Good Value

Leather furniture can be one of the most valuable pieces of furniture in your home, and when it’s well maintained it can last a lifetime. While you can buy a chair for less money, five years from now that chair will have worn down and you will need to buy a new one; whereas a leather chair would still look new and have years of life above and beyond. In fact, well maintained, even slightly neglected, leather furniture looks better with age as it develops a natural patina that cannot be duplicated by machines.

Naturally Beautiful

This reason might strike some wrong, but it’s true. Leather is all-natural, and it’s truly beautiful. Leather has been used by men since the dawn of mankind. I like all that rich history under my skin. Also, the older leather gets the better it looks. Unlike any other upholstery, it actually looks better after 20 years than when it was new. Can you say that about your blue plaid loveseat?

Brown Leather Goes With Everything

I like to redecorate a lot. But I don’t want to replace my favorite chair every time either. The other leather color choices are black (Done-To-Death), white (Are you kidding? White furniture?) and the occasional reddish tan (Eww!) — none of which really please me. My brown leather armchair is always perfect no matter what my room colors are this season. Brown is always a neutral color and accent pillows can tie everything together.

Easy to Maintain

Yeah, I’m lazy. I admit it. But taking care of a leather armchair is very simple if you stick to it. Even I can manage that! You need to make sure to clean it regularly with a dry cloth to keep the dust off, and if you spill something on it make sure to clean it up right away.  A common mistake is to use a lot of soap and water, but this is the biggest mistake that you could ever make on your leather furniture, because this speeds up the cracking of the leather and damages it.

Conditioning your leather furniture is also the perfect task for us lazy housekeepers because you only have to do it every 6 to 12 months. Use something mild — you do not want anything too strong for leather. Conditioning cleaners especially for leather are best! And most importantly, keep your armchair away from strong sunlight and fire. There is a reason that you always see leather furniture in a dark room, but you can still have it in a sunny room if you just make sure to keep it where the sun does not shine directly on it.

photo credit: tacker

My Dog Won’t Damage It

A lot of people worry that they can’t have leather furniture because they have a pet. However, my dog’s nails have never done one speck of damage to my brown leather armchair. Leather is actually pretty durable, especially when you consider that it was made to protect the original wearer from serious injury.  If you’re still nervous you can purchase protected leather for your furniture, which is just leather that has had extra finish put on it to help protect it from pets and kids. Then you don’t have to worry about who sits where.

Leather Furniture Breathes

Because leather is natural, made from animal skin, it has pores, just like our skin. So it breathes; meaning air can pass through it from both directions. This makes it cool in summer and warm in winter, because the air quickly moves the temperature of your body or the environment to the leather surface. Of course, this is only the case because I have a good quality leather chair. If it were an inferior grade of leather it would not be so nice. But I have never regretted spending the money on the best armchair I could find.

Of course, there is nothing quite as satisfying as that soft “whoosh” when you sit down on a leather chair or sofa. Don’t tell anyone, but I have been known to make my chair go “whoosh” over and over again, just of the fun of hearing it.

My Leather Armchair Will Never Leave Me

As I mentioned before, leather furniture outlasts every other kind, usually by a ratio of four to one times longer. That means it will still be with me when I take my last breath, and I hope do so within its embrace. That may sound strange, but stay with me a moment.

I remember the times we visited my grandparent’s house when I was young. I would tiptoe into my grandfather’s study where he sat in his leather armchair and I would creep up into his lap. As he talked to me about magical things, I immersed myself in the aromas of him and his old leather chair. That smell today still makes me feel safe, secure and loved. That’s how I want to feel when I slip away into the long, long night.

Now, you may revive yourself from the dream and face the reality that you don’t yet own one of these timeless pieces of classic furniture. That’s Ok. All you need to do is start visiting furniture stores in your area so that you can ‘test drive’ a few different styles to find the brown leather armchair that suits you. We know that when you do, you’ll be figuring out what it takes to make the purchase and join us in out appreciation of the perfect piece of furniture that will last a lifetime.

1. Leather is one of the best protective materials available.

Aside from the rubber wetsuit made oh-so-famous by O.J. Simpson, leather is tops in the field for protective garment wear. Motorcycle riders won’t wear anything else, and they pay big bucks to cover themselves from neck to toe in leather. In states where helmets are not required by law, they sometimes wear leather bandannas on their heads too!

2. Leather is available in different thicknesses for different applications.

Motorcycle riders use leather that is at least 1mm thick for their protective wear, but different types of leather come in much thinner increments for spring jackets, blazers, vests, even shirts and pants.

3. Brown leather does not bleed.

The dye used to make black, red and other colored leather is known for bleeding. Unless you buy a really, really dark brown leather, or a reddish brown leather jacket, you will not have dye bleeding issues with brown leather jackets when the leather gets warm or slightly damp.

4. Leather is durable.

The fact is that leather outlasts any other fabric about four to one. So a coat that you might wear for five years until the fabric wears out could be worn for 20 years if it were made out of leather. With that kind of durability, it’s tempting to start wearing leather socks! Imagine no more holes in the heels and toes. Wouldn’t that be nice!

5. Leather is easy to care for.

Just the fact that you don’t have to wash it and dry it is your first indication that leather is easy to care for. Actually cleaning leather is as simple as wiping dirt and spills off it with a damp cloth. Swipe. Swipe. Done. Suede and Nubuck need to be brushed, and that’s about it. Every few years you might want to take it to a professional leather cleaner for some deep cleaning, but a lot of people don’t and their jackets are just fine.

6. Leather jackets are available in many different styles.

Blazers, trench coats, dusters, mid-length coats, bomber jackets…you name it and it has been made in leather. Multiplying the choices exponentially are all the different kinds of leather that the jackets can be made out of…and you have enough to choices to send anyone into a tizzy over what to wear.

7. Leather is naturally water-repellant .

To make leather, they take the hide of an animal which is already water repellent due to it being what it is — animal skin — and they work oils or other substances into it until it’s soft and pliable, thus making it water-repellent. If you need it to be more water-resistant than that, you can have a coating applied to it that resists water but still allows the leather to breathe. Leather can absorb water, with enough exposure, so leather swimming suits will probably not be the next trend in leather.

photo credit: Kamal H.

8. Leather can be worn year round.

Unlike your down winter coat, a coat made of good ventilated leather can be worn in the summer time. Since summer is the best time for riding motorcycles, this is a very good thing, so the riders have adequate protection from road rash in the event of a spill.

Warm in winter and warm enough in spring and fall, leather takes on your body heat and wraps it around you like a good friend. For extra warmth, you can have a fleece lining put in your brown leather jacket, but you really don’t need it unless you are actually flying bomber planes over the Pacific.

9. Leather is a great value.

Factoring in the durability of leather at the four to one ratio, this can be calculated and proven. If a decent cloth coat costs $200 (on sale) and lasts five years, over a 20 year period you will need to spend $1000 on cloth coats. But you can buy a really good bomber jacket for under $500, and 20 or 30 years later still be wearing it….that’s a savings of over $500. That is value!

10. Leather is timeless.

People have been wearing leather since we began eating meat. It must have just seemed like the right thing to do, to use every part of an animal in appreciation of Earth’s bounty. The protection and warmth of the skins probably felt good too, as fig leaves are not known for being warm or durable. When you think about all the things we still use today that were discovered by ancient ancestors, you kind-of get goose pimples. We still use wheels and fire today, not to mention slings as weapons and herbs as medicine. While we have given up the idea that the earth is flat, we do still wear leather.

And there you have it. A list of ten undeniable truths that equate to only one conclusion; you need to own at least one brown leather jacket and it should be a good one.

Time for a new sofa! But with so many choices of color, upholstery and style, how do you start? One factor of the equation can be settled immediately. The color to buy is brown. Brown leather does not show stains, hides accidents and injuries better than any other color and will always be in style. Brown goes with literally every single color scheme, and brown is also the color of chocolate. Who doesn’t love chocolate?

The next question that is settled easily is the upholstery. Should you buy fabric or leather? Leather furniture has so many advantages over fabric, it would be impossible to list them all here. Basically, leather is more durable and resistant to tears and stains than fabric. For people with pets, leather is the only thing that holds up to the extra wear and tear. Leather also feels cool in the summer and warm in the winter. Leather just can’t be beat for upholstery on a piece of furniture that will used daily by a family.

Having settled that you will be buying a brown leather sofa, the first thing to do is to measure your living room. It’s best to also measure any entrances and doorways that the couch will have to get through to get into the living room, and think about any right-angle turns you might have to maneuver it through. If your dream sofa won’t fit into your living room, what’s the point in buying it? Explore alternatives ahead of time, such as removing a large window temporarily to get the sofa in the room. Will anything like that be necessary?

Next, make a drawing of the room, complete with adjacent hallways, doorways and other non-movable parts to the room that impact where you might place the sofa. Sketch in the rest of the room’s furniture that will be staying in the room, and make everything to scale. A scale of one inch to one foot is usually fairly easy to figure out. Next, sketch in the sofa where you think you’ll put it, at the size you think looks right so that it feels proportionately correct to the scale of the room. Now measure that drawing of the sofa, and you’ll know what size sofa you’re looking for.

If that size doesn’t seem right, play around with your drawing, changing things, until it all feels right. Take the drawing of the room with you when you go to the furniture store so the sales assistant will know exactly what you’re looking for. This will save a lot of time. They know their inventory and can point you to the available brown leather sofa selections immediately.

photo credit: bradleypjohnson

Now, as you sit down on and try out various sofas, bear in mind the size of the people who will be sitting on it daily. Tall people and elderly people have trouble getting up out of furniture that is close to the ground. Short people have trouble with their feet not touching the floor if the sofa is very deep and/or higher up off the ground, although this problem is fairly easy to solve with an ottoman or a reclining sofa.

You should also think about what you’ll be doing while sitting on the sofa. If you’ll be relaxing, watching TV or movies or reading, you’ll want a really soft, cushy sofa. If you’ll be receiving visitors in the room where you’ll put the sofa, you may want a more traditionally styled one that looks formal or semi-formal. Styles of sofas vary widely, from modern art deco to Victorian, plus all other styles in between. You can also have a sofa custom-made just for you, if you have the bucks to spend and it’s that important.

A sofa is usually a long-term investment — look how long you had the one you’re currently sick of — so why not spend money to get exactly what you want? A good furniture store will have sales assistants that are specially trained in home décor and furnishings, and they can help you get the best sofa you can afford: one that will make every day seem like a vacation the minute you sink into its cushiony caress. And just think! No more arm covers to adjust!

Do Your Research

With such a wide variety of retailers competing heavily for your dollars, wary consumers need to educate themselves about their purchase before they buy. Gone are the days when you could rely on your local salesman to look out for your best interests and give you the information you need to buy exactly what you want from him. The fact that you’re reading this article on the Internet is a very good sign that you’re a smart consumer. Keep reading and we’ll help you know when you’ve found a perfect brown leather chair.

Know your leather.

The golden rule of leather purchases is that you get what you pay for. If you’re looking at a leather chair that is incredibly discounted, it probably is made with inferior or synthetic leather.

The furniture industry uses many types of leather nowadays. The best leather of all is called full grain leather. It is not typically used for furniture though, because it is somewhat delicate and needs to be cared for more carefully than other leathers.

The best leather for furniture is top grain leather. It looks more uniform than its higher quality brother. It won’t wear out as quick and is durable and tough, and it’s best for people with kids and pets, and those of us who don’t have a lot of time to maintain our leather chairs.

Next comes split grain leather, which is the most affordable of all the leathers and is just as durable. This is what is used when you see those tags that say “Genuine Leather” on items of clothing and other accessories. Make sure you know these terms when you go out shopping for any leather item, whether they be colored, black or brown leather.

Know what size chair you need.

You need to consider two sizes: the size of the space it will go in, and the size of the person who will sit in it. Both are important.

What purpose will you be using your chair for? Will it be for reading in, or a desk chair, or an entrance chair? Maybe you need it for your bedroom or the sitting room at the front of the house. Whatever the situation, measure the available space that the chair could occupy and write it down. Also pay attention to height. If it’s going to be a desk chair or a dressing table chair, it needs to fit under the desk easily when scooted close to it.

Who will be sitting in the chair mostly? If it’s future guests, then you just need a chair that the average person can sit in comfortably. But if it’s a specific person, like your or your spouse, then you need to factor in the person’s height; particularly the length of his or her legs. A person can be tall but have short legs. It’s no good to buy a chair and have your feet dangle when you sit in it. Tall people don’t want their knees up by their ears either!

Pay attention to scale as well here. If the room is small, you might not want too large of a chair, unless it’s going to be the focal point of the room. Bear this in mind as well.

photo credit: ivoryelephantphotography

Know what style of chair you want.

You can begin to figure this out by considering the style of the room it’s going in. Whether you’re redecorating or keeping the room the same, you’ll want your brown leather chair to match the style. A beautiful antique chair with curved Queen Anne legs will jar the eye in a modern, minimalist styled environment.

It is possible to mix and match styles successfully, but you have to stay with a general theme. Maybe the theme is that nothing matches, and you bring all the styles together with a unifying color. That could work. Most people won’t do that though…and it takes a lot of talent to pull it together…or a budget that only allows for garage sale furniture.

Know what makes a good quality chair.

Frame construction is the first thing to look at. The frame should be made of hardwood that has been kiln-dried. This prevents warping or distorting. You may find hardwood plywood in some parts of the chair as it’s tough and lasts a long time. Look for dovetail joints or joints that are connected with a wooden dowel. Make sure all the joints are solid. Check how the legs are attached. They should be built into the chair, not screwed on.

Springs are another thing to look at if your chair is upholstered, as in the case of a club chair or recliner. The best springs are hand-tied eight-way springs; the next best are S springs.

Cushions are also important, if your chair has them. The rule is: the heavier the cushion, the better quality. This indicates a high quality fill, and that’s what you need to make your chair last.

As you can see, there is more to buying a brown leather chair than just whipping out your credit card at the discount warehouse. This is a decision that should be carefully thought through with adequate time spent examining all of these points. In all of the excitement of shopping for and trying to find the absolutely best deal you can, don’t lose site of the most important factor of all; whether or not you actually like the chair. If you end up getting talked into, or settling for, something you really don’t care for, you will end up spending a lot of money for what ends up being just another piece of furniture instead of what could easily be your retreat from the world for decades to come. If you take your time and get this right, you will be able to enjoy your good decision many times over.

First, realistically evaluate what you are going to be using this bag for. What kinds of things do you need to carry in it? What are your habits in regard to your handbag? Do you stuff everything but the kitchen sink in it or do you prefer to keep it light and minimal with just a wallet, keys, maxi pad and lipstick? Is this purchase going to be a man purse for someone? Will you want to carry your dog in it as well, or is it solely for your dog? Do you often have to dump out your purse to find your keys? Do you keep your cell phone in your purse, and if so, do you need an outside or inside pocket for it?

Be honest with yourself about your purse. Sure, the sleek little clutches are sooo darling, but if you need to have a lot of stuff with you at all times, you simply cannot use one of those. You need a real bag, preferably with lots of pockets and a reinforced bottom, and made out of super durable brown leather.

Next, check out the designers! Even if you don’t think you can afford a designer hand bag, you still need to know what they’re doing and what is considered to be in fashion right now. Some designers to look at are Balenciaga, Bottega Veneta, Chloe, Dolce & Gabbana, Fendi, Givenchy, Gucci, Miu Miu, Mulberry, Yves Saint Laurent, Jimmy Choo and Prada. Louis Vuitton makes leather bags too, but they are not necessarily purses; more like extremely small suitcases. They also make a very popular line of dog purses, which are handbags you carry your toy dog in (like Paris Hilton).

Research past trends too. You should see a pattern in styles that reappears every 20 years. If you really, really like a very trendy bag, it’s okay to buy it…just know you’ll be putting it in your closet for a 20-year sleep in a few years. The good news is, it will be just as beautiful in 20 years when it comes back in style as it is today.

That’s because leather lasts almost forever if you care for it properly and store right. Never store leather items covered in plastic. They need to breathe. Wrap your leather handbags in a cotton sheet and put away somewhere cool and dark. While you’re using a leather purse, keep it clean by wiping dirt and stains off with a damp cloth as necessary. If you must do a deeper cleaning than that, use special leather conditioning cleanser, available at leather repair shops.

photo credit: Kent Ng.

Once you’re up to speed on designer trends, head out to your favorite shops and start trying on purses. Make sure they fit your body properly. If you sling it over your shoulder, does it bind you or bump you awkwardly on the back? If it hangs from your arm, does it hit your thigh uncomfortably? Will it fit over your arm when you’re wearing a bulky sweater or coat? If it has fat sort of body to it, will it be comfortable under your arm? Evaluate each purse objectively. Try on any color at this point, as you learn exactly what size and shape purse you want. You can zero in on a brown leather bag later.

Evaluate the styles of the bags. Do they have a zipper top, a clasp, fold over flap, or are they just open. Will any of those styles not work for you? Are you someone who never zips the top zipper on your purse? Or maybe you can’t stand having a purse that doesn’t close on top, for fear of pickpockets.

Once you’ve found some purses that fit you well, match them up against your needs. Discard all the ones that don’t really meet your requirements, no matter how cute they are, or how good a discount they have on them! It’s a waste of money to buy something you end up stuffing in the back of your closet so you won’t see it and feel guilty about not using it.

Check all the seams and stitching. Make sure everything is tight and none of the threads are coming loose. If they are, maybe find a different line of handbags…those are not well made and won’t last.

Last, check around for deals. You’ve got your dream purse in your sights, but there’s no need to pay for it at the first price you find on it.  Hit the Internet, check some other shops, and even ask for a discount from the first place you found it. They may give you 10% off just to keep you from leaving without making the sale on it.

Enjoy your new handbag! It’s ok to feel smug about it too, and tell all your friends how you shopped for it like the genius shopper you are.