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Leather Furniture Care and Cleaning

Mukta Gaikwad
Even though taking care of leather furniture for many may seem like a tedious and boring task, it is a necessity if you wish to retain the sheen, beauty and longevity of this upholstery. Here are a few tips for keeping your leather furniture clean and good-looking.
Elegant and swanky, leather furniture rules the roost. It can make your room look chic or rusty. Leather furniture has its own charm no matter how it is arranged. The lovely colors of leather furniture make it seem suave and soft, giving it an edge over the others.
However, leather furniture care is often overlooked by us. Valuing the furniture just as much as you value it's looks, isn't a difficult task and can be accomplished through some basic precautionary measures.

Leather Furniture Care

Daily Maintenance

Dusting your furniture everyday is one of the main leather furniture care tips. To dust your precious leather furniture use a dry soft cotton cloth. Often, crumbs get stuck in the creases and crevices, which can breed ants and mites.
This can totally ruin your furniture. Hence, see to it that you've completely dusted off the dirt from every nook and corner. Try to avoid using an abrasive cloth or brush, as it may leave scratches on your sofas and couches.

Cleaning Agents

As a matter of habit, soap and detergents come into play when it's time to clean. However, when it comes to leather furniture care cleaning, soaps, and detergents are a 'strict no-no'.
If your sofa is stained, use distilled water for cleaning. Do so by blotting and not pouring the water over it. Keep blotting it till the cloth becomes dry. Strictly avoid rubbing the stain in circular motion with tap water, as it'll only worsen the condition.

Removing Difficult Stains

Sofas are usually the victims of difficult greasy stains. A dollop on butter is the surest way making the cleaning task supremely difficult. To remove the difficult stains, use a neutral soap.
Dampen a piece of rag in a dilute solution of neutral soap water and blot the stain. It will slowly disappear. Avoid using hard detergents, furniture polish or varnish, oil, and turpentine. Using such stuff will discolor a patch on your sofa.

Half-Yearly Cleaning

For best leather furniture care use authorized leather care products that are available in the market. If the care of leather furniture is taken half-yearly, focus on the corners, folds and inaccessible areas of your couch. 
Often, dust and dirt gets stuck in it, which gradually deteriorates the condition of your leather furniture. Polish the furniture to bring back the lost luster with the polish suggested in the user's manual. Using a good homemade leather cleaner and conditioner every 6-12 months will also make your leather last longer.

Read the User's Manual

Best care of leather furniture will be given to you in the user's manual. It will answer all your queries related leather furniture care. Whether you take care of your leather furniture regularly or once in a while, it always safe to abide by the products mentioned in the user's guide.

Know Your Furniture

Leather differs in texture and type, which is why taking care of leather furniture must differ. Aniline leather, aniline plus leather, and nubuck leather are the three types of leather furniture that are available in the market.
Aniline leather and aniline plus leather, have wrinkles and are soft to touch. Staining such furniture pieces is difficult, unless it's white leather furniture care, so you're safe! On the other hand, nubuck leather is soft, velvety and suede like. Such furniture is more likely to get stained and attract dust. Thus it will require regular cleaning and care.
Caring for your leather furniture will prolong the life of your furniture items. The older the leather gets, the better it looks, is true, if only you care for it. If your furniture is very old, send it for restoration to a professional instead of doing it at home. Take good care of your leather furniture as every effort taken will be worth it!