Not tactilely tacky, but tastefully tacky. For some reason I tend to associate leather furniture with cheesy 70s and 80s rec rooms, Playboy-compliant bachelor pads, and the like. Is that image strictly mine, or is it more common? If it isn’t just me, has leather’s reputation been rehabilitated lately?
The reason I ask is that I need to buy a new sofa and I’m considering a leather one from Room and Board, but I would hate to think that guests are snickering behind my back. On the other hand, I tend to be messy, and leather would seem to be easier to clean after food and drink spills.
It depends on the leather. Fine quality leather is never out of style.
I think what you’re referring to is fake leather, like vinyl. I was once in someone’s home and had to sit on an olive-green vinyl sofa with white shag pillows. Now ***that ***was tacky.
I’m not a fan of the thin, crinkly fine-grained buttery, softy-soft leather couches. Those ones, I associate with the ‘expensive-tacky’ that you mention. They seem a bit pretentious. But I do love a battered, broken-in bomber-jacket style. Usually has names like “Durango” or something.
I like leather furniture when it’s the really thick smooth kind, matched up with really modern looking accessories (like the feet on a sofa for example). The stuff that they sell at Cost Plus (which sounds cheesy and cheap but isn’t) looks great because it won’t dominate the room like some sort of dead buffalo with cushions. Bosda’s right though, if you live anywhere where it gets real warm in the summer months you’d better be air conditioning people. Falling asleep on a leather couch in the summer is like sitting in a sauna wearing Hefty bags.
Many fine hotels have leather or leather look furniture in their lounges and suites.
And a great many private clubs do as well. The meeting rooms will often have high back leather wing chairs. All colors are traditional, from reddish to yellowish to dark blue gray.
Some things are pretty resistant to change.
Well that’s the last time I invite you back to MY home.
Seriously, I have a green fake leather couch I bought on sale like ten years ago. My GF hates it. Every time I move she gets furious when she finds it wasn’t left behind. I used to have two matching chairs from the same set I found while out jogging.
My ex had the world’s most horrible green fake leather jacket, which he had bought in a garage sale for $2. One day it just totally disappeared, and I convinced him that he must have left it somewhere.
I think those are beautiful. As a matter of fact, I am getting a couch pretty similar to it delivered tomorrow. It is a Christmas present from my MIL. I love brown leather furniture if it is well done and has a classic, semi-rugged cut. I don’t like black leather furniture that is too modern looking because it doesn’t age well.
When my girlfriend and I first moved in together, circa 2002 or so, I was astounded at the amount of Miami Vice looking 80’s drug dealer chic chrome and leather stuff that was still for sale at the major furniture places. I like the clean lines that some of that stuff has, but it’s freaking uuuuuuugly.
It looks nice but is wretched to sit on. You stick to it in summer; in winter it’s chilly. ICK. My aunt saved and saved to buy herself a leather couch. She was SO proud of it. I hated the thing with a passion.
It may be fine for poshy hotels and clubs where people are usually clothed while perched nicely in the seats but in your home, where you might be tempted to sit on your lovely leather in shorts or maybe in short sleeves in winter, you’ll rue your decision.
They told us to use Wyman’s furniture cream, which hides the shallow surface scratches pretty well. Unfortunately, Large did a little “gouging”, so we’re stuck with those. Couple that with my little niece dumping a glass of red wine on it and…well… pretty much all we’ve got is a comfortable chair!
