Nubuck Leather

It is believed that the etymology of the word nubuck is a combination of the word new and buck's skin. Nubuck leather is top grain rawhide leather from cattle. The leather is sanded or buffed on the outside or the grainy side to give it an appearance of having short fibers, that increase its resemblance to velvet and suede. This leather is generally off-white or white in color. Nubuck is more durable and resistant to wear and tear than suede because it is made from the outer hide of the cattle as compared to suede which is made from the inner hide. The outer rawhide makes it stronger and thicker. It is more resistant to wear and tear and is therefore, used to make leather furniture, but it is vulnerable to staining. In this article, we'll tell you how to care for this leather and how to ensure that you clean it properly.

How to Clean Nubuck Leather

Cleaning this type of leather can be a task that needs a lot of care, as it does not have any kind of self protective layer. It needs to be cleaned with a special cleaner that is commercially available in the market. There are some shops that store cleaner kits that you can purchase to clean the leather. Given below are the steps that you need to follow in order to ensure proper care.

• Take a brush and brush the entire area in order to fluff the fibers. While doing so, remember not to stay in the same area for a long period of time. Instead, fluff an area, move to another area and then return to the area which is stained. By doing so you will remove any surface dirt that is clinging to the area.
• If you possess a cleaner kit, then use a nubuck stain eraser on the dirty areas and follow the instructions that the manufacturer has mentioned on the kit.
• Once you have applied the stain eraser and cleaned it, take a cleaning cloth and wrap it around a sponge to give it a cylindrical shape. Now roll this cylindrical cleaning sponge over the leather. This process cleans the leather, because the sponge allows the cloth to move smoothly over leather. After a while you will notice that the leather appears cleaner.
• After you have cleaned the surface of the product, you can brush the surface again and then sponge it down, the way you would wipe a counter top. This gives the leather a softer and cleaner appearance.
• Apply the degreaser that comes with the kit to get rid of oil stains and at the end of the process, spray a protectant to ensure that there is a protective layer for your leather item.

Maintenance and care of nubuck leather can be difficult and requires you to give it a proper scrub down with sandpaper every few days in order to ensure that it is protected. If you have furniture in this leather, then you will need to vacuum it gently every few days. If you want to know how to clean shoes made from this leather, then the information for the same is given in the next section.

Nubuck Leather Shoe Care

Many of us own shoes made from nubuck leather as it is commonly used to manufacture sandals. It has an appearance that is similar to suede or velvet, and its texture too is very similar, especially after it has been buffed, which makes it resistant to wear and tear. But if you have dirtied your shoes, then you can use the following method to clean them.

• Clean the shoes with a dry towel or even better, a paper towel to remove the excess dirt that can be brushed off the sandals.
• If it is a liquid stain, then use the paper towel to blot the stain, after which you can let it dry.
• Use a pencil eraser or if you think it is a tough stain, use a sandpaper or pumice stone to rub the stain from the shoes. While rubbing the stains, be gentle and avoid using force.
• Wipe the shoes with a damp cloth and then let it dry naturally.

Once the shoes are dry, they will be good to wear again. Now that you have answers to questions like what is nubuck leather, how can you clean it, and how to care for shoes made of this leather, you can purchase products made from nubuck leather without bothering about the wear and tear that the product will be put through.