How To Repair Synthetic Leather

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Faux leather is also known as false, synthetic, or artificial leather. Information technology has a similar appearance to natural leather, simply fake leather items typically consist of a fabric base with a polyurethane blanket. This limerick means that faux leather will inevitably peel and crack over time, in which case there are different methods you lot can use to repair information technology. With a few leather repair supplies and the correct techniques, you tin can restore most faux leather items to prolong their usability, though they won't last forever.

1
Peel off all the loose pieces of the fake leather. Use your fingers to pull off any loose flaps of the faux leather that are sticking up from the particular. Stop when you can't peel whatsoever more off.^[i]
- You can use a edgeless-edged object, such every bit a butter knife, to help you pare up and scrape away the loose bits of faux leather if it is difficult to practice with simply your fingers.
- This method works for all types of faux leather items that are peeling or cracking including piece of furniture, clothing, and accessories. Keep in mind that it will probable only temporarily restore the appearance of the simulated leather and information technology won't go far look brand new. Y'all will somewhen be better off replacing the item.
Warning: If you lot try to repair simulated leather without pulling off all the loose bits, it will just keep to pare away subsequently the repair.
2
Wipe down the peeled section and surrounding area with a leather wipe. Open a can of leather wipes and pull out a single wipe. Rub it all over the spot you lot just peeled and the surrounding faux leather to clean the surface for painting.^[2]
- Leather wipes are specifically formulated for cleaning leather and work well on faux leather, merely y'all could also employ a different kind of gentle cleaning wipe, such as a baby wipe.
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three
Choose an appropriately-colored acrylic leather paint. Select a color of acrylic leather pigment that closely matches the color of your faux leather particular. Acrylic leather paint is available online, at craft stores, and at leather supply shops.^[iii]
- If you can't find the correct color of acrylic leather paint, yous can mix multiple colors together to make a colour that closely matches the faux leather.
iv
Brush on the leather paint horizontally using a small paintbrush. Cascade a bit of your chosen pigment out into a plastic cup and dip a small paintbrush, like the kind used for art, into the cup to get some paint on information technology. Spread the paint over the peeled surface area in long horizontal strokes.^[4]
- If there are different sections of false leather of varying sizes that yous want to repair, it tin can be helpful to accept several small paint brushes of different sizes to paint smaller and larger damaged areas.
five
Let the paint dry for at least 30 minutes. Await xxx minutes and then gently poke the painted area with a fingertip to see if it is dry to the touch. Allow it dry longer if information technology is yet pasty until it feels totally dry.^[5]
- You tin utilise a hair dryer to speed up the drying procedure if you want. Ready information technology to medium heat and hold it about half-dozen in (15 cm) away from the painted surface, so move information technology slowly back and forth across the painted patch until it is dry.
6
Paint on additional coats until yous are happy with the end. Use your paint brush to apply more than coats of the same colour. Allow each coat to dry out earlier applying the next one.^[half-dozen]
- Pay special attention to certain areas that might crave more than paint to alloy the repaired area in, such equally around the edges where the paint meets the existing faux leather and whatever spots near seams.
seven
Add a clear acrylic finisher elevation coat to seal the pigment job. Choose a matte, glossy, or semi-gloss articulate acrylic finisher based on how shiny the existing imitation leather is. Use a clean pigment brush to utilize the clear acrylic finished over the unabridged painted area and the surrounding edges using long horizontal strokes.^[7]
- Don't worry if the acrylic finisher looks white when you first utilize information technology every bit it will dry on clear.
- Watch out for any runs or droplets as you go and wipe them upward with your paintbrush.
eight
Let the detail dry overnight earlier you utilise it. Exit the item alone until the adjacent day so the top coat has plenty of time to cure. Make sure that nobody else uses the detail if it is something communal like a sofa.^[8]
- Remember that your faux leather volition not expect perfect when yous examine it up close, but from a distance it will look much better than before when it was peeling and ugly.
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one
Put on a pair of latex gloves. Utilize a pair of well-fitted latex gloves like the kind doctors wear. This will protect your skin from getting stained but allow you lot to employ your fingertips to effectively use the dye.^[9]
- This method works best for small damaged areas where the fake leather is just starting to skin or crack.
2
Choose an advisable color of leather repair dye. Pick out a dye color that closely matches the color of the false leather item you want to repair. Leather repair dye is available online or at leather repair shops.^[10]
- You tin can use leather repair dye to color exposed fabric that the faux leather has peeled away from too as to stick loose pieces of the imitation leather dorsum down.
Tip: Leather dye sometimes comes in kits along with additional items you can use with the dye, such equally awarding tools that look like trivial spatulas.^[11]
3
Shake up the canteen and cover the damaged area with dye. Ensure that the cap is on tightly, then milk shake the canteen up and downwardly to mix the dye. Open upward the cap on the canteen of dye and tilt information technology upside down over the peeling or cracking area. Clasp out enough drops of dye to cover the exposed material underneath the imitation leather.^[12]
- The dye volition absorb into the fabric, so go alee and apply information technology generously. You don't demand to worry about putting likewise much.
4
Piece of work the dye underneath any loose pieces of fake leather. Use a fingertip to advisedly lift up any loose flaps of peeling faux leather. Spread the dye around underneath the flaps and so information technology soaks into all the exposed fabric underneath and gets on the undersides of the flaps.^[13]
- Employ more dye as needed while y'all practice this until there is enough to go information technology all over the damaged expanse and the color of the exposed fabric looks nighttime enough.
five
Press the loose pieces of faux leather downwards into the wet dye with your fingers. Carefully poke all loose flaps of faux leather back downwards confronting the dyed fabric with your fingertip. Rub them gently towards the eye of the damaged area to shine them out.^[fourteen]
- The leather repair dye also acts as an agglutinative, and so the loose flaps will be stuck downward once the dye dries.
- If you purchased a leather dye repair kit, you tin also utilise any application tools that came with the kit to assistance printing down and polish out the loose flaps of simulated leather.^[fifteen]
6
Dry the repaired expanse with a hair dryer. Turn on a hair dryer to medium estrus and hold it well-nigh 6 in (fifteen cm) away from the repaired surface area. Wiggle it back and along over the moisture dye for a few minutes until information technology is dry to the touch.^[16]
- You can also use a estrus gun to dry the dye if you have one bachelor.
- If you don't have anything to speed up the drying procedure, the leather dye volition take i-2 hours to dry out on its own.
7
Touch up the repaired area with boosted dye if needed. Audit the spot you repaired after it is dry. Add more dye if you want to darken it or if there are still loose flaps of faux leather sticking up that yous want to smooth out.^[17]
- You tin repeat the process of drying the dyed surface area with a hair dryer and touching information technology upward as many times as you desire to until you are happy with the results.
viii

Let the repaired faux leather dry overnight. Wait until the side by side day before touching the repaired surface area or using the detail. This will give the dye plenty of time to cure and ensure that the loose pieces of imitation leather are strongly adhered to the fabric underneath.^[18]

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1
Purchase an appropriately-colored leather or vinyl repair kit. Leather and vinyl repair kits come with colored patches, sandpaper, a cleaning solution, at to the lowest degree i patch, and adhesive. Buy ane that has a patch that closely matches the colour of your damaged faux leather detail.^[19]
- These kits are commonly marketed for repairing leather and simulated leather furniture and car seats. They are available online, at a home comeback center, or from a leather or auto supply shop.
- Yous can utilize this type of kit to fix tears, rips, and holes in your false leather items.
Tip: The exact items that come in the repair kit can vary, so always refer to the repair kit's instructions for using all of the provided products and tools.
2
Rub the area inside the tear with the supplied sandpaper. Sand down the damaged area, being careful not to sand the intact simulated leather around the tear, to remove oils and fibers. Effort to go the damaged area as smooth equally possible so the patch will adhere well.^[xx]
- If your kit did not come up with sandpaper, utilize your own fine-grit sandpaper, such as 120-dust.
3
Wipe the expanse down with a soft cloth and the supplied cleaning solution. Pour some of the kit's cleaning solution onto a soft, clean material. Rub down the area inside the tear that yous just sanded, as well as the surrounding faux leather, to remove any dirt and residue.^[21]
- If the kit did not provide yous with a cleaning solution, yous can use rubbing alcohol to make clean the damaged surface area.
4
Cut abroad any flaps of faux leather effectually the tear using sharp pair of scissors. Trim off any pieces of false leather that are jagged, pointing upwards, or overhanging the tear. This volition tidy up the tear then that the patch blends in better.^[22]
- You can use a sharp utility knife or boxcutter to practise this as well.
five
Trim the kit'due south patch to be slightly bigger than the tear. Use a pair of abrupt scissors to trim a piece of the repair kits patch to the shape of the expanse you desire to patch, making information technology slightly bigger. This will allow y'all to stick down the surrounding faux leather on meridian of the patch to seal the tear.^[23]
- Some kits might have multiple patches, in which case you lot tin cull from different colors to get the closest possible lucifer.
6
Squeeze the provided adhesive effectually under the edges of the tear. Carefully lift upward the edges around the tear and squeeze some adhesive underneath. Use any provided tools, such as a little plastic spatula, to spread the adhesive around.^[24]
- Be careful not to get whatsoever agglutinative onto the good faux leather around the tear. If you practise, carefully scrape it off using the border of an one-time card earlier information technology dries.
7
Printing the patch down firmly inside the tear. Slip the patch into the torn surface area and center information technology so it is underneath the surrounding faux leather edges. Press and hold information technology in place for the recommended amount of fourth dimension, according to your repair kit's instructions.^[25]
- If the tear is very tiny, similar a thin slit from a pocketknife, you don't necessarily accept to use the patch. You can skip to the next pace and try glueing down the surrounding faux leather to seal up the tear.
8
Glue the edges of the surrounding faux leather downwards to the patch. Apply some other thin bead of the provided adhesive underneath the edges of faux leather effectually the patched tear. Press the edges downward firmly and smoothly and so that they stick around the patch.^[26]
- If you couldn't observe a patch in a color that closely matches your false leather item, you can paint over it with leather paint or use leather dye to color it. Some kits might even come with different colorants you can employ on top of the patch.
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Things You'll Need

Leather wipes
Butter knife (optional)
Acrylic leather paint
Acrylic finisher
Pigment brushes
Plastic cup
Hair dryer (optional)

Leather dye
Latex gloves
Hair dryer

Leather or vinyl repair kit
Soft cloth
Pair of scissors

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