Restore damaged faux leather items to their former glory using a repair kit.
Faux leather has come a long way and, today, looks more like real leather than ever before. Whether it's your car seats, purse, jacket or sofa, faux leather gives an item a warm, natural feeling. However, faux leather is not resistant to damage and, just like real leather, can become scratched, punctured and gouged. If your faux leather item has a gouge or dent, use steam to expand the dent and a vinyl repair compound to fill the concavity. Does this Spark an idea?
Instructions
1. Turn an iron onto a steam setting. Hover the iron just over the dent, not touching the surface, and steam the area for 3 to 5 minutes. This will heat and expand the leather, helping to even out the dent.
2. Stretch and reshape the dented area as much as possible while it is still hot, using your hands.
3. Obtain a vinyl repair kit that has a colorant that matches the color of your faux leather item. The repair kit will include alcohol wipes, a filler compound and an applicator tool. In some kits, the compound itself is colored. If not, there may be a spray-on tint that is applied on top of the compound.
4. Clean the dented area with an alcohol wipe.
5. Fill the dent with several thin layers of compound, using the applicator tool. Do not use one thick coat, as this can result in cracking. Let each layer dry before applying the next.
6. Smooth down the top layer of filling, using 600-grit sandpaper.
7. Wipe down the surface again with an alcohol wipe. This will further aid in smoothing down the filling and will move sanding dust in preparation for the tint application.
8. Spray the filled area with the tint, if the compound was not pre-colored. You may need more than one coat to achieve even coverage. Allow the tint to fully dry.
9. Apply vinyl conditioner over the area, using a cloth. Let the conditioner stand for 8 to 10 minutes. Wipe off the excess conditioner with a clean cloth.
Tags: faux leather, alcohol wipe, applicator tool, area with, dented area, faux leather item, leather item