Another question I had was has anyone DIY'd this type of project?

I have a HH sectional which is still in great shape but the leather I chose was a beautiful mottled look and on the areas where it has gotten heavy use, the dark brown 'mottle' has faded/disappeared leaving a lighter yellowish color- def not as pretty and rich looking when new! I bought some dark brown leather dye and tried it in a couple of small areas and it is not nearly dark enough/brown enough-- almost slightly orangey. the other day I picked up some dark brown paste shoe polish and will try alittle of that on an arm to see what happens...

I don't think I would sink another couple of thousand into your set, but that's easy for me to say! I would probably try diy something... RH sells something called leather cpr cleaner and conditioner that I like for a chair we have that seems to be of a similar kind of leather as your furniture... have you tried any leather products yet??

It does not sound unreasonable unfortunately. Have you gotten other estimates? There is a well regarded leather repair facility about 2hours from my home and I got an estimate from them recently to repair a leather sofa for a friend. The cost was roughly $900 to repair the sofa. The leather being used was Spinnaker leather which is pretty expensive. It is always a hard choice to repair or replace. Do you need to replace all pieces or just one piece? That may tilt the argument for replacement in one direction. What is the cost to buy a comparable sofa?

Good luck!

Great ideas, thank you. I like both couches but am not overly fond of the chair or the space the ottoman takes up. Also not too fond of the all matched look for 4 pieces.

Maybe I should just do the couches and replace the chair with a nice wing chair or recliner in a fabric . I'm sure I could sell the chair and ottoman on CL and use that money towards something new.

I did find some DIY products last night called Fiebing's leather cleaner and dye. It has mostly good reviews on Amazon. Maybe this is something I could try on my own - just afraid to ruin my couches before I'm ready to buy a new set!

Btw - not sure why my chair picture looks so strange and warped!

If you figure the cost of labor/materials at $50 per hour which for this skill would be reasonable, it comes out to 41 hours labor which sounds like a reasonable mount of man hours to fix the 4 pieces.

However, I would not restore the pieces because their overstuffed design is not classic in appearance and seems to dwarf the other furnishings in your home IMO . Many people don't get 14 years from their furniture. Maybe sell your pieces on CraigsList, and purchase replacement pieces smaller in scale or with recliner features.

Those are nice couches Beverly. Even if we do end up replacing when we move I'd still like to get a few more years out of them and would like to recondition and perhaps dye the leather. I might try the DIY route on the chair first to see if it works or ends up a hot mess!

I know they're not classic looking but they are comfortable and very well made, and it would cost a lot to replace with the same quality. That's not going to be in the budget for awhile.

Just don't use the shoe polish mentioned by one of the posters. It will just get all over your clothes.

http://www.rubnrestore.com/

Thanks, Beverly. I think I'd try the Fiebings. It seems like the only product I can get in California isn't the same as the one available elsewhere though.

juddgirl2, I looked at the Fiebrings, but all the prep work with the acetone before you use the dye seems daunting and scarey to me. The Rub n Restore can be ordered online.

That looks great!

Are they going to re-stuff the cushions or just treat the leather? I's sorry but I would not spend the money....unless they will look like new ones.

hmmm, have you tried buffing in shoe polish bev?? someone here renewed their couch/chair with it and said there was no transfer to clothing.... I will try in small area first for sure!!

I agree with erinsean. The seat back fillings on some cushions seem to have flattened out.

Sorry, busybee3, but I don't for one minute believe the shoe polish won't transfer. It won't transfer if it's not touched, but shoe polish is nothing but wax with pigment It's fine and safe to use on a leather scratch. With a bit of friction, it will transfer, especially if the complete sofa has to be covered in order to bring up the faded color. Even the Rub n Restore for leather has to be sealed after it's applied.

I would not spend that much to have this particular set reconditioned. I would buy some good leather cleaner (not dye or refinisher) and clean and polish them yourself, then add some more stuffing to the back cushions.

Breaking the set up into different rooms, and buying a couple new chairs is a great idea. If the set is comfortable and well-made, it's worth keeping. Leather looks good with some patina, and the wear will be less obvious when the set isn't all together, and you add some new throw pillows etc.

Agree with jlc; "If the set is comfortable and well-made, it's worth keeping." I would not hesitate to have my leather pieces restored. As you stated your pieces were expensive and quality furniture, go for it. Some of the leather used today in furniture is not as nice as the leather used years ago.

I'm very interested in this discussion as this is the sad state of the cushion on my Stickley Eastwood chair. The latest mishap was when the cat puked on it and it wasn't noticed til several hours later. We've tried cleaning with appropriate products but it still looks awful. I wonder if we should try the Rub n Restore ... It's tempting.

I would not recondition it unless you also have the cushions re stuffed.

I can have the cushions restuffed or do that myself if necessary. They're actually not flat and probably just need some fluffing. I've decided to not spend over $2000 to have them professionally done right now. I ordered some cleaner, chocolate brown leather dye and a protective finish and will test them on the chair before I try to DIY the couches. Thanks for the comments!

Will you please post your results with the chair?

I will!

ok, thx bev... will let you know what I find when I give it a try. the dk brown 'mottle' of the 'tobacco' leather that hm upholstered it with eventually 'wore off' without any noticeable transfer onto clothing and I do not notice shoe polish coming off my leather shoes, so I will give it a try in a small spot and see what I find... like I said, a poster in a previous discussion this spring said she has not had any problem with transfer-- that is all I can say at this point! :)

It's easy to tell the set is of good quality and comfortable. I would not recommend staining the chair yourself but instead would try to sell it on CL, or on consignment, and then buy the chair you really want in the room. I'm afraid if you DIY you're going to end up with a mottled look and then the chair will be of less value and even more difficult to sell. How well the leather 'takes' the dye will depend on the type of leather, whether it has a protective layer on it, and how deeply the stains/body oils are in the leather.

But before you do anything else, I would first apply a quality leather cleaner & conditioner on the set............it will at least give the pieces a nice refreshed look.

I would not spend that much $$$ on restoration without a guarantee of the outcome.

(I recondition old pocketbooks as a hobby - so take all advice below in that context ) don't use show polish, it will transfer where you don't want it to go. If not soon, then eventually. I would first try conditioning this yourself - if you're near a Tuesday morning, they sell leather CPR - a product I like a lot - no silicone, so it won't cause issues with the non-leather stitching. There are thicker products as well for the more worn areas - they are more expensive, and will require a lot of work to massage them in (it's hard enough on a purse, I can't imagine on a sofa)

I think just trying the conditioner yourself (especially if you can re-stuff yourself), will be an easy DIY. It might be that the leather is just dry, and conditioning it regularly will help that.

ETA - what dye did you choose? I have heard good things about Wood-N-Stuff, Fiebings is definitely a mixed bag.