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Towne & Country Cleaners does our best to inform our customers of Leather and Suede cleaning issues during the drop off. Please find below some of the more common problems that may be encountered.
You don't often hear of these issues while buying your coat or jacket, but you should be aware of possible issues as a result of Leather and Suede being an animal skin and not a manufactured material.
Skin Defects
Stains
Faded Areas
Inspection
Examining the garment
Acids
Shrinkage
Skin Color
Combo's
Multi-Colors
Dark Areas
Acrylics
Skin Defects
Insects, cuts or accidents cause Scar Tissue Spots, Blotches and Mottled areas when the animal was alive. These are natural and accepted defects that sometimes have no effect on the value of the skin. These are sometimes 'covered' in the tanning and manufacturing process, but are exposed when the cleaning process removes the covering. This is especially prevalent in poor skins. Skins are born, not fabricated and some scar tissue areas may tend to open up during the cleaning process. There is nothing we can do except to sew the open area.
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Stains
Look for stains and be sure to point them out to the Front Counter assistants. Please tell the Front Counter what made the stain as this can change its cleaning process.
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Faded Areas
Faded areas on suede garments around the shoulder and sleeve areas are caused by oxidation (exposure to the sun). This problem is very common in blue garments. There is usually no remedy for this.
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Inspection
Inspect your garment prior to cleaning for missing or loose buttons, broken snaps, zippers, etc. You can request repair estimates while dropping off your order. Special decorative items such as glass, bone and toggle buttons may break during cleaning. We can remove these and place them back on the garment after cleaning.
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Examining the garment
We do our best to examine your garments for tears, thin skins or scar marks. These are natural characteristics of an animal skin. Unfortunately they may appear worse after cleaning.
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Acids
Animal urine, fruit juices and alcohols contain acids, which when combined with heat, could make the affected area stiff or in some cases could burn a hole right through the skins. The only remedy for this is to replace the affected panel.
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Shrinkage
Shrinkage can occur in garments during cleaning. Overstretching the skins at the manufacturer's level causes this. Pigskin is the biggest culprit of this problem.
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Skin Color
After cleaning, the color of the skins may be darker or lighter. The panels could also vary in color from one to another. Most leathers can be dyed to correct this problem, but unfinished leathers cannot be dyed without changing the texture and appearance of the garment.
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Combo's
Combination leather and fur garments require two very different cleaning methods, which may not be recommended for one piece of the combo. Also, soiled furs (or furs with stained linings) must be cleaned in solvent, which is going against the care label.
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Multi-Colors
Multi-colored garments or light cloth garments with a darker suede or leather trim may bleed. Garments with white linings and a dark exterior could also bleed.
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Dark Areas
Improper adhesives used in constructing some poorly manufactured garments may cause dark areas to appear on seams, pockets or zipper flaps.
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Acrylics
Acrylic cuffs and waistbands may lose their elasticity during the cleaning process.
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