Have you ever wondered what went into the making of that couch your parents were passed down by their parents and will probably be passed onto you too? Yet, that same couch is 30+ years old and still looks show-room ready. How could that be? When quality materials and expert techniques are used in the construction of just about any consumer product on today’s market, it makes them much more likely to stand the test of time. For example, that reclining chair for your home theater with hand-stitched, upholstered leather from Italy will more than likely be lasting way longer than a mass-produced fabric entertainment room seat.
It’s an unfortunate fact that a lot of furniture made today just isn’t built to last as long as it used to be. While there are things you can do to prolong their lifespan, like using butcher block oil on wooden furniture, applying conditioner on that leather entertainment room sectional, and gently cleaning fabric seating, buying from a reputable manufacturer is more important than ever these days.
Crafting furniture and finding the materials and methods that make it luxury is something that has been explored for generations—trust us, we’d know best. With over a decade in the game, we’re proud to say we’re committed to fashioning some of the best home theater chairs out there. From leather sectionals designed for entertainment rooms to standalone, high-quality theater chairs, we do it with the best materials and premium craftsmanship.
Any homeowner with a space to decorate knows the trials and tribulations of finding and buying the perfect feature piece for their new visions. Home theaters are no different. With so much multimedia room furniture to sift through online, it can be dizzying trying to find the perfect one for your space even with the help of sites like Pinterest for finding ideas for your home theater furniture. After years of experience, we’ve noticed that one question that rings through any interior designer or homeowner’s mind when decorating a new space is this: leather or upholstery?
So, how do you choose?
We’re here to help. We know choosing the right textile and furniture pieces for your up-and-coming epic renovation or home improvement project is at the pinnacle of making sure the vibe is set in any environment. While fabric might have its use in certain places—say in certain rooms where it’ll get a lot of action from kids or pets jumping around the fabric—when it comes to most other situations (especially furnishings for a home theater), we’re decidedly pro-leather. We might be biased since creating entertainment room chairs with premium, buttery smooth leather is kind of our thing, but there are a plethora of reasons why leather is a go-to material for any room.
Here are our 4 reasons why leather is better than upholstery:
Leather is easier to maintain
Whether with children, pets, or just living with someone messy, leather upholstery is the end all and be all of cleanliness. A quick wipe down of your entertainment room leather seating with a microfiber cloth will immediately rid you of pet hair, allergens, and dust—fabric upholstery just can’t say the same. Leather upholstery often is easier to maintain and clean over fabric textiles on furniture pieces. All that’s needed to maintain leather ottomans or your favorite theater room recliner crafted from leather is a bottle of leather conditioner. The conditioner is super simple to apply—all you need is a clean towel with some conditioner on it, and you rub it into your leather furniture in gentle, circular motions, hydrating the material and giving it a new lease on life with a good shine.
Leather is usually cleaned with leather maintenance kits or filtered water and a microfiber cloth whereas upholstery will need to be stripped and ran through a washer machine, dry cleaned or steam cleaned in place for larger pieces—not ideal if you need to suddenly strip the fabric off of your upholstered media room chairs mid-movie because something spilled on it. If something spills on leather, on the other hand, all you need to do is blot the liquid, wipe the leather down with a damp cloth, and you’re stain-free. Besides being a little difficult to get stains out of, fabric upholstery is notorious for holding onto and trapping dust, pet hair, and other allergens that can cause irritation for sensitive individuals.
Leather can’t make you sick
Oh yes, you read that right. Fabric upholstery is known for keeping allergens, mold, and dust mites nice and cozy in our primary living spaces. For instance, maybe your entertainment room seating is a no-pet-zone, but dust and other debris can still get trapped in the fabric fibers easily. As we mentioned above, cleaning fabric spotless isn’t always an easy task, usually involving a chorus of cleaning methods, so it’s hard to ever fully eliminate those airborn irritants from your seating and other furniture. The next time you’re watching a movie in your below ground level entertainment room and you catch yourself sneezing more than usual, your upholstered media room chairs might be to blame.
Fabric furniture sets are known for carrying the same bugs, bacteria and environmental garbage that can cause flu-like or allergy related symptoms indoors. Fabric holds onto these unnoticeable intruders through the foam, seams, or potential down filling in the cushions. These warm and comfortable fabrics also make great breeding grounds for disease and micro-pests.
Unlike fabric furniture, leather doesn’t allow dust and other allergens to cling to its surfaces. That leather entertainment room sectional you have lying around has a totally solid surface and is impermeable. So rest easy the next time you’re lounging about on your favorite leather theater chair or recliner, and know that dust mites and other allergens won’t be making their way to you any time soon.
Leather is sustainable
Leather, being a natural by-product of animal skin, is a fully sustainable and biodegradable material. Full-grain semi-aniline leathers are known to outlast fabric upholstery by four to five times their typical lifespan. Good quality leather—like the Gruppo Mastrotto leather we use in our high-end theater chairs—has such tightly-interlocked fibers that it’s incredibly unlikely to ever tear, unlike fabric upholstery. Fabric, especially on couches and home theater sofas that have seen more than their fair share of action, will begin to break down over time, and their fibers will become weaker and more susceptible to tearing and fraying. Leather’s natural durability and long lifespan makes it infinitely more sustainable than fabric.
Good quality leather will also develop a patina as it ages and is used which will bring more character and uniqueness to the piece, meaning that every piece of leather furniture and décor you have will truly become one of a kind over time and use. Beyond the patina and lifespan, leather is technically something that’s always in style. It’s a timeless material and never really goes out of vogue, always being seen in some form or fashion in prominent design publications. Fabric, on the other hand, is always an option, but the specific type of fabric that’s currently in style tends to fluctuate and change over the years. Having an always-in piece of furniture means you won’t feel as compelled to update it, and thus keep one more piece of furniture out of the landfill. In addition to that, the lifetime of a leather textile being significantly longer than fabric results in less being found in landfills or thrown out, and instead they usually end up getting passed down or recycled to a new home.
Leather is literally luxury
Leather and leather upholstery come at a premium, sure. However, it also adds a premium element into any space it is fitted into—leather has the unique potential to elevate nearly space with its presence. From your wood chairs in your living area being fitted with leather cushions, to the inclusion of luxurious leather theater recliners in your entertainment room, leather adds an immediate touch of sophistication and style.
Leather is sold at such a high price due to the care and attention that goes into creating a perfect hide for its desired use, the durability and versatility of the product, and the historic social status of leather in society. Leather has been used for ages—literally since 400 BC—and it is isn’t going anywhere soon. It’s a durable material that has prevailed the test of time, amassing a large following of people who devote their lives to leather craft. Leather is a status symbol in any home, outfit, or style selection, and having a piece of leather furniture is sure to make peoples’ eyes pop when they enter the space.
Achieving ultimate luxury with the ultimate textile is why we chose top-grain, semi-aniline leather for our home theater recliners. When we were designing our premium, top-quality theater seats and sectionals, we wanted to ensure that we would be providing a lifetime of luxury to each individual. This is why we find pride in the exorbitant amount of care, consideration, and professionalism we put behind our leather tanning practices and upholstering each seat.
When you are purchasing a leather recliner from Valencia, you are pushing the best-in-class leather that will bring traditional strength and modern luxury into your space.