How To Repair Leather Furniture

There’s nothing more cozy than a soft leather sofa. But years of usage, restless pets, kids and guests may do to it something that seems to be irreparable – to tear the upholstery. That’s why now we are going to learn how to fix breaches, holes, casual cuts etc. And you don’t even have to be a professional.

Prepare the following things:

• round leather patch;
• scissors;
• a water based cleaning product;
• a hair dryer;
• glue;
• a dye or several dyes to mix (matching the upholstery);
• jars for mixing;
• a sprayer or a wide brush.

Cleaning

Clean the area around the breach with a leather-safe (!) cleaning product. Purchasing such product look for the “leather-safe” phrase.

Drying

If the weather is not wet the best thing to do is to just leave the sofa drying outdoors (or indoors), but the hair dryer will do well too if you’re pressed for time.

Now Let’s Fix It

The next step is to insert the patch between the filling (or the inner layer of the clothes) and the backside of the breached upholstery. Make sure that the patch is much larger than the breach. Never use rectangular or square patches because it is more difficult to hide the edges.

Gluing

Use the leather-safe water-based glue to fix the patch under the surface. Make sure that you use a water-based glue! Don’t be afraid of putting several layers of the glue.

Camouflage The Patch

If the breach is straight which is often made with a razor or a knife just glue the edges together with the same old water based glue. The result is mostly perfect.

Blend The Dyes

If the leather is damaged worse get some dye. You’ll have to blend a few of them in a glassware in order to get that very tone you need and to make the sofa or the armchair look good. Dilute the dye in a small amount of water to make it easier to dye.

Lay On The Paint

The paint will act as a seal. Sprayer is preferred but in case you choose to use a brush, you will need a soft one. Lay the top layer of the paint in order to seal the breach and make the area sturdier.

Finishing

Lay several coats of paint on the breach and the surrounding area. This will hide the difference between the initial material and the patch. Even if the tone doesn’t match perfectly it will not be seen with the naked eye.