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Housekeeping

Find cleaning advice from other Mumsnetters on our Housekeeping forum.

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Original poster

Are leather sofas a good idea?

25 replies

zookeeper · 14/11/2006 10:26

I have three young children (5,3 and 1) and my fabric sofas are absolutely filthy and horribly stained. I can't decide whether to grin and bear them for a while yet or go and get a couple of leather sofas which I presume I can simply wipe over when dirty.
Or can I? Should I hold on until the children can be more or less relied upon not to vomit, poo, spill milk etc before getting them? Are they easily ripped?
And then there's the dog...
all advice welcome!

OP posts:

serenity · 14/11/2006 10:54

Best thing I ever did imo. We had fabric ones with washable covers and they just looked tatty after a few years (and banana never comes out!)

We got our leather ones last year and it's great. I managed to get some leather wipes (from Iceland I think!) and I just wipe them down once a week. Spills etc just get mopped up, it's lovely! We actually bought ours because my BF (who's a childminder with 3 cats and a large muddy dog) found it so much cleaner and easier when she swapped to leather. Actually she's just had laminate flooring put down as well, so has a completely wipe clean house

Mummymonster · 14/11/2006 11:10

GGot a chesterfield from Thomas Lloyd about 6 years ago. It is a wonderful investment and has come into it's own when DS has wee'd on it (potty training hic up) vomited and pooed on it (gastro bless) dripped milk on it, rubbed banana, poster paint, pva, glitter and porridge on it.

quick wipe and vac and no problem.

plus when a chesterfield begins to look battered, it's soooo stylish iykwim

I'll never ever go back to fabric

Original poster

zookeeper · 14/11/2006 13:50

thank you - I ill be so happy to get rid ot the old ones

OP posts:

riab · 14/11/2006 13:52

brilliant! wipe clean and if you get half decen quality they actually look better when they get a bit bashed!

just watch the dogs claws on them.

Original poster

zookeeper · 14/11/2006 13:55

I will make a pouffe out of the dog's hide if he so much as sniffs them

OP posts:

Laura032004 · 15/11/2006 12:12

Love ours to bits. DS2 vomits copiously on them at least once a day - just towel down and baby wipe them clean!

We never let our dog on them, but friends who came to stay did , and they didn't mark at all.

mumfor1standfinaltime · 15/11/2006 12:16

Get one! We have 2 chocolate brown leather sofas , so easy to wipe over. I wipe any food etc off with a baby wipe and once a week give them a wash with damp cloth (warm water, no detergents).
We have a cat too so great for cleaning hairs/mud.
Don't think I would go back to fabric sofa.

poppiesinaline · 15/11/2006 12:19

Another vote for leather here. (have 3 kids) Comfy, look fab and easy to clean. I was worried about the cat scratching it but so far she has been a good girl

poppynic · 15/11/2006 12:23

I'm not allowed one coz dp a strict vego . But all my friends seem to have them and they seem great - except, my DS (usually the goody goody of the ante-natal group), discovered at friend's parents flash beach house that a small toy made a nice sound and mark when rubbed along their leather sofa . Friend assured me that it was no problem to fix but I'm not sure I believe her - leather sofa owners - was she lying to be nice??????

MrsBadger · 15/11/2006 12:23

another vote for the gracefully-aging chesterfield - this is the cheapest place I've found.

hotandbothered · 15/11/2006 12:23

Are they not a bit cold on the bot in the winter? Otherwise I'm converted...

tinshoes · 15/11/2006 12:23

definitely. get the kind of leather that looks good as it ages if you can though. and also see if you can get seat pads that are removable. we've had one 5 years and there is a dip on one side where i always sit that i cant do anything about...

mrsflowerpot · 15/11/2006 12:24

yes, yes, yes. Bought ours just pre-ds and they have been the best buy ever. 5 years on they look just as good (even a bit better for some wear) and everything just wipes off them (baby wipes clean them beautifully!).

themildmanneredjanitor · 15/11/2006 12:24

This reply has been deleted

Message withdrawn at poster's request.

mumfor1standfinaltime · 15/11/2006 20:24

Mrsbadger - I love the porter chair on that link!

JoolsToo · 15/11/2006 20:26

take too much looking after iirc.

I wouldn't have them again.

buktus · 15/11/2006 20:29

i have three young children almost the same ages as you except lo is 10 months and a huge slobbery dog, they are the best thing yet, i use halfords leather wipes on mine the dog has never ripped ours either

Original poster

zookeeper · 15/11/2006 21:20

thanks everyone - Buktus are you permanently knackered too?

OP posts:

nell12 · 15/11/2006 22:11

Love my chesterfields. They are 6 now and are looking better as they get older. The odd cat scratch adds to their character! They are cool in summer and warm in winter. Plus the dog hairs dont stick to them!
The only scary thing is the colour of the wipes when we clean them!! I dread to think how much grime we were sitting on when we had our fabric sofas!

MrsSpoon · 15/11/2006 22:28

I love our leather sofas. We were advised by the shop that we bought them in to go for a cheaper one, split hide as it had layers and layers of stuff on it to make it look like good quality leather, apparently puts up with more wiping and doesn't need any special treatment (although the cynic in me wonders if he was getting extra commission on our suite that day). I would personally think twice before buying a very soft leather as I believe they require more looking after and are more easily damaged by wee and things. DS2 has wee'd on ours a few times and have had no problems.

fussymummy · 15/11/2006 23:59

Reading this has made me want to change my sofa a.s.a.p!!!

I want the whole room decorated first though.

We also want a new tv.

Already have the laminate that we fitted a couple of years ago when we moved.

Only problem is, i want chocolate suite and my partner wants cream!!!!

We have 3 children, and i've tried to tell him that every mark will show ona cream sofa, but he keeps saying wait until they're older!!!

buktus · 16/11/2006 07:12

yes zoo keeper i do, does the name suggest anything lol, my house does feel like a zoo full of monkeys, dh included and a dog that acts like toddler also drives me up the wall sometimes he is worse than the kids and at the moment i am trying to recover from surgery a week ago too, all fun and games, they are all getting to a stage of playing together now but why oh why did i want them so close lol

SparklyfestiveYellowFeathers · 16/11/2006 07:17

I used to hate leather sofas and made dh buy a fabric one.
I began to hate it very quickly. When we moved we bought a leather one and it was the best thing we did.
Atm our ds has reflux so the sofa always gets the brunt of that also the dog did use it when we weren't looking but it wasn't a problem because the hairs just wiped off.

I used to find that no matter how much you washed the sofa covers, they would always have a smell with the dog using it.

Beelliesebub · 16/11/2006 07:43

I agree Sparkly... We've got 4 Boys, 2 dogs and a cream leather suite. Definitely no doggy smelly (or boy smell either ), the colour is fine as it just wipes clean (use babywipes most days). Dh was dead against it but I talked him into it when our doberman wrecked our fabric one (with a bit of help from me [shhhhh]) and the self satisfaction when dh said last week "Best thing we ever got this"

Kelly1978 · 16/11/2006 08:16

leather is brilliant.
dt2 emptied a sample pot of sudocrem all over mine last week. COuldn't believe how much sudocrem came out of such a small pot. But with a bowl of soapy water it all came off in ten minutes.

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