With a number of options available in leather jackets, it’s easy to get duped. Know the difference between fake and genuine leather by the texture and odour, says an expert.
Arshbir Singh Bhatia, Director at Voganow.com, an online platform for buying leather garments and accessories, has given tips and tricks to check the authenticity of the leather:
* Easiest ways to check is by pressing the texture of the leather. If it is real, the texture would seem wrinkled and pulled. If it is fake, it would hardly make any difference to the texture when affected by the pressure.
Also, genuine leather does not crack easily and is quite durable. It can last for more than 10 years. One can easily see a drastic change in jackets crafted in faux leather after using for just one season.
* Try to check and feel the texture of the leather before making a purchase as little imperfections like creases or scratches are considered to be a good signal while testing the authenticity of genuine leather.
Genuine leather does not smell like plastic or give an odour of chemicals which is obvious with faux leather. A jacket crafted in genuine leather gives more of a natural and swanky touch.
* On pulling leather, one can see very fine holes which are the hair follicles while on synthetic leather, they are artificially created and disappear on pulling.
* Feel the texture of leather. Genuine leather should feel soft and smooth like a skin while faux leather would give a hard and solid touch and feel.
* Genuine leather can easily absorb water while goods made of faux leather cannot absorb it and the droplets of water would puddle on the surface of the material.
* Similar to the wrinkle test, another way is by bending the leather as real leather has a unique elasticity while bending it might change the tone. Faux leather remains rigid and regular when bent.
