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Faux leather is also known as imitation, synthetic, or bogus leather. Information technology has a like appearance to natural leather, but imitation leather items typically consist of a fabric base of operations with a polyurethane coating. This limerick ways that faux leather will inevitably pare and crevice over time, in which case there are different methods you can use to repair it. With a few leather repair supplies and the right techniques, you lot can restore most faux leather items to prolong their usability, though they won't last forever.

  1. ane

    Peel off all the loose pieces of the faux leather. Use your fingers to pull off whatsoever loose flaps of the fake leather that are sticking upwards from the item. Stop when you tin't peel any more than off.[1]

    • You can use a blunt-edged object, such every bit a butter pocketknife, to help you peel up and scrape away the loose bits of faux leather if it is difficult to do with just your fingers.
    • This method works for all types of fake leather items that are peeling or cracking including furniture, habiliment, and accessories. Go along in mind that it will likely only temporarily restore the advent of the faux leather and information technology won't get in await brand new. You volition eventually be better off replacing the item.

    Warning: If you effort to repair fake leather without pulling off all the loose bits, it will just continue to peel away after the repair.

  2. 2

    Wipe down the peeled section and surrounding area with a leather wipe. Open up a tin of leather wipes and pull out a unmarried wipe. Rub information technology all over the spot you just peeled and the surrounding faux leather to clean the surface for painting.[ii]

    • Leather wipes are specifically formulated for cleaning leather and work well on faux leather, merely you could also use a different kind of gentle cleaning wipe, such every bit a infant wipe.

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  3. 3

    Choose an appropriately-colored acrylic leather pigment. Select a color of acrylic leather paint that closely matches the color of your faux leather item. Acrylic leather paint is available online, at craft stores, and at leather supply shops.[3]

    • If y'all can't find the right color of acrylic leather paint, you tin can mix multiple colors together to make a color that closely matches the faux leather.

  4. 4

    Castor on the leather pigment horizontally using a small paintbrush. Pour a bit of your chosen paint out into a plastic cup and dip a modest paintbrush, like the kind used for fine art, into the cup to go some paint on information technology. Spread the paint over the peeled area in long horizontal strokes.[4]

    • If there are unlike sections of faux leather of varying sizes that yous want to repair, it tin exist helpful to have several minor paint brushes of different sizes to paint smaller and larger damaged areas.

  5. 5

    Let the paint dry for at to the lowest degree 30 minutes. Wait 30 minutes and then gently poke the painted area with a fingertip to see if it is dry to the bear on. Allow it dry longer if it is nonetheless sticky until information technology feels totally dry.[five]

    • You can use a hair dryer to speed up the drying process if you want. Set up it to medium oestrus and hold it almost 6 in (15 cm) away from the painted surface, then motility information technology slowly back and forth across the painted patch until information technology is dry.

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    Paint on additional coats until yous are happy with the finish. Utilize your pigment brush to apply more coats of the same color. Let each coat to dry out before applying the next one.[six]

    • Pay special attention to certain areas that might require more paint to blend the repaired expanse in, such as around the edges where the paint meets the existing faux leather and any spots nearly seams.

  7. vii

    Add together a articulate acrylic finisher top glaze to seal the pigment job. Choose a matte, glossy, or semi-gloss articulate acrylic finisher based on how shiny the existing simulated leather is. Use a clean paint brush to apply the clear acrylic finished over the entire painted area and the surrounding edges using long horizontal strokes.[7]

    • Don't worry if the acrylic finisher looks white when yous beginning use it every bit it will dry out on clear.
    • Watch out for any runs or aerosol as y'all go and wipe them up with your paintbrush.

  8. 8

    Let the item dry out overnight earlier y'all utilize it. Go out the particular alone until the next day so the top coat has plenty of time to cure. Brand certain that nobody else uses the item if it is something communal like a sofa.[8]

    • Think that your faux leather will not look perfect when you lot examine it upward close, but from a distance it volition look much better than before when it was peeling and ugly.

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  1. 1

    Put on a pair of latex gloves. Use a pair of well-fitted latex gloves like the kind doctors wear. This will protect your skin from getting stained simply allow you to apply your fingertips to effectively apply the dye.[9]

    • This method works best for small damaged areas where the faux leather is just starting to peel or crack.

  2. 2

    Choose an appropriate colour of leather repair dye. Selection out a dye color that closely matches the color of the simulated leather detail you want to repair. Leather repair dye is available online or at leather repair shops.[10]

    • Y'all can utilise leather repair dye to colour exposed fabric that the faux leather has peeled away from every bit well equally to stick loose pieces of the simulated leather back down.

    Tip: Leather dye sometimes comes in kits along with additional items you can use with the dye, such as awarding tools that look like picayune spatulas.[eleven]

  3. 3

    Milk shake up the bottle and cover the damaged area with dye. Ensure that the cap is on tightly, then milk shake the bottle up and down to mix the dye. Open up the cap on the bottle of dye and tilt it upside down over the peeling or smashing area. Squeeze out enough drops of dye to cover the exposed material underneath the faux leather.[12]

    • The dye volition absorb into the fabric, then go ahead and use it generously. Yous don't need to worry most putting likewise much.

  4. iv

    Work the dye underneath whatsoever loose pieces of imitation leather. Employ a fingertip to advisedly elevator up whatsoever loose flaps of peeling imitation leather. Spread the dye around underneath the flaps so it soaks into all the exposed fabric underneath and gets on the undersides of the flaps.[xiii]

    • Apply more dye as needed while you practice this until in that location is enough to get it all over the damaged area and the color of the exposed fabric looks dark enough.

  5. 5

    Press the loose pieces of fake leather downwards into the wet dye with your fingers. Carefully poke all loose flaps of faux leather dorsum down against the dyed fabric with your fingertip. Rub them gently towards the center of the damaged area to polish them out.[14]

    • The leather repair dye too acts every bit an adhesive, so the loose flaps will be stuck down once the dye dries.
    • If you purchased a leather dye repair kit, you lot can besides use any application tools that came with the kit to help press down and smooth out the loose flaps of faux leather.[15]

  6. 6

    Dry the repaired area with a hair dryer. Plough on a hair dryer to medium rut and concord it about six in (fifteen cm) abroad from the repaired area. Wiggle information technology dorsum and forth over the wet dye for a few minutes until it is dry out to the touch.[16]

    • You tin likewise use a heat gun to dry the dye if yous have i available.
    • If you don't have anything to speed up the drying process, the leather dye will take 1-two hours to dry on its own.

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    Touch upward the repaired area with additional dye if needed. Inspect the spot you repaired after it is dry. Add more dye if you lot want to darken it or if at that place are nonetheless loose flaps of faux leather sticking upwards that you desire to smoothen out.[17]

    • You can echo the procedure of drying the dyed expanse with a hair dryer and touching it up as many times every bit you want to until you are happy with the results.

  8. 8

    Let the repaired faux leather dry overnight. Wait until the side by side 24-hour interval before touching the repaired area or using the detail. This will give the dye plenty of time to cure and ensure that the loose pieces of fake leather are strongly adhered to the fabric underneath.[eighteen]

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    Purchase an appropriately-colored leather or vinyl repair kit. Leather and vinyl repair kits come with colored patches, sandpaper, a cleaning solution, at least ane patch, and adhesive. Buy 1 that has a patch that closely matches the color of your damaged fake leather detail.[xix]

    • These kits are commonly marketed for repairing leather and faux leather furniture and car seats. They are available online, at a home improvement middle, or from a leather or auto supply shop.
    • Yous can use this type of kit to fix tears, rips, and holes in your faux leather items.

    Tip: The verbal items that come in the repair kit tin vary, so ever refer to the repair kit'south instructions for using all of the provided products and tools.

  2. 2

    Rub the area within the tear with the supplied sandpaper. Sand down the damaged area, being careful not to sand the intact imitation leather around the tear, to remove oils and fibers. Try to get the damaged area equally smooth as possible and then the patch will adhere well.[20]

    • If your kit did non come up with sandpaper, use your ain fine-grit sandpaper, such as 120-grit.

  3. three

    Wipe the surface area down with a soft cloth and the supplied cleaning solution. Pour some of the kit'due south cleaning solution onto a soft, clean cloth. Rub down the expanse inside the tear that you lot just sanded, as well as the surrounding fake leather, to remove any dirt and residue.[21]

    • If the kit did not provide you with a cleaning solution, y'all tin utilize rubbing alcohol to make clean the damaged area.

  4. 4

    Cut away any flaps of faux leather around the tear using sharp pair of scissors. Trim off whatsoever pieces of imitation leather that are jagged, pointing upwards, or overhanging the tear. This volition tidy upward the tear so that the patch blends in improve.[22]

    • You tin utilize a precipitous utility knife or boxcutter to do this too.

  5. 5

    Trim the kit's patch to be slightly bigger than the tear. Use a pair of sharp scissors to trim a piece of the repair kits patch to the shape of the expanse you want to patch, making it slightly bigger. This will let you to stick downward the surrounding false leather on top of the patch to seal the tear.[23]

    • Some kits might have multiple patches, in which case yous tin can cull from dissimilar colors to get the closest possible match.

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    Clasp the provided adhesive around under the edges of the tear. Advisedly lift upward the edges around the tear and clasp some adhesive underneath. Utilize any provided tools, such as a little plastic spatula, to spread the agglutinative around.[24]

    • Exist careful not to get whatever adhesive onto the good faux leather around the tear. If you practice, carefully scrape it off using the edge of an old card earlier it dries.

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    Printing the patch downwards firmly inside the tear. Slip the patch into the torn area and center information technology then it is underneath the surrounding simulated leather edges. Press and hold information technology in place for the recommended amount of fourth dimension, co-ordinate to your repair kit's instructions.[25]

    • If the tear is very tiny, like a sparse slit from a knife, you don't necessarily have to employ the patch. You can skip to the next step and endeavour glueing downward the surrounding faux leather to seal up the tear.

  8. 8

    Mucilage the edges of the surrounding faux leather downwards to the patch. Utilise another thin bead of the provided adhesive underneath the edges of faux leather around the patched tear. Press the edges downwardly firmly and smoothly so that they stick around the patch.[26]

    • If y'all couldn't discover a patch in a color that closely matches your faux leather item, y'all can paint over it with leather paint or use leather dye to colour it. Some kits might even come with different colorants yous can use on superlative of the patch.

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Things You'll Demand

  • Leather wipes
  • Butter pocketknife (optional)
  • Acrylic leather pigment
  • Acrylic finisher
  • Pigment brushes
  • Plastic cup
  • Hair dryer (optional)
  • Leather dye
  • Latex gloves
  • Hair dryer
  • Leather or vinyl repair kit
  • Soft cloth
  • Scissors

References

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