In the emerging leather industry, leather manufacturers have come up with a unique leather type known as bonded leather which is made from scraps of leather and has its own applications and usage.
Due to its low manufacturing cost and price, it is a highly affordable type of leather and used in many products manufacturing.
Let's see a detailed guide of Bonded leather in this blog where we will explore how bonded leather is made, what are the reasons for choosing bonded leather, what are the usage and applications of bonded leather, and how it is different from other types of leather like PU, Genuine and faux leather.
Bonded leather is also known as blended leather. This leather is made from scraps or remains of real leather that are bonded together using adhesives or latex to make a unique leather material.
The leather scraps are bonded with adhesive and then it is further coated with synthetic materials like polyurethane to make it more durable and attractive. It is not entirely a pure leather form, neither it is a completely synthetic leather. It is a combination of both.
Bonded leather is a type of leather made from the scraps and remains of leather hide which is mashed into pulp and then bonded with polyurethane to a paper or fiber backing.
It can be then embossed to give it the desired texture and pattern. Bonded leather consists of only 10-20 percent of real leather. The exact percentage can vary from manufacturer to manufacturer.
Why Choose Bonded Leather?
The most common reason to choose bonded leather over other types of leather is the price factor. Since bonded leather contains only 10-20% of real leather, it is priced cheaper than genuine leather and other grades of leather.
Bonded leather has a uniform and smooth texture, which is desirable in some products and hence bonded leather can be chosen.
Since bonded leather is made from synthetic processes, you can find more variety of colors and patterns in bonded leather.
For a layman, identifying differences in different types of leather can be difficult. So let’s see some of the key points of bonded leather that will help you tell the difference.
Combination of real and fake leather: Bonded leather is a combination of real and fake leather. It contains a percentage of real leather.
Affordable: Since bonded leather contains only some percentage of real leather, it is cheaper as compared to other real leather types.
Uniform and even texture: Bonded leather has an artificial embossed pattern and hence it looks very uniform and unnatural. It does not have imperfections like genuine leather, full grain, or top grain leather.
Less Durable: Since bonded leather has only some percentage of real leather, it is not very durable and will not last a long life.
Chemical smell: Bonded leather has chemical and artificial smells. It does not have a natural leather smell.
Applications of Bonded Leather
Bonded leather is highly used in many industrial purposes due to its low price and easy availability. Let’s see some of the common applications of bonded leather.
Furniture: Bonded leather is used in making furniture like sofas, chairs, etc due to its low price and moderate durability.
Fashion accessories: Bonded leather is used in making affordable fashion accessories like handbags, luggage bags, laptopbags, etc.
Low-cost items: It is also used in making small low-cost items like sunglass covers, book covers, wallets, belts, etc.
How to choose Bonded Leather?
Bonded leather has some distinct features that can be used to choose the correct bonded leather. Let’s see some tips for choosing bonded leather.
Feel and look: To choose bonded leather, you can look for features like consistent and uniform texture and pattern. The leather surface should be smooth to the touch and should look even in texture.
Tags and label: Look for information mentioned in the tags and label to check the leather grade and quality. It should have information about the type and grade of leather to be bonded leather.
Smell: The bonded leather has some real leather and some chemicals but still it should not have a very strong chemical smell so check the smell of the leather before making a decision.
Take expert advice: If you are still not sure then you can consider taking help from any leather retailer or professional to make an informed choice.
Bonded leather is made from a combination of real and fake leather.
PU is made entirely from a synthetic substance called polyurethane and does not contain any real leather.
Look and feel
Bonded leather looks very consistent and feels smooth to the touch.
PU leather also has a smooth and consistent texture. It has a smooth feel to the touch.
Durability
Bonded leather is slightly more durable than PU leather.
PU leather is not durable and It also starts to peel off after a few years.
Price
Bonded leather is comparatively higher priced than PU leather.
PU leather is cheaper than bonded leather.
Smell
Bonded leather does not have very strong chemical smell.
PU leather has a chemical and synthetic smell to it.
Conclusion:
To conclude, bonded leather is a cheaper and lower grade of leather made from a combination of real and fake leather. With our tips, you can now tell the characteristics of bonded leather and how it is different from other types of leather. Bonded leather still has its own uses in the industry like fashion accessories and furniture as well. We hope this information helps you to choose the right type of leather for your needs and preferences.
