r/Leather Jul 29 '25

Let' get a little more accurate when it comes to leather grades

13 Upvotes

Genuine is a broad term that encompasses all levels of quality, just like saying plastic or steel or wood...broad categories that can vary a lot. The idea that it's some specifically bad leather comes from the mostly correct assumption that when they don't give more info then you can assume low quality. Like if you see a sticker that or advertisement that says "real beef"...it's probably a good bet they're not giving you a cut of prime beef, but that change the fact that a prime cut of A5 wagyu is also still "real beef"...

It's a broad term not a specific one...and the other terms bandied about are also much broader than people assume and can also be pretty low quantity.

People and articles repeat that leather comes in these specific grades: genuine, top grain and full grain.

But it’s simply not true terms are inclusive...all leather is genuine, everything that's not suede is top grain and full grain is unsanded top grain.

It annoys me immensely that all the articles call these terms "grades" because most people think of grading as taking objective measures that would be the same regardless of the source: The purity of metals, amount of marbling in beef, octane in gas, etc...but leather quality and price is going to vary by tannery more than these factors and there are thousands of tanneries all over the world. Those terms talk about what is or isn't done to a leather's surface mechanically (splitting and sanding), nothing more. They don't even tell you the animal, which can have a much bigger impact on quality!

If you're saying "genuine" specifically means a bad low quality leather then I'm sure you've seen the other side of that coin: "full grain is the absolute best/the highest grade"

Both of those things are 100% false. Cheap crappy full grain exists...and there are products stamped "genuine leather" made with high quality full grain.

Exhibit A: SB Foot Tannery is the largest by volume tannery in the USA they are full owned by Red Wing Boots and they use "Genuine leather" to refer generally to all their leather, even those that are explicitly full grain like Featherstone: https://imgur.com/a/Tdtbjge

Exhibit B: Horween tannery in Chicago is probably the most "famous" tannery in the world...just search "Horween" on or . This is Horween's explanation: https://www.thetanneryrow.com/leather101/understanding-leather-grains

Leather quality is much more nuanced than terms like genuine, top grain and full grain can tell you... there are hundreds of other factors that go into tanning "good leather"...it's a bit like judging something that has many components, like a computer, by one factor and nothing else. What would would happen if you just maxed out one component on your PC and left the rest at the lowest level? Ram, hard drive space, the CPU, the GPU, monitor, type of hard drive and dozens of other things come together to make a good machine...the same is true with good leather. Remember when people bought cameras based on megapixels? Any photographer will tell you that's not an accurate way to judge.

You can view the Full Grain>Top Grain>Genuine hierarchy as a "quick and dirty" way to pick quality if you're in a hurry and not spending a lot of cash on a leather item.

However, those terms do have actual meanings that don't always equate to good quality:

Full Grain is a leather that has only had the hair removed and hasn't been sanded (corrected).

Top Grain is a broader term that actually includes full grain: It's everything that's not suede, a split, this means that full grain is a type of top grain. However, when you see "top grain" in a product description chances are it's a leather that's been corrected (sanded). Nubuck is an example of a sanded leather (often used on the interior of watch straps and construction boots because it's more resilient to scratches), but so is a much beloved leather: Horween's Chromexcel (it's lightly corrected). The amount of correction can vary widely but once the sander hits it, it's no longer full grain.

Genuine Leather is, admittedly, a term found on lots of low quality leather. That's because the bar for "genuine" is extremely low: It just means real. To a tannery it's all genuine. When you read the description for "genuine" that many online articles give, they're actually describing a leather called a "finished split", which is a usually cheap quality suede that's been painted or coated to look like smooth leather. Despite what is often said, bonded leather is legally required to be clearly labeled as such, in theory, you shouldn't see it labeled "genuine leather."

Put simply:

Genuine=Not fake

Top Grain=Not suede

Full Grain=Not sanded

Anything beyond that is an assumption.

The gold standard for getting good leather is tannery and tannage...everything else is easily exploited by meeting the minimum definition of each.


r/Leather 4d ago

I'm Evan, been obsessing over leather care for years (now do it with Leather Honey) — AMA about cleaning, conditioning, restoring, identifying faux vs real leather, or just why your jacket smells like a barn.

8 Upvotes
AMA - Leather

Hey r/leather,

I'm Evan — I'm Leather Honey's leather care specialist, but honestly this AMA is just me nerding out about leather with people who care about it as much as I do. I'll be here live on Wednesday, July 22 at 4 PM ET / 1 PM PT to answer whatever you've got about leather so you can take better care of the leather you're looking to buy or already have but maybe you're afraid of ruining it. That's what I'm here for.

A few things I'm happy to dig into:

  • Cleaning leather without wrecking it (couches, jackets, bags, boots, car interiors — all of it)
  • Conditioning: how often, what actually works, and what's snake oil (lol)
  • Restoring beat-up or neglected leather pieces
  • Spotting real leather vs. faux/bonded leather before you buy
  • Storage, humidity, and long-term care mistakes people don't realize they're making
  • Anything else leather-related — genuinely ask me anything

EDIT: I'm 15min starting early to get a head start, feel free to join in!

EDIT: I'm heading out, thank you everyone who asked questions! Feel free to post more questions and I'll come back in a few hours to respond for anyone who didn't get a chance. Thank you!


r/Leather 5h ago

Guys is this real crocodile leather or an imitation?

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4 Upvotes

thank you in advance for help🙏🏻i am not knowledgeable


r/Leather 3h ago

Is this fixable?

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1 Upvotes

Hello all,

I am wondering if its possible to fix this at all? Or enyone in Europe who could help me fix it?

Thank you x


r/Leather 6h ago

6.3 mm is very thick🤪.

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1 Upvotes

r/Leather 7h ago

I'm making the next wallet.

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0 Upvotes

r/Leather 10h ago

Help with leather damage!

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1 Upvotes

The other day my dog vomited all over my leather couch. I stupidly used pet enzyme cleaner on the couch and now it is damaged. I’ve been applying conditioner every few days and it helps a little but it’s very damaged as you can see.

I was wondering if there’s anything I can do to restore the look? Even if it’s not perfect…just to lessen the visible damage. I don’t mind the way it feels so much.

It is a Jake sectional vintage caramel from pottery barn. I believe it is top grain leather with an aniline dye finish.

Thank you!!


r/Leather 17h ago

HELP!! Did I RUIN my bag?! 😭

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2 Upvotes

any advice is appreciated!! i’ll post a video of the bag below!!


r/Leather 21h ago

My boot collection: Red Wing 875 Moc Toe

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4 Upvotes

r/Leather 1d ago

Cat pooped on chesterfield couch, how to get the smell out?

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4 Upvotes

r/Leather 1d ago

Measuring Leather

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3 Upvotes

I bought some leather online, and I'm a little confused as to how the sizing should be measured in sq/ft. Is it the very end of the leather (like I measured) or should the measurement end at an invisible like marking the largest rectangular you'd be able to create out of it?


r/Leather 22h ago

What is the difference?

1 Upvotes

I can lookup the color codes starting with FL (leather grade and color) on the la z boy website. Can anyone identify the difference between the SL2 vs SC2? Thank you

SL2FL190787 vs SC2FL941987

• Trouper Reclining Sofa - 444724
• Trouper Reclining Loveseat - 448724


r/Leather 16h ago

Embossed or real 🐊?

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0 Upvotes

Embossed or real?


r/Leather 1d ago

Extra squeaky, did I make a mistake?

1 Upvotes

I was given a vintage Protech Leather Apparel moto style jacket, my first leather piece ever. It was bought in the 90s, and is well broken in. It was dry from being in storage, so I treated it with neatsfoot oil after doing some cursory research. I fear I've made a mistake, as now the entire jacket squeaks from collar to belt. Did I do something wrong? How can I fix this?


r/Leather 1d ago

Advice on how to clean this spot

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2 Upvotes

r/Leather 1d ago

Cleaning a bag

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1 Upvotes

r/Leather 1d ago

Salvageable?

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4 Upvotes

I purchased these boots second-hand hoping I could restore them, and now I'm worried they might be too far gone. Can these be revived? Any advice would be much appreciated!


r/Leather 1d ago

Beginner here to ask more experienced folks if this is real leather before I buy it

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1 Upvotes

r/Leather 1d ago

How do you restore old leather?

1 Upvotes

Hi,

I just found a very old leather jacket that has not been used for at least 5 years. it's quite thick leather and now, having not been moved for such long time, the fabric feels extremely stiff and rigid.

I never treated leather, so I am a complete noobie. I am brushing it with a first layer of body hydrating cream (basic Nivea white stuff) and was wondering what your routine is in this case. I thought of giving it a bit of this at first, to soften it, and later proceed to add some oil to protect it. Ideally, I would prefer homemade solutions, I heard cocoa butter can be good?


r/Leather 1d ago

Wallet (leather Crazy horse)

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1 Upvotes

r/Leather 1d ago

Will it lighten?

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3 Upvotes

I got a little overzealous.

I’ve used leather cpr many times before so I didn’t bother spot checking. Then I realized I’ve never used it on light colored leather.

Here’s hoping it dries lighter on the right side🤞

I figure worst case scenario i’ll do the whole bag and it’ll be olive green instead of the beautiful kelly green shade I was hoping for :/

completely my fault for not researching, I know


r/Leather 1d ago

Can this wallet be fixed?

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3 Upvotes

Can this Burberry leather card holder be fixed? It was stored like 5 years, now that I wanted to usen it again, just ripped off. I had to use it more often :(


r/Leather 1d ago

Second Hand Leather Shoe Disinfecting/Conditioning Advice

2 Upvotes

I just bought my husband and I some nicer, leather shoes secind hand. Both pairs of shoes look well taken care of, but obviously i would like to disnifect them and maybe give them a little condition if they need it (i purchsed for family photos and would like them to look nice). Any recommendations on products (on a budget) or techniques to best disinfect without damaging the leather? How do I know if I need to condition them? They are both a true cognac color, I don't know if that matters.


r/Leather 2d ago

Puzzle with Darwin leather

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3 Upvotes

I'm puzzled by the color changes of my Mulberry Roxanne in Darwin leather.

I just decided to get an old one that wasn't well cared for and see if I could do anything. The owner wasn't asking for much money, so I thought I'd either save her or ruin her completely.

The first photo is from the previous owner before shipping. It is red, but I'm not sure whether that's just the lighting or her actual color at the time.

The second photo shows the bag when I received it. It looked much lighter and more orange/tan.

I then cleaned it once and used a conditioner containing silicone (I now know it probably wasn't the ideal product for Darwin leather). While cleaning it, I got a lot of orange residue on the cloth.

The third photo is the bag after cleaning, and surprisingly the color is now very close to the seller's original photos.

But how did the owner get the color and the shine shown in the second photo?

Has anyone seen Darwin leather behave like this?

Is this simply the leather becoming darker again after absorbing oils/conditioner, or could storage, dehydration, or lighting explain such a large color shift? Did I ruin it completely by using a silicone-based conditioner?

Please help. I've fallen in love with her.

P.S. It's very difficult to get products like Collonil in my country, but I'll try anything you recommend.


r/Leather 2d ago

How do I get rid of this stain/wear?

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2 Upvotes

Sauce stain on my leather couch. I tried a few things to get it off but ended up making it worse.