Products considered leather often also contain synthetic layers. Some components can also be produced from ground tanning waste. The seller or manufacturer should indicate the percentage of genuine leather on the tag. In the case of articles made exclusively of natural leather, the label must bear the following inscription: real leather or leather 100%. An imitation leather product or one made of artificial material may not be so marked.
Let's start with the appearance of the skin. Natural leather has an irregular pattern that is unique. There are various scratches, wrinkles, pores or scars. On the other hand, artificial leather usually has repetitive features, but sometimes it imitates the pattern of the natural one, but a similar structure appears at a certain distance. Real leather is soft, flexible and delicate. Often, imitations imitate softness, here it is worthwhile to distinguish between the warmth of the leather.
Natural leather is simply warm! It heats up when touched and does not cool down immediately. In turn, the material imitating it will not heat up too quickly, and will also give off heat quickly. Moreover, the surface of synthetic leather can get wet, and genuine leather will always be dry.
What certainly catches our attention when buying leather products is their smell. Leatherette items usually have a chemical odor that fades away after a while. Natural leather, on the other hand, is characterized by a delicate and very discreet fragrance. It is quite distinctive and related to the tanning process, it will always be associated with real leather.
Zapoznaj się z naszą ofertą skór naturalnych
A simple and effective way to verify if your skin is real is to use… water! Real leather has a porous surface, it breathes all the time, so water soaks up easily. Wet stains dry up over time and do not cause discoloration or distortion of the material. Artificial leather does not absorb water, and under its influence it can deteriorate. However, it is worth remembering that natural leather is often impregnated, so it may not absorb water.
Often this is how we can check whether the manufacturer or seller wants to sell us a fake. The lower the price for a leather product, the more we can expect it to be made of synthetic leather. The process of leather processing, and even the material itself, translate into its high price.
It also happens that the price of the product is appropriate to natural leather, but it only contains a percentage of it. In this case, the entire composition of the product should be checked on the label. Usually, natural leather is combined with synthetics. It is a marketing ploy where we are sure that we are buying a full-size product and we are getting an imitation leather product.
It is worth taking a look at a few more places of the leather product. These include the corners of the material, where you can often see sticking and delamination. From the bottom, in turn, it can be covered with a brighter and textile material. We are then dealing with artificial leather. This can also be observed in the case of edges - if they are painted in a smooth way that makes it impossible to recognize the number of layers - it is artificial leather. Natural leather can also be glued for aesthetic reasons, but its inner part is usually matte and fibrous, which resembles the structure of suede.
