Choosing a Leather Garment

A leather or suede garment is a major investment, so it is important to choose it carefully and care for it wisely. In selecting a leather garment:

• Buy from a reputable retailer.
• Look for careful matching of colors and textures between portions of the garment. Suede will never be completely uniform, but that is part of its desirability.
• Avoid a snug fit. Hides are stretched during tanning and some relaxation shrinkage can be expected in use and cleaning.
• Read and save any accompanying care information.

• Wear a scarf to protect the collar area from perspiration and body oils
• If the garment gets wet, let it air-dry away from heat.
• Store in a cool, bentilated area. Leather can dry out if exposed to dry heat or mildew if stored in a hot, humid environment. Do not store leather in a plastic bag.
• If staining occurs, take the garment to a professional suede and leather cleaner as soon as possible. Do not try to remove spots at home.

Cleaning Your Leather

When you take your leather or suede garment to a professional cleaner, it is helpful if you can provide any care information that came with the garment. Be sure to point out any stains, since stains that are old and set cannot always be removed safely. Have all matching pieces cleaned at the same time.

If there is any question about whether or not a specific leather or suede item may be cleaned, the cleaner may ask you to sign a consent form before cleaning.

What to Expect After Cleaning

Although cleaning technologies for leather and suede are constantly improving, some changes will almost always result from the cleaning process. The following gives you an idea of what to expect:

Variations among the garment's sections
Leather garments are made from skins taken from various portions of the animal and usually from several different animals. The manufacturer tries to match the skins as uniformly as possible, but even the best matching may still show some variance in texture, weight, and color uniformity. These may be accentuated after cleaning.

Loss of color
Be prepared for a slight variance in the depth of color after cleaning. Skins from various parts of the animal may have different colorfastness. Also, some leather dyes may be soluble in drycleaning fuild, resulting in overall color loss. The cleaner may be able to correct some color loss and variance with spray-dyeing.

Loss of oils
During cleaning, some of the oils used in the tanning process to keep leather supple may be lost. A professional leather cleaner has special additives to restore suppleness, but there still may be some change in the feel of the garment.

Scar tissue and vein marks
Tanners often use fillers before dyeing to mask any scar tissue or imperfections on the leather. Cleaning may remove some of the fillers and cause the defects to reappear.

Wrinkles
Shins taken from certain parts of an animal are naturally wrinkled, and have been stretched during manufacturing to achieve a smooth appearance. The agitation of cleaning can relax the leather, accentuating the wrinkles.

Texture and shading changes
Manufacturers sometimes combine a smoother skin with a courser-textured skin. Cleaning may make this more apparent. Different textures also may vary in how they absorb the fat liquors and additives in the cleaning process, resulting in some areas being darker than others. It is a natural phenomenon that is beyond the control of the cleaner.

Shrinkage
Although some shrinkage is likely to occur over time as the skins relax, this may be accentuated in cleaning. As you wear your garment, this snugness should dissipate. If the skins have been overstretched during manufacture, they may relax permanently.

Damage to thin skins
Some skins are extrememly thin and too fragile for use in apparel. These skins tend to wear exceptionally fast, even with normal usage. The agitation of cleaning will further aggravate the damage of thin skins.

Shading from adhesives
Adhesives used to glue seams, hems, and other areas may not be solvent-resistant. When the glues do not dissolve completely, they may seep through the leather and cause shaded areas.

Leather trim bleeding and transfer
Leather buttons and piping on fabric items sometimes cause problems by bleeding color onto the adjacent fabric. All attached trim should be able to withstand the care method on the label. If this problem occurs, the item should be returned to the retailer. A drycleaner may choose not to accept a leather-trimmed garment if tests for colorfastness show that the leather dye may bleed or transfer onto the fabric portion of the garment.

Oxidation
Exposure to light and atmospheric gases can cause leather dyes to oxidize over time. Protected areas, such as under the collar, will retain more of the original color.

This may become more noticeable after cleaning, and usually cannot be corrected by the leather cleaner.

Problems with imitation leathers and suedes
Imitation leathers and suedes are produced in a variety of ways and are sometimes difficult to distinguish from the real thing. Some may be coated with vinyl- or urethane-based films; others may be made to look like suede. These coatings and imitations may be vulnerable to self-sticking, blistering, puckering, or stiffening in drycleaning.

Source: International Fabricare Institute