Buying leather is a tricky
task even for a leather expert. It requires a keen eye for recognizing good
quality leather. A layman usually gets confused as these days fake leather
known as faux leather looks identical to real leather. Another point to
consider is the type and quality of leather. The type and quality vary from
skin to skin and from animal to animal.

Being a leather design
student, it is important to have some knowledge about leather.

You might have heard
different types of names such as full-grain, top-grain, real or genuine
leather. These are simply different types of leather-based on their quality.
The leather of Sheep, Goat, Buffalo, Cow and other cattle is generally used in
making products.

After having some knowledge
about leather, you can design your product accordingly. The choice of leather
would depend on the product one is making, is it a soft or hard, shape, design,
product behavior and life.

Once the leather and design
is finalized, it is essential to know the unit measurement for buying leather.
Leather is measured in square feet (Sq ft) or square decimetre (Sq dm).

The price depends on the
quality, the animal and the area where it is made (like is it made in Kanpur,
Kolkata, Jalandhar or Chennai).

While buying the leather
there are certain points to consider. Leather is a natural material and it has
certain characteristics like vein marks, growth mark, pox marks, cut marks etc.
These don’t affect the performance of the leather. You should also consider the
texture, thickness, quality, etc.

So these are the certain
things in mind to keep while buying the leather.

Author:
Mohd. Kashif, Assistant Professor, Lifestyle Accessory Department, Unitedworld Institute of Design (UID)

Disclaimer: The opinions / views expressed in this article are solely of the author in his / her individual capacity. They do not purport to reflect the opinions and/or views of the College and/or University or its members.