Lexol-pH® is a newer product that you will want to test on an unobtrusive area before applying to the whole piece to make sure it's fully compatible with your leather upholstery.

Leather does acquire a patina as it ages. This is natural process and not a defect in the workmanship of your leather furniture. This changing patina of leather is the charm of the material and what makes it such a valuable type of upholstery – it won't stay exactly the same as it ages; it ages with you. So, even if you clean and condition it regularly, you will eventually notice that the color changes as the piece ages – this is normal!

Removing a Stain
Eventually, something will probably fall on your leather furniture and create a mark – but don't despair! You can usually remove or minimize the stain just by blotting with water.

Often water-based liquids don't really stain the leather – particularly not with the quality of dyes in use today. Just blot up as much of the liquid as possible – don't rub at it. Keep blotting until the paper towel or cloth comes back completely dry and then let the leather air dry.

If that doesn't work, try some leather cleaner.

Ballpoint ink and newspapers both have some aniline in the ink formula. Unfortunately, this means that these inks tend to actually dye leather. If you find a stain like this, contact a leather professional

If you have a butter or grease stain, do not use water! Again, blot at the spill until the towel or rag comes back dry. Many leather workers recommend allowing the stain to "cure" over a day or so before re-evaluating it. Often the oil will re-settle in the leather and not be noticeable. If it is still visible, try some leather cleaner like Lexol® or Leatherique®. If that fails, contact a leather technician to see about a professional cleaning or repair – and remember that if you had a fabric sofa the results would be much worse!

I hope this helps.

Answer 2

Italian Leather Couches

Answer 3

For general cleaning you need to use a good quality water based foam leather cleaner.
With light coloured leather dye transfer from clothing can be a problem although using a good quality leather protector will help inhibit this.

DO NOT use anything containing oils, waxes or silicones. (Most 'conditioners' contain waxes or oils) and furniture polish contains silicones. DO NOT use mink oil.

BABY WIPES are the worst thing you can use as they will destroy the finish on your leather. They are very strong alkiline cleaners to neutralise urine (acid) on babys skin so they are not the right thing to use on leather.

Saddle soap is too harsh to use on todays leathers and saddles need treating in a different way to furniture.
A lot of leather wipes contain chemicals which will also destroy the finish or leave residues on the leather which will damage it. They are not cheap in the long run as you would need a lot to clean a whole leather sofa. A bottle of foam cleaner should do your furniture 1-2 times.

Fairy liquid contains more salt these days to get dishes clean and this will break the finish down on your leather. This has been verified by the manufacturers (as with the baby wipes).

You should also follow cleaning with a good water based leather protector which will act like a 'scotchgard' and inhibit dirt and stains from being absorbed and make cleaning easier the next time.

Dry leather needs rehydrating with water and oils and waxes should not be used as the natural oils do not dry out of leather. Wiping over with a damp cloth regularly will help to do this.

It is important to maintain a regular cleaning regime cleaning dirt off the surface regularly and inhibiting the absorption of body oils into the leather with a protector is the best way of doing this.

The alternative is a brand new product on the market called Lazy Leather. This is the latest technology in cleaning and combines an effective cleaner with a protector. It is quick and easy to use and should be used as a maintenance product once your suite has been cleaned or from new if you have just bought it.

Using household products may appear to work but will in the long run deteriorate the leather finish quicker and it may tehn be impossible to restore. May seem cheaper to use products from the supermarket but if they do not work or damage the leather then it is a short sighted saving.

In the UK you can now purchase a Leather Protection Plan which will give you a personalised care plan for your individual leather carried out by experts in the industry. Call 01423 880127 for more details.

Source(s):

http://www.LTTsolutions.net
Leather care consultants to the furniture and cleaning industries

Answer 4

Natuzzi is the worlds largest leather furniture manufacturer, I worked direct with them as their leather repair/ inspection company for many years. They probably have more grades of leather than anyone else as they have lines at every price point. They have some of the worst leather and some of the best and everything in between.
The care is very much dependant on the grade of leather you have, while some of the suggestions you have already been given are good for certain types of furniture leather, they will create massive staining on others. A fully finished leather is the easiest to maintain, it has a surface pigmentation that acts as a barrier between the outside world and the actual epidermis of the leather. you are essentially cleaning a leather "paint" for want of an easier relatable term. This type can have the leather cleaners or woolite and warm water solutions etc used to clean them.
The next most common is a "semi analine" ( analine being the type of dye used for leather coloration the most) These have an analine dye treatment and then a clear coat or light color coat applied. You can clean lightly, but if you rub too hard you will go through the coating and darken the leather ( if caught immediately heating the area with a hair dryer will normally stop it from staining) If you find a spill that is still damp flush with distilled water and blot then use hair dryer working back and forth to dry evenly to leave a little a stain as possible. Light scratches or scuffs on this type of leather can often be taken out by the application of a leather conditioner.
Next is a full analine; they have no surface protection. a drop of water if left will darken and when dried leave a stain. There are pH correct specifically designed protectants on the market, but I dont want to sound like a salesman so I'll leave it that they can be protected if done correctly. as with semi analines the drying of moisture with a hair dryer will minimise stains.
"Pull -ups" or "oil tans" are popular aged or antiqued leathers. They fingernail scratch easily leaving a light area. they often have a "crackily" look. if you get a scratch you can first try heating the area; often this will bring oils or waxes up to the surface and blend in the scratch, if not you can work the scratch with heat and your thumb to "move" the surface oils etc around ( the color is often in an oil or wax suspension) once the scratch is gone let the leather cool and set, then carefully "scrunch" the leather with your fingers ( avoiding nails!) to re-create the "crackled" look.
Nubucks cant be cleaned per se, but soiling etc can be sanded off- 3M has sanding sponges that work much better than sand paper microfine or ultra fine grade is best. stains still wet can be dealt with as above.
For suede leather it is the same as nubuck but with a more aggressive grit; use the 3M superfine.
NEVER use : saddle soap, pure mink oil, murphy's soap, armor-all or like silicone products, dishwashing soap etc and typically if it says "beautifies leather and vinyl" avoid it...one is natural one is synthetic.

Answer 5

I know the type of leather Natuzzi is using for their sofas manufacturing (they call it "NATURAL" leather).
Here's the page from Natuzzi's site concerning care of their Natural leather http://www.divaniedivani.it/libretto/2_rivestimenti/natural.cfm

and here's a translation of the basic suggestions :

Dust periodically your sofa by using a clean white cloth, dry and not abrasive.

For the dry dirt, brush gently with a soft brush or use your vacuum cleaner at half power by utilizing the proper
accessory (but without rubbing it direct on the leather).

For the stains caused by water soluble substances (soft drinks,coffee,tea,milk, jam) remove soonest the liquid from the leather's surface by padding with a not abrasive withe cloth (or blotting paper). After then with a clean cloth, soaked in water, rub gently from the inside towards the outside of the stain. Dry immediately with a clean cloth. Don't soak the leather's surface. Don't let the leather dry in the sun light or by using an hair-dryer. USE EXCLUSIVELY WATER !!!

For stains caused by fat/greasy substances (oil, ketchup, mayonnaise,chocolate) you must remove gently the substance from the leather surface by using a blotting paper.
Be aware of absolutely not pressing (in order to avoid the dirt penetrates into leather's pores). With a clean cloth, soaked in very diluted solution of water and neuter soap, rub gently from the inside towards the outside of the stain.
Dry immediately with a clean cloth.
USE EXCLUSIVELY WATER AND NEUTER SOAP (not coloured) !!!.

Should you belong a sofa made with Natural Nabuk leather its cleaning system is exactly the same as the full grain.
The only one difference is that after cleaning it's suggested to rub the nubuck leather very gently by using a piece of sand-paper to recover the Nubuck effect.


Other tips

Keep yr sofa at least 50 cms distant from radiators or any other heat source.
To maintain its natural color don't expose yr sofa to the direct sunlight or to the light of powerful halogen lamps.
If for some reason you decide to use one of the leather conditioners / stains removal products suggested by here above answerers I suggest you to make in advance a small test on a small part of leather that will remain hided to other people's eyes.