We all hate seeing a dirty arm or stains on your beautiful leather furniture. At our Furniture Consignment store in Clearwater Florida we are challenged to maintain leather, new and old, in beautiful like new condition everyday. You love to keep your home looking nice, and to keep it looking good. For some beautiful artisanal goods, now imagine the level of detail that is involved in a 17,000 sq/ft showroom.  Needless to say we have picked up many tricks throughout the years. Here is the first of our top hacks for keeping your leather clean, 

Leather sofas add a touch of elegance to your home décor. Cleaning and maintaining these luxurious sofas, however, is a tricky task as you cannot just wipe them down with a wet cloth.

Moreover, harsh cleaners can easily ruin your expensive sofa. Even bleach and ammonia-based cleaners should be avoided. Although leather is a durable material, it is porous in nature.

Remove leather stains with one part cream of tartar and one part lemon juice. Mix into a creamy paste. Work it into the stain with a soft cloth. If the stain isn’t completely gone, let it sit for a few hours before applying the mixture again. When the stain is removed, wipe clean and spread on a leather conditioner.

For water stains, you can use water to treat the stain. Wet the entire cushion, jacket or area with a sponge and room temperature water. Afterward, use the sponge to remove the moisture gradually. Do not scrub the fabric or expose it to the sun. As long as the water was reapplied uniformly, the water spots will disappear.

1. Always use a white cloth to dust/clean leather furniture

It's CRAZY to use anything but a white damp dust cloth to dust and clean  your leather; it keeps you from depositing color on the leather.  For example if you use a wet blue rag on a beige leather sofa you will deposit blue streaks. Now you have another stain to clean.   Dust your furniture completely clean, wipe it down with a damp cloth.

2. Dish soap is your friend

Ivory is the mildest, but Dawn removes body oil and makeup. You will need a bucket with soupy water, another with clean water and 4 to 6 white cloths.

In a bucket with warm water squirt in about 1 ounce of soap.  Soak the cloth in sudsy water and wring out the excess, clean the heavier soiled areas first with circular motions.  With a second cloth soaked in clean water wipe down to rinse off the soap, then dry off with a new clean cloth. 

Repeat as needed.