Leather sofa if you have one

[crazyforlatin]

Where did you buy yours? And will it be better than fabric sofas since we have a husky?

[Scarlett]

3 minutes ago, crazyforlatin said:

Where did you buy yours? And will it be better than fabric sofas since we have a husky?

I researched leather a long time before we bought ours.  We are very happy with it especially with dogs.  All leather is not created equal so you have to educate yourself.  We went with a sectional from USA premium leather. (The manufacturer)

[Lecka]

We got ours second hand from our neighborhood Facebook page.  I love it, I had always wanted a leather sofa.  
 

My husband is happy that I’m happy.  He just doesn’t care for it that much.  

[Spryte]

We had one from Costco years ago, and would not recommend that again. Since then, we’ve done our homework and know what kind of leather we want.

Our current sofa is from Poly and Bark, and I love it. Three years old. 

We don’t invite our dogs on the couch, but it’s better than fabric for pet dander and asthma.

[Ausmumof3]

Don’t get bonded

That’s what we did with dining chairs and they fell apart in less than five years 

[gardenmom5]

Stay away from pleather.
as has been said, all leather is not created equal.

You want top grain, or preferably full grain.  They will last . . . My last one the leather outlived the frame. . . (my current one has 8-way springs from a better brand, so hopefully longer)  I admit I bought the last one used, and had it for 10 - 15 years. The (felt like full grain) leather was fine, the frame broke.

My concern with dogs is nails.  Do you keep them trimmed?  They will scratch - better quality leather will be able to handle it, saddle soap/leather conditioner etc.

Edited August 29, 2023 by gardenmom5

[crazyforlatin]

2 hours ago, Scarlett said:

I researched leather a long time before we bought ours.  We are very happy with it especially with dogs.  All leather is not created equal so you have to educate yourself.  We went with a sectional from USA premium leather. (The manufacturer)

Thank you, I’m beginning to see there are a wide variety of prices. 

2 hours ago, Lecka said:

We got ours second hand from our neighborhood Facebook page.  I love it, I had always wanted a leather sofa.  
 

My husband is happy that I’m happy.  He just doesn’t care for it that much.  

It’s for me too. Always wanted a leather sofa.

2 hours ago, Spryte said:

We had one from Costco years ago, and would not recommend that again. Since then, we’ve done our homework and know what kind of leather we want.

Our current sofa is from Poly and Bark, and I love it. Three years old. 

We don’t invite our dogs on the couch, but it’s better than fabric for pet dander and asthma.

I was looking at Poly (Napa sofa) as well as some other brands like Burrow, 25home, Castlery and maybe West Elm. Pottery Barn is out of the budget. 

1 hour ago, Ausmumof3 said:

Don’t get bonded

That’s what we did with dining chairs and they fell apart in less than five years 

Good to know! 

1 hour ago, gardenmom5 said:

Stay away from pleather.
as has been said, all leather is not created equal.

You want top grain, or preferably full grain.  They will last . . . My last one the leather outlived the frame. . . (my current one has 8-way springs from a better brand, so hopefully longer)  I admit I bought the last one used, and had it for 10 - 15 years. The (felt like full grain) leather was fine, the frame broke.

My concern with dogs is nails.  Do you keep them trimmed?  They will scratch - better quality leather will be able to handle it, saddle soap/leather conditioner etc.

Right I think higher quality will be better with dogs. 25home claims that but I’m going to continue looking at reviews. 

[crazyforlatin]

1 hour ago, gardenmom5 said:

Stay away from pleather.
as has been said, all leather is not created equal.

You want top grain, or preferably full grain.  They will last . . . My last one the leather outlived the frame. . . (my current one has 8-way springs from a better brand, so hopefully longer)  I admit I bought the last one used, and had it for 10 - 15 years. The (felt like full grain) leather was fine, the frame broke.

My concern with dogs is nails.  Do you keep them trimmed?  They will scratch - better quality leather will be able to handle it, saddle soap/leather conditioner etc.

I forgot to ask, which brand do you have?

[KidsHappen]

We got ours of FB marketplace or maybe Craig's List. It was brand new. Someone had bought it and then it didn't fit in their house. It is at least 10 years old now and still going strong. It stands up to the dog and babies well. But the kids don't like it because it is not snuggly. They say they stick to it and it is uncomfortable. I have been advised to replace it with some type of fiber but I am thinking maybe suede instead.

[Pawz4me]

Our first leather furniture came from Lazy Boy (LaZBoy? too early to look up the correct spelling). I can't remember how long we had it, but it was at least fifteen years. It survived numerous dogs and cats (our own and fosters), and the boys' growing up years. It did have some scratches on it from the cats' claws, but I don't think the dogs did it a bit of harm. After my mom died we took her sofa and love seat, also leather, that came from a local furniture store. I have no idea what brand they are. We've had them for about seven or eight years now and they're still perfectly fine. But we don't have cats any more, and the dogs are small and are groomed at least every other week (nails kept trimmed and short).

I wouldn't think of anything other than leather with pets. I do keep a throw over the seat portion of "my" couch, 'cause I let the dogs have chews and biscuits and whatever they want on it and I don't like crumbs getting between the cushions. All I've ever done for cleaning/maintenance is wipe them down with a damp rag occasionally.

[Spryte]

6 hours ago, crazyforlatin said:

Thank you, I’m beginning to see there are a wide variety of prices. 

It’s for me too. Always wanted a leather sofa.

I was looking at Poly (Napa sofa) as well as some other brands like Burrow, 25home, Castlery and maybe West Elm. Pottery Barn is out of the budget. 

Good to know! 

Right I think higher quality will be better with dogs. 25home claims that but I’m going to continue looking at reviews. 

We have the Napa from Poly. Love it. It is everyone’s favorite seat. Super comfy and excellent for napping.

I bought their cleaning/conditioner kit, but really haven’t used it often. 
 

 

[stephanier.1765]

3 hours ago, Pawz4me said:

Our first leather furniture came from Lazy Boy (LaZBoy? too early to look up the correct spelling). I can't remember how long we had it, but it was at least fifteen years. It survived numerous dogs and cats (our own and fosters), and the boys' growing up years. It did have some scratches on it from the cats' claws, but I don't think the dogs did it a bit of harm. After my mom died we took her sofa and love seat, also leather, that came from a local furniture store. I have no idea what brand they are. We've had them for about seven or eight years now and they're still perfectly fine. But we don't have cats any more, and the dogs are small and are groomed at least every other week (nails kept trimmed and short).

I wouldn't think of anything other than leather with pets. I do keep a throw over the seat portion of "my" couch, 'cause I let the dogs have chews and biscuits and whatever they want on it and I don't like crumbs getting between the cushions. All I've ever done for cleaning/maintenance is wipe them down with a damp rag occasionally.

I'm also starting to look for a new sofa. With 5 cats, I was concerned they would use the leather as a scratching post. I'm so glad to see that it holds up well, which gives me a lot more options for my search.

[Boymama5]

My aunt gave us her leather sofa and chair. At that point they were at least 15 years old and we’ve had it for another 3-4.  No dogs but we have a lot of kids who were rough on them. Still looking nice. She got them from Walter E Smith (is that even around anymore). Not sure if the brand from there. 

[eve0806]

I would not recommend a leather sofa, over time the leather peels off and cracks, it is better to buy a fabric one

[livetoread]

We got an Ethan Allen aniline top grain leather Chesterfield sofa when we got married thirty years ago. Some buttons have popped off over the years, but the leather is still amazing. Soft and lovely. At one point I had it in direct sun and it is bleached there, so be careful of that. I'm getting ready to buy a kit to redye it and replace the buttons. We've had cats and dogs but the dog didn't get on it and the cats left it alone. Top quality leather will last decades and won't peel or crack.

[prairiewindmomma]

We have aniline leather couches from Pottery Barn. We picked them up from an outlet store. The frame has held up well. The leather gets conditioned a few times a year, and it has held up well. The down pillows that make up the back of the couch have deflated with time and need to be redone.

We have leather because of allergies, but it does get scratch marks and nicks. I think you need to be ok with “character marks” iykwim.

[gardenmom5]

12 hours ago, crazyforlatin said:

I forgot to ask, which brand do you have?

I have a Bradington Young
eta: I can't remember the brand of the last one that I bought used and had for more than ten years before the frame broke and the springs were crap.  - which is why I made sure I had the 8way springs this time.  they last longer. But that leather was still going strong - could use a cleaning, but otherwise good.

Edited August 29, 2023 by gardenmom5

[gardenmom5]

Just want to add - with leather, there really is something to "you get what you pay for".
 

[livetoread]

3 hours ago, prairiewindmomma said:

The down pillows that make up the back of the couch have deflated with time and need to be redone.

Downside to any pillows is they get misshapen over time (true for fabric and leather both). I prefer tightback sofas for that reason. The downside with Chesterfields is the buttons do come off eventually. So pick your poison!

[Lecka]

Ours is from Legacy Leather International.  The previous owners had it 10 years and had two little dogs who sat on it.  It had marks but what I consider very minor.  We paid $350 (I think) and don’t feel any pressure to keep our medium-sized dogs off it, and we’ve had it about a year now.  It does not look any worse for wear than it did when we got it.

 

We think it’s comfortable, too.  
 

We do often lay a blanket over it, in the summer, it can be sticky if someone is wearing shorts.  But it’s very minimally sticky, and we like blankets anyways.