Below I have shown examples what can be done in small panel
re-colouring.

The majority of leather fitted to chairs and suites is called
pigmented or colour coated.

What you see is a sprayed on colour with a clear top finish.

The top finish is the hard wearing surface of the leather.

When this finish is worn away, the colour is exposed and then, the colour can be rubbed off with normal use.

Re-colouring of Leather

Beware

There are magic creams being sold that say they can give a worn suite a new look.

Yes they look good for a few days, but the cream wears off.
Mainly onto your clothing.
There are no miracle cures for worn out leather.

See our picture on the Cleaning page

As Leather Master craftsmen we can replace colour and apply a top finish.

Re-antiquing of small panels is also possible in some cases.
From a range of pigments the required colours are mixed to match the
original colour but age and wear and tear have to be taken into consideration.

Nowadays I only re-colour small blemishes and panels.

One of the reasons is that tanneries around the world are putting extras into the finishes and in some cases they stop the adhesion of the new pigment. This problem shows up occasionally, months down the line.

We get many e-mails on re-colouring
whole chairs or sofas.
Normally from lighter colours to a
darker colour.
This is fraught with problems.
If the leather stretches, tiny cracks will
appear showing the lighter colouring.
If grease is still within the leather and
has not been removed, then the new
colour will come off in time.
Plus the quality of the leather is unknown. The re-colour is only as good
as the surface of the original colour.
You will find other people still re-colour
whole suites but I do not.

Ekornes royale arms.
The 2 arms in the middle have been made from
new leather and re-coloured to match the original,
worn through arms which are on the outsides

After
Both arms renewed and
re-coloured. New foam pads were also cut and
fitted. Areas on the rear cushion were also
air brushed with colour.

After
New arms re-upholstered in matching leather
and re-coloured to blend in with the old,
aged leather.

After
New arm pad made and fitted on top with velcro
and re-coloured to match.

After
Older style Rio with new arms in Scottish leather
and re-coloured to match.

After
New front panel of leather sewn in and antiqued
to match. Which one?

Before
Seat cushion on settee that has lost the colour.

After
New colour was mixed to match and the leather
prepared, then new colour air brushed on.
Spot where.

Before
New leather tops and front gussets fitted using
rub off antique Scottish leather.

After
Using special fluid the new leather was aged to match
the surrounding chair leather.

Inside the spray booth
This is the top finish being applied to leather panels
that will make an arm cap for a chair.Each panel
is coloured and top finished proir to be
sewn together.

Ekornes Headrest
The middle panel was replaced and new leather
re-coloured to match and sewn in.

Before
This head rest shows the grease that can be
transferred from the human head onto leather.
This is the reverse side of the headrest
on the front side this grease causes the colour to
come off. No re-colouring can be done.

After
A complete new head rest was made and
re-coloured to match.The grain of the leather was
also matched as close as possible.

Cream coloured settee
This settee had the colour worn away on the seat tops.
The leather was not damaged, therefore the seat tops
only were re-coloured to match the rest of the settee.

Cream coloured settee
A close up view.

Arm Chair
The right hand arm and seat cushion top were fitted with
new leather and re-coloured to match.

Ekornes Chair
Both arms were renewed and re-coloured to match

Ekornes chair.
The arms covered in Scottish leather
and re-coloured to match the
rest of the chair.

3 seater settee
New arm top re-upholstered in Scottish leather and
then re-coloured to match the rest of the settee.

Sofa Cushion
Colour had been removed by pet dog licking the leather..

Sofa Cushion
Colour mixed and air brushed to match.