Glossary
Leather:
Leather is natural skins (animal skins) referred to as genuine or real leather, which has been tanned (processed) to stabilize and sanitizes the skins. The final product has touch, feel, full aroma, permeability and abrasion resistance which cannot be duplicated. Leather comes in various grades of quality, such as:
Full / Top Grain - is a natural & grained surface finish or a texture which shows the true variable characteristics of the skin. This higher cost grade of leather often has a softer touch.
Hide / Split - generally refers to lower grades of leather & is lower cost. Split leather is split or cut from the flesh side of the top grain to enable a reduction of thickness. The surface finish of this is then traditionally hand brushed or polyurethane coated. Hide is lower cost grade of leather which is often plated to correct imperfections in the surface finish.
Synthetic Leather and Leather Look:
The following are cost effective synthesized materials that have the appearance and may have some of the characteristics of genuine leather.
Bonded or Reconstituted leather - this is a synthesized material whose normal latex backing is impregnated with recycled / reclaimed leather fibres (which vary in content dependant on the manufacturer). The surface finish is a polyurethane laminate and is produced in sheets or rolls.
Leather Look / Koskin / Leatherette / Synthetic Leather - these are either PVC or polyurethane surface film laminated to a fabric backing - comes in rolls - can have leather appearance that may be difficult to detect.
Decorating Options:
There a many ways & techniques in which a product may be decorated. These decoration methods can be arranged by your Classic Concepts Distributor who use professional decorators.
Not all techniques are practical on every item & may be affected by artwork, product materials or even cost restraints.
Embossing - also referred to as blind embossing & is traditionally called debossing, is the process of creating a 3D image on and into the surface of a product or material. This processes it suitable for materials such as PU, Bonded Leather & Genuine Leather. Embossing onto materials such as PVC is also possible, however this is dependent on artwork & the desired final result.
Pad Printing - the printing process that involves an image being transferred from the cliché via a silicone pad onto the surface of an item. Suitable for smooth materials. This process can also be used on genuine leather, however due to the natural grain 100% coverage may not be obtained.
Laser Engraving - the practice of using lasers to engrave an object / substrate. This process is primarily used on metal, however it can also be applied directly to materials such as PU & genuine leather.
Screen Printing – the process of using a mesh-based stencil to apply ink onto a substrate. Suitable for all materials & is a cost effective method of decoration especially when dealing with large size logos.
Digital Printing – a method of printing from a digital-based image directly to a variety of media. This allows full colour images to be applied to almost any material type & can be very cost effective when multiple colours are required.
Leather is natural skins (animal skins) referred to as genuine or real leather, which has been tanned (processed) to stabilize and sanitizes the skins. The final product has touch, feel, full aroma, permeability and abrasion resistance which cannot be duplicated. Leather comes in various grades of quality, such as:
Full / Top Grain - is a natural & grained surface finish or a texture which shows the true variable characteristics of the skin. This higher cost grade of leather often has a softer touch.
Hide / Split - generally refers to lower grades of leather & is lower cost. Split leather is split or cut from the flesh side of the top grain to enable a reduction of thickness. The surface finish of this is then traditionally hand brushed or polyurethane coated. Hide is lower cost grade of leather which is often plated to correct imperfections in the surface finish.
Synthetic Leather and Leather Look:
The following are cost effective synthesized materials that have the appearance and may have some of the characteristics of genuine leather.
Bonded or Reconstituted leather - this is a synthesized material whose normal latex backing is impregnated with recycled / reclaimed leather fibres (which vary in content dependant on the manufacturer). The surface finish is a polyurethane laminate and is produced in sheets or rolls.
Leather Look / Koskin / Leatherette / Synthetic Leather - these are either PVC or polyurethane surface film laminated to a fabric backing - comes in rolls - can have leather appearance that may be difficult to detect.
Decorating Options:
There a many ways & techniques in which a product may be decorated. These decoration methods can be arranged by your Classic Concepts Distributor who use professional decorators.
Not all techniques are practical on every item & may be affected by artwork, product materials or even cost restraints.
Embossing - also referred to as blind embossing & is traditionally called debossing, is the process of creating a 3D image on and into the surface of a product or material. This processes it suitable for materials such as PU, Bonded Leather & Genuine Leather. Embossing onto materials such as PVC is also possible, however this is dependent on artwork & the desired final result.
Pad Printing - the printing process that involves an image being transferred from the cliché via a silicone pad onto the surface of an item. Suitable for smooth materials. This process can also be used on genuine leather, however due to the natural grain 100% coverage may not be obtained.
Laser Engraving - the practice of using lasers to engrave an object / substrate. This process is primarily used on metal, however it can also be applied directly to materials such as PU & genuine leather.
Screen Printing – the process of using a mesh-based stencil to apply ink onto a substrate. Suitable for all materials & is a cost effective method of decoration especially when dealing with large size logos.
Digital Printing – a method of printing from a digital-based image directly to a variety of media. This allows full colour images to be applied to almost any material type & can be very cost effective when multiple colours are required.