Leatherette is a popular material for sewing clothes, accessories, and furniture upholstery.
Imitation leather is distinguished by a rich palette, has a pronounced texture, and has proven itself in use.
Sometimes bags and clothes made of leatherette wrinkle and therefore require ironing. We'll tell you how to smooth leatherette at home in this article.
Is it possible to iron artificial leather with an iron?
Features of use depend on the type of artificial leather. It is based on a canvas coated with a synthetic layer that imitates leather.
Eco-leather and stretch leather are the most amenable to processing, while dermantine is the hardest to smooth.
The procedure for ironing leatherette:
Study the product label.- Turning clothes inside out.
- Rollers of tightly twisted towels are placed in sleeves, trouser legs and other places that are quite narrow and inconvenient for treatment.
- The temperature on the iron is set to minimum - “silk”.
- The steam function on the iron is turned off.
- The eye process is carried out without pressing or stretching the material, and always through cotton fabric.
- After ironing the last crumpled area, the item is turned onto its face.
- Hang the leatherette clothes loose and allow them to cool.
Whether it is possible to use an iron to smooth things out should be checked on the product label.
The video will tell you how to iron leatherette with an iron:
How to stroke artificial leather
Follow the following instructions:
- Read the information on the label. Find out if this item can be ironed and steamed.
- Based on the information received, select the optimal straightening option.
- Before using any chemicals or home remedies, test them on a small area. It is better to do this in the evening to get reliable results by the morning.
- If you are going to iron, set the temperature to the lowest possible setting.
- Please evaluate the lining before ironing. If the fabric is too thin and dyed, then you should not expose it directly to a hot iron. It is better to use multi-layer gauze. A worn-out pillowcase made from natural materials will also work.
You should also consider the following nuances:
- Leatherette is also classified as leatherette, but removing folds from it is extremely difficult;
- Before treatment, shoes made from this material must be tightly stuffed with old newspapers, and the straightening procedure itself boils down to applying cream and waiting a long time for the effect.
Simple recipes for straightening eco-leather at home
Using an iron is not the only way to deal with creases and folds on things . Simple recipes using available products, such as a hair dryer, vinegar or glycerin, will come to the rescue.
Plain water
Straightening a leatherette item with water is one of the simplest methods. It is possible to moisten the surface by spraying from a bottle or using a wet sponge. This method is suitable even for newly purchased clothes.
Procedure:
- Preparing the thing itself. It is hung freely, inside out.
- Prepare clean water.
- The product is moderately moisturized.
- Straighten out all the crumpled places.
- Leave for half a day or longer until completely dry.
When moisturizing the product, it is not advisable to allow it to become completely wet through and through.
Hairdryer
Using a hairdryer is an affordable procedure that will help deal with creases and folds . To use this approach, the leatherette product is hung freely.
Having set the hot air supply on the hair dryer, the device is moved near the crumpled area from a distance of 20 centimeters. In this case, it is necessary to ensure that the material does not overheat, as this leads to deformation of the leatherette.
Glycerol
A leatherette item is laid out on a flat surface or placed on a mannequin with the front side facing out. If the product has sleeves, trouser legs, a hood, etc., it is necessary to give them the required shape using towels rolled into tight rolls.
After the leatherette item is prepared, they begin systematic processing, moving slowly from section to section.
A clean napkin is moistened with glycerin and the object begins to be treated with rubbing movements . After the processing is completed, the product is left to hang vertically so that the glycerin is completely absorbed and the fabric softens.
To achieve the effect, the same area must be treated several times intermittently.
Vinegar
A vinegar-based recipe can be used to smooth leatherette clothes. To do this, mix the following components in equal proportions:
- fabric conditioner;
- water;
- vinegar.
The resulting solution is poured into a container with a sprayer and the leatherette is treated from the front side. The item must be in a suspended state, not in contact with other objects.
After drying, light stains may appear on the surface of the leatherette, which can be easily removed with a damp cloth.
When weather matters
High air humidity is one of the factors that helps in case of leatherette wrinkles. Sometimes it is enough to just walk in a jacket in thick fog or in the rain.
You can also simply hang a leatherette item at high air humidity on an open veranda or balcony.
Types and technical features of synthetic material
Eco-leather or leather created artificially has a number of synthetic components. These elements are created from polymers and are used in various branches of the light and textile industries. But before you iron eco-leather and choose a smoothing method, you should determine the type of synthetic material in order to eliminate a possible defect in the product. The most famous varieties of leatherette are:
- Granitol or leatherette. A very budget material that can imitate genuine leather. It is widely used for upholstery of furniture and economy clothing. The structure of the material contains a layer of cotton fabric (sometimes synthetic), on the base of which a coating consisting of cellulose nitrate is applied. Leatherette is short-lived. It quickly loses its attractive appearance. How to iron leatherette? Leatherette is not subject to smoothing when defective folds appear in the structure of the material;
- Derivatives of polyvinyl chloride. This material is in great demand. In industry, the polymer can be found under different names, for example Lukovil. This polymer has good strength and a smooth surface. It is widely used by manufacturers to create erotic clothing and subcultural products. Almost every fashionista has leatherette underwear in her wardrobe, as the popularity of such products periodically returns to the fashion sector;
- Fitted stretch leather. This is a special leather substitute, which consists of fabric and polymer. This polymer contains a huge amount of elastane. Such products are very convenient for making fashionable clothes and fit perfectly;
- Kirza. These raw materials are used to make shoes. Shoes made from this material are particularly strong and durable. Not only boots for military personnel are made from tarpaulin, but also various bags and suitcases. This type of leatherette is often sprayed on top with polymer elements to imitate the resemblance of a natural component. This material is not subject to external influences or wear. It does not require ironing, since the tarpaulin is very difficult to wrinkle.
Restoring the bag's shape
Leatherette bags have many advantages, including affordable prices, fashionable styles and visual appeal.
If creases form on the leatherette, straightening the bag is a little more difficult than a piece of clothing .
"Wet processing"
Due to the complex shape of the leatherette product, straightening can only be done after the bag has been shaped.
For this you will need:
- a lot of crumpled paper for stuffing the bag;
- sheet
Work order:
- The bag is tightly compacted with crumpled paper.
- Soak the sheet in water.
- They squeeze it out.
- Wrap a wet sheet around the bag.
- Leave the sheets until they dry.
If this method does not help, you can try another option - soften and nourish the leatherette.
Cream or milk
This method is aimed at softening the leatherette . To smooth it out, you must first stuff the bag tightly with crumpled paper, as in the previous method.
After this, a rich cream (you can use a nourishing cream for the face or hands) or glycerin is gently rubbed into the wrinkled areas with a napkin. After a while, when the cream has absorbed into the leatherette, the process is repeated.
If the bag is made of light-colored leatherette, then milk can be used for processing.
Another way to straighten folds and creases on a leatherette bag is presented in the video:
Steaming
For those who are afraid to use an iron, there is another way to smooth leatherette. To do this, you will need a special steamer or iron with a steam function.
- As with ironing, it is best to iron a small area of the leatherette first to see if the smoothing method is suitable.
- An artificial leather product is given volume; it is better to put the jacket on a mannequin. If it is not there, hang it on a hanger and put rollers in the sleeves.
- Problem areas are sprayed with steam for a few seconds. The distance should be at least 10 cm. Do not touch the leatherette with your hands, otherwise stains will remain.
- After complete cooling (about half an hour), the item can be used for its intended purpose.
Advice
If you don't have a special steamer, you can use a hair dryer. In this case, the air stream should not be hot, but warm, and should be directed from a distance of at least 30 cm.
Preventing wrinkles
In order for leatherette clothes to last longer, they need proper care. Proper storage is important.
Like products made from genuine leather, leatherette does not tolerate being folded or compressed well , much less straightened out under a pile of other things.
Even being on a hanger does not guarantee that a leatherette item will not get wrinkled in the closet, especially if it is tightly packed with clothes.
Another preventive measure can be considered periodic treatment of the material with emollients , for example, glycerin. This care makes the material softer, which prevents wrinkles from appearing on things.
How to iron a leatherette skirt
To straighten this outfit, simply machine wash it. Optimal mode: hand wash with a minimum spin speed. Immediately after stopping the household appliance, remove the skirt from it. Hang it vertically. Let dry at room temperature.
Important! Don't miss the moment when the wash is finished. If you don't hurry, even more folds will appear on the product.
If this method does not work, try ironing the skirt using the recommendations above.
Steam treatment
Prepare an iron with a steam function or a steamer. Place faux leather clothes on hangers. Bring the device to the problem area at a distance of 10-15 cm and turn on the steam supply. The exposure time per place is several seconds. After steam treatment, leave the product alone for at least half an hour. The steamer will help you quickly straighten your collar, sleeves and small parts.
"Steam room"
Faux leather clothing can be straightened using steam in a tightly closed bathroom. Place the leatherette product on hangers and hang it high directly above the water, while avoiding contact with it. Open the hot water and run the bath until the room is filled with steam and the mirror becomes cloudy. Steam and strong humidity help smooth out minor bruises, and there is no need to resort to other methods. The procedure should last approximately 2 hours. During this time, you need to add hot water several times, turn the clothes and straighten out the folds.
When finished, move the item to a heated room and leave it to dry away from the radiator.
Traditional methods
Our grandmothers tried to iron leatherette using these methods. They are completely safe, suitable not only for artificial, but also for natural materials.
Valuable recommendations on how and with what to smooth leather products
- Hang the jacket on the trempel and secure it above the bathtub. Then draw hot water and close the room for several hours. Next, the item should be thoroughly dried in a room with dry, cool air.
- Go for a walk in rainy (under an umbrella) or foggy weather. Increased humidity will help smooth out the leatherette, and in just 2-3 hours it will be perfectly smooth.
- In a small container, mix 5 tbsp. l. 9% table vinegar, conditioner and water, mix thoroughly. Apply the resulting mixture to the areas that need to be stroked using a spray bottle. There are no traces or smell left, and the result is almost instantaneous.
- Moisten a clean soft cloth with glycerin and wipe the jacket. Hang the product on the trempel until completely absorbed, then repeat the procedure 2-3 times. You can also use any colorless shoe polish.
