Leather Car Upholstery Care: Myths and Facts

Buffing machine are still the mainstay of many body shops and professional detailers and when used correctly they can deliver the great results. When it comes to leather car interior care information, there are plenty of myths and very few solid facts. I hope to clear up some of those myths, so you can give your car’s leather interior the care it needs to look great for many years to come. Leather protector is an easy-to-apply waterproof treatment designed to soften and protect oiled and waxed leathers without compromising breath ability.

Car Leather Myth 1: My new car leather doesn’t need care

Not only is this not true, but the myth is costing new car owners a lot of money! This is a serious misconception many people have, including car sales professionals.

Modern car leather upholstery has a super thin vinyl coating for protection. This does not negate the need for regular care.

It’s true that modern leather interiors are more durable than leather finishes prior to 1990. This is due to new technology in leather upholstery manufacturing. That said, automotive leather upholstery still needs regular cleaning and treatment.

Car Leather Myth 2: Once the new car leather smell is gone you can’t get it back

The fresh scent of fine leather is very alluring. It does not have to go away. If you properly maintain your car’s leather interior, the scent will remain naturally for many years.

If your car looses the leather scent, you can partially restore it by hydrating the leather. There are also leather scent car fresheners for this purpose.

Car Leather Myth 3: I was told that a cream leather conditioner is best

If your car was produced before 1990, this may be true. However, if the car’s leather has a vinyl coating (95% of all cars manufactured after 1997 do), a cream-based conditioner can’t get through the micro perforations in the vinyl coating to treat the leather.

In other words, all the cream treats is the vinyl coating. What’s needed is a good liquid leather conditioner that can reach the leather to hydrate and condition.

Car Leather Myth 4: Water will stain leather, so don’t get your leather wet

Plain water will not hurt leather. In fact, leather is tanned and cured using water. What’s damaging to leather (stain wise) is stuff in water.

You can wipe your leather upholstery with a damp cloth with no problems. You can even scrub your leather with a bucket of soapy water.

Just be sure to fully dry your leather after it gets wet to avoid any chance of discoloration.

Follow These Car Leather Tips

Give your car’s interior regular care. That means regular cleaning and regular conditioning. If you carry out these tasks, it will never require heavy cleaning and conditioning. You’ll save time and money.

There are many good leather cleaning and conditioning products. The oldest and most respected name in leather care is Lexol.

Here are the Lexol products I recommend for regular use in your car:

  • Lexol Leather Deep Cleaner Spray (gentle cleaner for regular care)
  • Lexol Leather Conditioner Spray (for regular conditioning)
  • Lexol wipes (super fast and easy wipes!)
  • Vinylex Protectant (for treating all plastic and vinyl surfaces)
  • The excellent Lexol Kit (includes a sponge and you’ll save money)

It’s best to clean and condition your vehicle at least four times each year. Actually, monthly is more ideal.

To make the task as easy as possible, try a combination of the wipes and sprays. Use the wipes when time is of the essence. Use the sprays for deeper cleaning and conditioning.

Be sure to check out How to Clean a Car Interior the right way!

Selecting the Right Vehicle Wrap and Graphics Company

Media companies are continuing to find ways to reach out and grab attention. Their marketing strategies have become extremely sophisticated and advertisements extremely eye catching. Vehicle wraps and graphics are the best ways for companies, politicians, organizations and others to get their message out and reach a wide audience. Vehicle wraps have been shown to be the most effective form of advertising available in today’s market. Absolutesignsolutions.com.au can design and/or print your custom stickers Sydney. They can printed in high quality using full colour or a one, two or three spot colours.

By adding graphics on to your company or personal vehicle, you will transform it into a mobile billboard. Your company or organization can target your favorite locations to take your message to where your audience is. No longer are you stuck on the same signpost for one to three months like a billboard. Vehicle wraps have been shown to be more affordable and reach a much wider audience than traditional advertising in newspapers or on the radio or TV.

Your marketing strategy is important and has worked well to grow your business to where it is. However, in today’s competitive environment you should not neglect the most effective solution for your South Carolina company. Vehicle wraps should be a critical part of your marketing strategy.

When selecting a vehicle wrap company in Charleston and Myrtle Beach, you should select the best company available which will be able to handle your needs and project. Here are a few ideas to consider when selecting a company.

Select a Specialist. Just like you don’t want a general practice doctor for brain surgery, why go to a sign shop to handle the specialized production and installation for your vehicle wrap(s)? Professional and qualified wrap companies are solely focused on vehicle wraps and large format graphics applications. While the sign shop might be able to handle your project, can they meet all your needs? Trust your project to a company that is knowledgeable and experienced in vehicle wraps.

Select for Knowledge. You have worked hard to design your company, select a target audience, and create your brand. Select a company that will take the time to understand your business, your customers, and what you are trying to accomplish. Without this understanding, how can they effectively create a design for your company or franchise? They can’t. Choose a company that will take the time to get to know you and your business.

Select for Design. The single most important aspect of your vehicle graphic is the design. This graphic design will reflect your company for the next 3-5 years. The old adage still holds true today especially for vehicle wraps – you get what you pay for. Don’t accept a company that will “throw the design in for free.” While many companies will not provide you free creative designs without a confirmed order, you can look at their designs for past clients and projects. Are they able to provide you with a portfolio of effective designs for previous vehicle wrap clients? Will they provide you with a custom design rather than just throw your design on a background? Work with a company who employs talented and professional designers who will work up custom design concepts for you.

Select for Materials. While the design of your wrap is a critical aspect of the project, selecting the wrong materials can cause you to throw away good money. 3M is the leader in the vehicle wrap materials market, but there are other excellent companies including Oracal, Avery, and MacTAC. Make sure the company you select has premium grade material including a film laminate on top of the graphic to protect it. This laminate is critical to protect your investment and prevents premature failure. Choose a company that uses the premium quality vinyl for your wrap-and specify it in writing.

Select for Professionalism. The best companies will represent themselves in their communications and activities as high quality and professional. Here are some basic questions to see if they do
1) Do they promptly respond to your initial inquiry?
2) Are their communications professional, proofread, and formatted?
3) Do they have a process to get your wrap completed without issue?
4) Are you assigned a CSR or account manager for the process?
5) Do they provide color proofs and installation?
6) Do they employ a client or project management software to track orders?

Select for Marketing Strategy. Is the vehicle wrap company knowledgeable about helping you understand how to incorporate your new advertising tool into your marketing strategy? Does the company understand how to help you maximize the value of your vehicle wrap? Select a company that understands this and will work with you to come up with creative solutions specific to your company.

Select for Confidence. Does the company have a professional brand? Are they known in the industry? Have they taken the time to set themselves apart and distinguish themselves? Choose a company that prides themselves on their expertise, knowledge and ability to work with you to help you get the most out of your project. Can they handle your project where you are located? Ask for testimonials and references.

Select for Warranty. Material manufacturers like 3M, Oracal, Avery, and MacTAC will warranty a product for a period of 3-5 years. They cover the material against fading, peeling and cracking but NOT installation. Make sure the vehicle wrap company provides an additional warranty for their workmanship. Many companies hide behind the manufacturer’s warranty and if they skip steps or don’t follow installation procedures you could be left with a peeling wrap. Choose a company that stands behind its work.

Select for Local Laws Knowledge. Many local municipalities have specific laws that appropriateness and imagery that is allowed on ALL forms of advertising. In many cases there are local board of approval and police actively review all forms vehicles and advertising to conform to their local standards. Myrtle Beach is no exception and in many cases more stringent than other municipalities. National chains who have no present in MB are not necessarily equipped to know the local laws and requirements. Stick with those who do.

A vehicle wrap can be the most effective tool you can add to your marketing strategy, if it is done correctly. Your success is partially based on selecting the right company to partner with. You need to base your selection using criteria like these to get the best vehicle wrap company for your advertising needs.

Copyright 2010, Capital Wraps; www.CapitalWraps.com
Capital Wraps is the premier vehicle wrap, fleet wrap, and event graphic company in DC, Virginia, North Carolina and South Carolina.

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Leather Repair and Restoration

Everyone has THAT special piece of furniture…The design goal of Shurhold’s Dual Action Polisher was to allow users to achieve the same high gloss, professional finish that the pros do with a rotary buffer/polisher, but in a unit that less-experienced, everyday users can operate with the same effectiveness.

In this particular instance, I mean my grandfather’s leather office chair, which is of upmost importance to him. This chair was one of the first major purchases he made as a young business man, and it was a large purchase some 30 or more years ago. Solid, thick, supple leather, bronze tackings and hand designed details. This chair was fit for a king, and king he was of his office and his nursery and business. In this chair many important decisions and purchases were made, deals penned, contracts written and so on. Leather care If leather is to retain its beauty, it must be cared for, cleaned and conditioned.

But after many many years of use, as with any furniture, there are some changes that begin to occur. Leather furniture holds up better than most, especially when you have purchased a quality piece. But time will lead to visible changes in the furniture in your home. Leather is a skin and it needs to breathe, and just like our skin, the oils and dirt that accumulate over time will start to absorb. The color can fade, the hide can become thin or dry, sometimes even dry rotting.

So, you can imagine that his chair has certainly seen better days, but still remains in overall usable and good condition. It needs some leather repairs and color restoration, and if handled professionally, could look years newer in just a few hours.

There is a lot of crap out there that markets itself as “Easy to Use” and “Do It Your Self” or “Quick Fix!” But as most things go, if it seems too good to be true, it probably is. Leather Repair Kits, Leather Tape, Leather Kits and Instant Leather Repair products all “sound” fantastic but usually only make damage worse. No one wants to ruin their investments, especially not leather furniture that cost thousands of dollars!

The best thing to do is to find a leather repair specialist. I looked online and found the solution! There are Leather Repair companies that I researched online that came up with wonderful photos and videos that show their craftsmanship. As I kept looking at leather repair and furniture repair companies, I was completely certain that this was not a job to try on my own. I was certain that I was going to use a leather repair professional to help restore my grandfather’s prized chair.

The before and after effects on this chair were incredible. Guests that had seen the chair before can’t even believe that this is the same one! The Leather repairs made on the cracking and really thin areas not only look but feel smooth again. The holes and patches that were worn through are completely repaired and refinished. The pros were able to smooth away the lines and cracks of time, making this chair feel like the throne of a (businessman) king again. I had no idea that leather could be restored so well, or so affordably! To replace that chair would have cost over $2000, maybe even more because of the ever increasing inflation. And of course, was also not an option because that would have destroyed this family heirloom as well. But to have the leather repaired and leather color restoration completed was a mere fraction of the cost. And, of course, this keep sake chair now can last for many more years to come, which is a priceless investment.

What are you waiting for?

Leather furniture is something that can last through the decades, providing you comfort and quality as well as presence in your home or office. There are many ways to keep your leather beautiful other than waiting until it is too late!

There are some simple tricks that you can do at home by yourself to keep your leather last even longer. The pros taught us a few tips that really make a difference.

Make sure you clean your leather goods and furniture with a gentle cleanser at least once a month. A light mist of a very very dilute mix of a 20 oz bottle of water mixed with a couple of drops of dish soap is all you need to start. You can mist this solution onto a soft towel, and gently wipe the surfaces, particularly where you sit and touch the leather the most, clean away skin oils, dirt and grime. Human skin actually has a slightly acidic PH and this is what eats away at the leather, causing fading and cracking etc. And everyone’s is different, some are more or less acidic as well as sweat versus clean skin coming into contact with the leather all play a role in it’s potential to harm your leather goods.

After you have cleaned the leather with this solution, dry thoroughly with a clean soft towel or rag. Then use a very good quality that is a non-abrasive leather conditioner that is free from silicones or lubricants and oils. These will clog the pores of your leather and actually lead to more damage down the road. Lexol Leather conditioner is an excellent product and the only one that we keep in my home. It can be best compared to using high quality and scent free lotions on your skin versus something heavily perfumed and containing alcohol and dyes. Those type of products don’t really help moisturize your skin nor do they keep it looking young, in fact they often cause more damage than they combat!

Doing these simple steps each month will certainly prolong the life of your leather!

Of course, once it is too late, no amount of conditioning can repair a rip or tear. Or other types of problems that are common with leather furniture, like pet damage, or fading from the sun. If you have leather furniture that has some sort of damage or is really starting to show its age, you should do what I did: seek the assistance of a Leather Repair Professional. I know that using a leather repair kit or do it your self tape trick at home sounds like an easier way, but do you want to make the area worse that is already needing help? Forget the leather repair kits, look online and see for yourself. I’m an avid consumer, and reading reviews spoke for itself, I chose only the best for my leather furniture and my investment for the future of my family heirlooms!

All in all, I would like to say that I love having leather furniture in my home. And I know my family does too. In saying that, be sure to protect your investment by heeding my advice and trying these leather maintenance techniques, or if you need to, call leather repair specialists. You can check out the guys I called, which is where I learned these awesome tips from people in the trade, http://www.stcharlesleatherrepair.com/

I am so glad I took the time to research about leather restoration and furniture repair because I really had no idea what kind of options were available, or that it could be so easy. I encourage people to formulate their own opinions, read reviews, do your research and always consider your options. Some of my friends suggested just throwing away or donating “that old ugly chair” but it holds too much importance to my grandfather and my family to not look to restore it to it’s former glory. And that is exactly the result that we achieved and I will be forever grateful!

Thank you so much for reading and I hope you have enjoyed my thoughts! Check out more leather products on https://www.waxit.com.au/

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/expert/Karen_E_Thomas/1892239

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