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How do I Choose the Best Leather Living Room Furniture?

S. Gonzales
S. Gonzales

Leather living room furniture can be a great addition to any home, and choosing the best items likely will depend on your budget, your decoration taste and your preference for natural or synthetic leather. Putting leather furniture in your home can give it an air of comfort and classiness.

The durability and timelessness of leather makes it a great choice for nearly any living room. In addition, the natural wear and scuffs that leather furniture endures will give it charm. Leather furniture can add sophistication and class to a home. It's also relatively easy to maintain and can pay for itself, because its durability means that you probably won't need to buy replacement furniture after a few years of use.

Bonded leather, which is sometimes used to make furniture.
Bonded leather, which is sometimes used to make furniture.

There are many types of leather furniture, and sofas, recliners, arm chairs and club chairs can be upholstered with it. Each piece can offer different attributes to the living room space. For example, leather sofas can appeal to all ages and both sexes, and a leather club chair is traditionally considered to be masculine. You might want to choose a leather club chair if you are a single man who wants to express his masculinity through his furniture preferences.

Leather arm chairs are a popular choice for living room decor.
Leather arm chairs are a popular choice for living room decor.

If you buy or already have a leather sofa, consider purchasing leather chairs to match it. The best furniture will have matching leather, and choosing leather furniture of the same type can make your room feel more put-together. It also allow you to use more dramatic patterns and colors in living room accents, such as rugs, curtains or art.

Prices for leather living room furniture will vary depending on the style and type of leather. Generally, though, real leather will cost more than its synthetic counterparts. If you're looking for durable leather furniture, it's often better to purchase natural leathers instead of fake ones. Much more damage can be done to synthetic leather material and imperfections will be more noticeable on it. Synthetic leathers also contain chlorine, and its manufacturing process isn't known for being environmentally sound.

Leather furniture is typically durable.
Leather furniture is typically durable.

If you have just one leather piece but can't buy other furniture of the same type, try buying items with colors that complement your singular piece. Selecting furniture with fabrics different from leather can give you the opportunity to add some personality to your living room. Tasteful designs and fabrics can make your living room feel comfortable, inviting and warm.

Discussion Comments

ShopHopper

The beauty about sectionals is that they utilize the whole corner of a room. Then just add end tables and some lamps and you have a perfect reading area. I prefer a large ottoman to put my feet up on or support an overflowing popcorn bowl.

JaneAir

@KaBoom - I've never heard of anyone who doesn't like a nice leather couch! Very interesting.

I'm in the market for a leather couch right now, but I'm trying not to spend a fortune. I decided to look for used couches first before I try stores that sell new ones.

Normally I wouldn't buy a used couch, because the idea kind of grosses me out. However, I think it will be to buy a used leather one. Leather doesn't get old and ratty like fabric does, and doesn't absorb as many smells either. Also, leather doesn't absorb liquids either, so there's no chance of the inside being all moldy because of a spill.

KaBoom

My parents have a leather sectional sofa in their living room. They ordered it from overseas and it took about 6 weeks to get to them. They were so excited when it arrived!

They bought the couch in beige, which I think was smart. Since beige is neutral, they can pretty much decorate the rest of the living room in whatever colors they want. And they can change it-they aren't stuck with just one color scheme.

That being said, I kind of hate it. I feel like couches should just be upholstered out of fabric. I can never get situated on the leather because it's so slippery! I feel like I'm always sliding around on it.

I guess I'm lucky I don't want leather furniture because I can't afford to replace my couch right now anyway!

andee

When we were looking for some new living room furniture, I knew I wanted leather. Now all we had to decide on was the style, color and price.

I was surprised at the range of prices there was on leather furniture. I really didn't mind spending a little bit more for quality because I knew I would have this furniture for a long time.

This is the first furniture I bought after the kids left home and I knew it would probably hold up for many years.

We went with a leather sectional with a chaise on one end. This is really nice and is my favorite place to sit and relax. I don't have to worry about getting in and out of a recliner and pushing it back in when I am done.

I also went with a neutral tan color that is very easy to decorate with. I like to complement this with bright pillows to add color to the room.

ddljohn

For leather furniture and furniture of any material really, I avoid the color white at all cost.

Leather furniture is very advantageous when it comes to cleaning because you can easily wipe off spills. But I feel that even with leather, the color white fades and stains much faster than other colors. If nothing else, house dust, dirt and pet hair can accumulate on the furniture and permanently fade the color.

So when it comes to leather furniture, I always prefer dark colors like black or brown. These colors are great at hiding stains and fading.

popcorn

@drtroubles - We purchased some Relax leather living room furniture and it actually hasn't been that hard to take care of ourselves. What you need to do is vacuum your furniture on a regular basis and wipe it down with a damp cloth on occasion. This should keep your furniture looking neat.

If you find you spill something on your leather you'll need to have some leather cleaning product on hand. You can buy this in most stores near other household cleaners.

Another thing to remember is that you should always keep your leather furniture out of direct sunlight or it will fade and look horrible.

drtroubles

How do you care for Italian leather living room furniture?

My wife and I gave our home quite the makeover this year and she picked some really nice leather sectional living room furniture. The sectional is great, and it came with some nice leather foot stools and end tables.

We really want to keep our leather furniture looking its best because it was such a big investment. Right now we're having a company come in to clean our furniture, but we'd really like to be able to do it ourselves if possible. We want to save some money, and not have the hassle of having cleaners come in.

Sara007

A good way to get stylish pieces for your home is to go to one of the outlets that sell discount leather living room furniture. I managed to get a some gorgeous contemporary leather living room furniture at a 30% discount by going during one of the outlets big sales.

While I normally wouldn't have gone with leather furniture, when the prices started to match that of more traditional pieces I couldn't pass up the good deal. One thing you need to make sure of though, if you choose leather furniture, is that you have all of the things you need to take care of the leather. No sense buying something so nice and having it crack in a few years.

latte31

@Comfyshoes -Sectionals are great furniture pieces for a living room, but they take up a lot of room and if you live in an apartment or a small home this piece can easily overcome the living room space because it would be a little off scale.

In my condo for example I have a leather chaise chair with the matching ottoman and a sofa. This combination works better for my space and it doesn’t make my room look small. You have to be careful with that because if your furniture is too large for the space it tends to make the room look even smaller.

comfyshoes

I really like the idea of modern leather living room furniture. A sectional can add a lot of comfort to the living room and you don’t need to buy additional chairs because the seating should be enough.

All you really need is a leather storage ottoman and you have a nice updated living room with additional storage. I know that leather living room furniture sets like this are more expensive, but when you are sitting around watching a movie there is nothing like it.

I have had both a traditional living room set with a love seat and sofa and a living room with a sectional and an ottoman and I can honestly say that I will never buy anything but a sectional.

I even had a leather sectional that also had reclining functions. It was so comfortable that I often fell asleep while watching television.

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    • Bonded leather, which is sometimes used to make furniture.
      By: Jim Mills
      Bonded leather, which is sometimes used to make furniture.
    • Leather arm chairs are a popular choice for living room decor.
      By: Tatty
      Leather arm chairs are a popular choice for living room decor.
    • Leather furniture is typically durable.
      By: sergey02
      Leather furniture is typically durable.