Leather Will Crack

Nothing will prevent split hides from cracking, and manufacturers who use such goods on their products will not guarantee the quality to the dealer. The best quality of leather is guaranteed from defects and flaws only, and not from wear and tear. The general impression is that the best grade of leather should last forever. This is not the nature of anything, much less that of leather. There are, however, several good oils on the market which are used as an elixir, and it is money well spent to get one of these and go over leather goods occasionally. It will do much toward making them long lived.

In buying leather upholsteries, the inexperienced must necessarily depend upon the reputation of the concern of whom they buy, owing to the many imitations upon the market. By feeling the leather, however, one can detect the best grades by the fine grain and soft effect which they seem to possess, as against a stiff, brittle, hard effect that is a characteristic of the second or cheaper grades.

Imitation Leathers

There are many imitations of leathers on the market, namely: "chase leather," "Boston leather," "imperial leather," "besto leather," "victor leather," "leatherette," "fabricoid," "marko-lene," "mule skin" and many others, besides imitations of the Spanish leather. Each manufacturer has a particular name for his own make, and possibly a different way of manufacturing them, which accounts for the many different kinds. Imitation leathers wear very well and cost about one-half as much as the genuine leather, and great quantities of it are being used, with the understanding, of course, that it is a substitute. These materials are made of a heavy satin fabric with a coated finish and grain, in exact Imitation of the finest grade of hand-buffed black leather, and arc far better for wear than the poor grades of split leather. They come in the popular upholstery colors of black, red, brown, green, and tan, better enabling one to carry out any desired color scheme.

Furniture Coverings

The selection of a proper fabric for covering furniture demands careful consideration. The style of the frame of the piece should decide what cover is needed, whether it be damask, velour, brocade, tapestry, leather, or some other fabric. It is, however, essential that the relation he harmonious between the style of the frame and the covering. Certain periods were characterized by the use of a particular fabric. The mission style is usually upholstered in leather. The pattern and color effect of the covering should be selected according to the light of the rooms and the color scheme, tinting of the walls, etc. Everything in the line of upholstery fabrics can be found in any large stock, from the ordinary low-priced denims to the domestic and imported French tapestries, representing an outlay of hundreds of dollars for even a small sofa covering. Many beautiful domestic Verdure tapestries can be had at a medium cost. The French tapestries are more tightly woven than the domestic tapestries, and, although more expensive, the colors hold better. A dealer can usually advise along these lines of proper fabrics, if aided by samples or idea of color scheme desired.