Tear in leather couch...
March 18, 2007 12:57 PM Subscribe
I have a small tear in my leather couch. It is about an inch long and on the top of a cushion. Any recommendations on fixing this myself?
I have seen commercials for leather repair kits before, though I have never used them and thus cannot speak to their effectiveness. Perhaps someone here has tried such kits before, and can better assess them?
posted by numinous at 1:33 PM on March 18, 2007
posted by numinous at 1:33 PM on March 18, 2007
i just tried using one of those kits for a similar tear in my ottoman. the process took a while to figure out -- it consisted of stuffing the hole, mixing a matching color, applying the textured guaze, painting the surface, adding a plastic strip, and a whole lot of ironing.
in the end, i had a sort of goopy mess that didn't quite look right, though we all agreed it was better than the tear (and we didn't have to keep worrying about the tear getting bigger).
the color didn't match - it became lighter as it dried, but i colored over the patch with one of those wood-scratch-marker things that you can use to touch up nicks on wood, and that actually worked quite well to approximate the original color of the leather.
good luck.
posted by prophetsearcher at 1:38 PM on March 18, 2007
in the end, i had a sort of goopy mess that didn't quite look right, though we all agreed it was better than the tear (and we didn't have to keep worrying about the tear getting bigger).
the color didn't match - it became lighter as it dried, but i colored over the patch with one of those wood-scratch-marker things that you can use to touch up nicks on wood, and that actually worked quite well to approximate the original color of the leather.
good luck.
posted by prophetsearcher at 1:38 PM on March 18, 2007
Digs Magazine did a piece about how to repair a vinyl chair.
posted by donajo at 2:02 PM on March 18, 2007
posted by donajo at 2:02 PM on March 18, 2007
If you don't mind the Frankenstein look, you can do what I did with my old leather chair - used a nylon suture kit liberated from work, sewed it up and tied it off. It doesn't look all that bad, really, and it definitely kept the tear from getting any worse. This was done in 1999 and it is still holding fine.
Of course the chair in question was old and beat up to begin with. If you have a newer or better quality couch, you may want to contact a furniture repair shop nearby and ask if they can fix it. At least get a quote; it could be worth the cost of paying a pro just to make sure it doesn't end up looking strange.
posted by caution live frogs at 6:31 AM on March 19, 2007
Of course the chair in question was old and beat up to begin with. If you have a newer or better quality couch, you may want to contact a furniture repair shop nearby and ask if they can fix it. At least get a quote; it could be worth the cost of paying a pro just to make sure it doesn't end up looking strange.
posted by caution live frogs at 6:31 AM on March 19, 2007
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posted by stereo at 1:17 PM on March 18, 2007