How to distinguish genuine leather from eco-leather:
- Check the cut of the material: in genuine leather it is always uneven and fuzzy, while in eco-leather it is smooth and can separate into film and fabric.
- Examine the back side: genuine leather has a soft, velvety surface, while eco-leather will have a fabric base or synthetic coating.
- Conduct a bending test: when bent, genuine leather forms natural folds and quickly returns to its original position. Eco-leather may become covered with small wrinkles or deform.
- Pay attention to the smell: genuine leather has a characteristic natural aroma, while eco-leather usually smells synthetic or has no smell at all.
Features and benefits of genuine leather
Genuine leather, unlike imitation leather, will always be valued much higher, not only because of its attractive appearance, but also because of its practical properties. Clothes, shoes, and accessories made of genuine leather will last you much longer than any imitation leather or eco-leather. You can determine the naturalness of leather on shoes, bags, and other accessories by the following characteristics. Shoes, sneakers, wallets, and purses always look more prestigious and are more expensive than eco-leather products.
Leather jackets and boots retain heat much better, are more durable and, with proper care, will serve you for many years. Due to the elasticity of genuine leather, products do not crack and retain their shape. It is easy to care for leather products at home, and by following simple care rules, things will retain their original appearance for a long time or acquire a vintage effect if it is a certain type of leather, such as crazy horse, which only looks more noble over time.
Popular Types of Leather Substitutes
Faux leather
It can be quite difficult to determine at first glance whether the product in front of you is genuine. Leatherette, which is made of polyurethane, polyester or other synthetic materials on a textile base, can be very similar to genuine leather. Thanks to the embossed pattern, it is identical to leather and is similar in appearance, structure and even strength. Some manufacturers have learned to recreate the natural leather smell by adding a small amount of genuine leather crumbs. However, unlike genuine leather, leatherette may not retain its shape well, is quite rigid than genuine leather, and is also usually cheaper.
Eco-leather
Eco-leather is a textile fabric coated with polyurethane. It is distinguished by the eco-friendliness of production technologies, as well as animal components in the composition. Due to its eco-friendliness, this imitation leather is very popular. In addition, it is resistant to external environmental influences, such as rain. The manufacturer assures that the external polyurethane coating has breathable properties and does not have an unpleasant artificial smell. Also, eco-leather products have a wide range of models in different colors.
Other types of substitutes
There are several other popular materials that manufacturers often use to replace genuine leather. One of them is pressed leather, which consists entirely of tannery waste: dust from processing raw materials, small defective scraps and trimmings. All these ingredients are combined into a single fabric, using resin, polyesters or polymers as a binder. The result is a pressed material that, although it contains natural components, is not considered full-fledged genuine leather.
Pressed leather differs from natural leather in its lower strength and moisture resistance, and it also cracks and bursts quite quickly, and the product made from it easily loses its shape. There is also split leather or split leather, which can be called partially natural. This product is made from thick skin, cut into several layers, and only the top one, the face one, is made of genuine leather. It differs from genuine leather in its loose fiber structure, lower strength and air permeability, and also quickly stretches, deforms and loses its shape.
Methods for determining the authenticity of leather
Let’s look at the most popular and proven methods of how to distinguish real leather from artificial leather.
Visual inspection
You can always check visually whether a product is genuine while in a store. Let’s find out what you should pay attention to in order to understand that you have a leather product in front of you.
Structure and natural surface pattern
The pattern on artificial leather is the same, it is repeated over the entire surface, because the material is printed and produced by automatic spraying or embossing. While genuine leather jackets have a natural natural pattern, which is unique and does not repeat over the entire product. The pores on the surface of genuine leather are chaotically located: different in depth, size, shape. On a leather product without deep grinding and special coating, you can even see natural traces of bites or scratches received by the animal during its life.
External cuts and internal side
You can distinguish a genuine leather product by looking at the cuts. In a genuine product, they are natural and most often untreated, while in a leather substitute, all the cuts are sealed, rounded, even and smooth to the touch. In addition to the cuts, leather and leatherette products can be distinguished by the inside. The back of genuine items is rough, reminiscent of suede in texture. In a leather substitute, the back side is a textile base.
Seams and their features
Seams are another way to distinguish a leather product from an imitation. In clothes made of artificial leather, the seams are always hidden inside. It is advisable to check all the seams on the jacket, since many manufacturers make only small fragments of the trim natural, for example, elements at the end of the zipper.
Tactile sensations
In addition to the visual method of checking, you can understand whether the product in front of you is natural by its texture and your own tactile sensations from the material.
Elasticity
Natural leather raw materials are soft and elastic. Products made from genuine leather easily restore their shape and smooth out after wearing. Unlike leatherette, which has creases from bending. Also, the color of genuine leather at the bend does not change, as with artificial analogues.
Thermal conductivity
Genuine leather is able to retain and transmit heat, unlike artificial leather. Put your hand on a leather jacket for a couple of minutes, and 30 seconds after you remove your hand, touch this place. If it remains warm and dry, then the product is genuine, if it is cold and slightly damp from the warmth of your hand, it is leatherette.
Information tag
Manufacturers of quality products always leave tags on their products with information about the composition of the fabric: top, lining, decor. If there is no such label on the jacket, this is a reason to doubt the quality and naturalness of the product.
Sample material
A sample of the material is always attached to the tag of a quality product. The shape in which it is made indicates its composition. A rhombus shape means leatherette, and a figure in the form of a cut skin means that it is genuine leather, which is marked depending on the country of manufacture:
- in English genuine leather;
- in Italian: vera pelle;
- in French cuir;
- in German echtleder.
Dangerous Testing Methods
In addition to the above methods of checking the naturalness of leather, you can use a more risky method.
Trial by Fire
A lighter is used for this test, but the store will not allow this, so you can use this method after purchase, at home. Bring the lighter to the material, if it is fake, it will catch fire under the flame, but nothing will happen to the natural one. It will not catch fire, will not change color. However, there are some modern types of artificial leather that are resistant to fire. For example, pressed leather does not burn, but only melts.
Basic mistakes in identifying genuine leather
You shouldn’t test leather for naturalness using oil, as it will leave greasy stains that will then have to be removed at the dry cleaner’s. You also shouldn’t scratch it for the sake of testing, checking its wear resistance to mechanical impacts, as severe damage can still ruin an expensive item. It’s better to test with fire on a sample of the material that is attached to the jacket, as modern items made of genuine leather are often impregnated with softening and water-repellent agents that may well catch fire.
- Difference Between Genuine Leather and Eco-Leather
- Learn to find the differences between leather, leatherette and eco-leather. Determine the authenticity of a jacket or product with the help of our article!
- eco-leather, Genuine Leather
