When shopping for leather products there are many other products out there that are not as well made or manufactured as well as others. Cheap leather products can infiltrate the furniture market and when you buying a cheap leather product you are not only reducing yourself in the amount of quality you receive but you are also getting a product that is inferior to a real leather furniture piece. The price may look good and the leather may also look like it is comparable to a real leather or high quality leather product, but in the long run that the cheap leather product will be inferior and will not last as long. When you are furniture shopping you need to look at the quality of leather not just the aesthetic value of the furniture.

When you are shopping for a leather furniture piece and want to stay away from cheap leather products, you need to ask the dealer if the furniture peace is a full grain or top grain leather. Full grain or top grain leather refers to the upper section of the hide that contains the outer layer or the epidermis of the skin. A full grain leather will have not been sanded or buffed to remove the imperfections of the surface of the hide. A full grain leather will have only the hair removed from the epidermis and the grain will be in its natural state and will be able to breathe better as a furniture piece or even as clothing. Instead of wearing out like cheap leather products the top grain or full grain leather will change over time to give itself a different appearance as a part of the epidermis wears out and a new part appears. This way the consumer is sure of a high quality product and will know that this leather is made of the finest materials.

The next level of leather that could be considered as cheap leather by leather aficionados is the corrected grain leather. With corrected grain leather the surface of the hide is sanded or buffed to remove any imperfection on the exterior. Imperfections can be caused by healed scars or brands on the surface of the leather or even something as small as an insect bite.

In leather circles top grain leather is sometimes referred to as corrected grain. Corrected grain is made from top grain leather but the imperfections are sanded out. The corrected grain leather is an inferior quality to high grain or top grain leather and is used to make cheap leather products that do not adhere to the high quality of top grain. An artificial grain is applied to the imperfections in a pigment of the leather is also used to remove spots in two finish types. These types are semi-aniline leather and pigmented leather.

So before you go furniture shopping for a high-grade leather piece of furniture, make sure that you do your research and know the different types of mothers that are out there. You do not want to purchase a cheap leather product that will not last as long, look as good, nor have the same quality of the top grain leather.