Buyer Beware: Purchasing Leather Clothing On-Line
When you purchase leather clothing on line or at a store, what
exactly are you getting? We've been selling leather for a long
time on-line. Time and time again, many people want to know more
about leather types and quality to make sure they are receiving
value for their dollar. This article is a brief rundown on
leather types and qualities found in stores and on line, plus
some prudent advice.
First, when we think of leather, each of us may have a different
idea of what leather is. We can think of the leather furniture,
a fine pair of leather shoes, or a simple black motorcycle
jacket. We will stick with leather clothing in this article and
leave furniture and shoes to those who know it better. So what
makes a great looking motorcycle jacket versus a fine leather
fashion coat? First of all, the size of the leather piece(s)
used to make the garment and the prominence of the grain. Your
best quality leather apparel is made using large pieces of
leather. The fewer seams in your garment the better. When you
purchase a cotton shirt, you don't expect to see seams on the
arms or running down the back, do you? Since Leather is so
expensive, often times two smaller pieces are sewn together to
make a large panel, for instance, on the back of a jacket. The
quality of the jacket is best without a seam or seams on the
back, but a center seam is not unheard of even in a quality
leather jacket. Second, the grain of the leather is very
important. Normally, in standard leather jackets, the leather
exhibits a natural grain, or small bumps all across the top.
This is a natural appearance and virtually all pieces of leather
are slightly different in grain pattern. Hence, no two top grain
leather items are really identical. If the leather looks too
perfect in grain pattern, it probably is. A grain pattern can be
embedded with machinery on smooth leather to make it appear to
be top grain. This leather is too uniform and does not look
natural. Also, this leather is less expensive than graded top
grain leather. What is graded? A grader looks at pieces of
leather to determine what pieces will go into large cuts or cut
into smaller sections to make sleeves and collars, etc. The
pieces that are cut into smaller pieces have defects such as
scars or blemishes in the leather that make the look
non-uniform. We have a motorcycle jacket that has the Branding
Iron mark right on the back. Obviously, the grader missed this
and it got through and into a jacket. Different leathers have
different grain patterns. Cowhide, the most popular leather for
motorcycle gear, has relatively large bumps. Buffalo Leather
also has large lumps and is also frequently used in motorcycle
apparel. Lambskin has a much smoother appearance and finer grain
and is desired the most in quality fashion items. Goat Skin is
also used and looks very similar to lambskin in appearance but
does not have the "depth" in appearance of lamb. Pigskin also
has a very fine grain and appears to be smooth, but if looked at
closely, small bumps can be seen.
What types of leather are sold on the web and what are the
characteristics? The most popular leather sold on line is
"patched leather." This leather is dirt cheap and readily
available. It is often brand named "Stone Design" or "Diamond
Plate," but what is it? Patched leather clothing and purses that
are made from small pieces of leather, primarily leather scraps
from the cutting room of manufacturers that are making better
quality leather items from large uniform pieces of leather. Most
of the patched leather is made in China and is primarily
pigskin, however, a manufacturer may use any type of leather to
create the patchwork. The items made from this type of leather
are of general good quality in craftsmanship but, if you are
paying for leather, you are not getting quality leather. Because
the leather is small patches sewn together, you have many, many
seams. The value of the sewing is more than the value of the
leather. Many stores and mail order advertisements offer this
type of leather clothing also and the prices are incredibly low.
However most people looking for leather clothing, aren't looking
for patched leather, but are buying based on price rather than
quality. Many are surprised when they receive their patched
leather items in the mail, but the cost of shipping the item
back plus restocking fees, may make it worthwhile to keep the
patched item and get rid of it at a garage sale. Buyer beware.
"Buyer Beware" is a very appropriate term. Many, if not most of
the largest leather suppliers sell patched leather as well as
more premium cuts of leather. Price is a good indication of
quality, but don't be fooled by price alone, check out customer
testimonials on the web site as well as reviews from shopping
opinion polls, like those on shopping.com, pricegrabber.com and
amazon.com. Stores that sell on these sites normally get
reviews. If the store doesn't have any reviews or testimonials,
beware. When it comes down to it, you need to use a store you
can trust, and finding that trust may take some looking.
For more information, contact http://www.discount-leather.net