Automotive Interior Repair with The Interior Guy

There are currently 13 responses to “How To Fix The Creases In Leather”

Why not let us know what you think by adding your own comment! Your opinion is as valid as anyone elses, so come on... let us know what you think.

1. 1 On May 28th, 2008, GM said:

   Hi, half of my passenger seat got wet when my sunroof was left open overnight. There is a crease in the seat between the half that got wet and the half that did not. Is there a way to remove this crease?

2. 2 On May 29th, 2008, Mike-TIG said:

   Thanks for the question, that’s what I designed this site for was to help others. Can you send me a picture of the seat? That way I can see the damage. You might try to condition the seat with Lexol Conditioner, but if it’s creased like you say, the leather may have shrunk and puckered, in that case you may have to contact a professional to rework the seat, by sanding down the crease and fill what needs to be filled and then redyed, but if it’s badly creased then you might need to contact a good upholstery shop, and have them replace the panels that have been damaged. I have seen this before and it’s not a pretty sight I know, so I feel your pain in this situation. I’m guessing without looking at the seat you may be looking at anywhere from $65 up to maybe $175 to repair the seat, just to give you a little heads up. If you don’t know of a good leather guy in your area, call around to some of the local car dealers and ask who they would recommend, get a couple of opinions though, don’t just go with the first guy that comes along, and make sure if it is repairable that the tech uses a good water-based urethane dye system. If there’s anything else I can do let me know, give me a location of where your at and maybe I can find a tech in your area from one of my suppliers.

3. 3 On January 2nd, 2009, Alex said:

   Hello, My son and his friends shot fireworks off in my car it has leather upholstry and they left a burn mark. It mage that top color come off but it didn’t make a hole. Whats a Inexpensive way to fix it? Thank you

4. 4 On January 2nd, 2009, Mike-TIG said:

   Alex,
   Wow…That’s a first one on me, sure it smells nice too. There really isn’t a cheap fix. Sure you could use a rattle can dye to cover up the spot, but the problem with cheap fixes is they don’t last. Do you really want to go cheap. You spent the extra money to get leather so why not keep it looking nice and do it the right way. My recommendation would be to contact an Upholstery Repair Professional like myself and have it repaired right. We use water based dyes which are made for leather and compounds that are made to last, that’s what I think you really want, am I right. I understand cutting corners but to have a small spot repaired should only cost you at the most $50. The rattle can dye and the prepping supplies would cost you close to that anyways, so really this ones up to you. If your still interested in doing it yourself though, let me know, contact me through email or even call me, and I’ll walk you through it.

   Talk to ya soon,
   Mike “TIG”

5. 5 On February 5th, 2009, Lose Fat Waist said:

   Great site. Keep up the great work. Thanks again, Desmond

6. 6 On May 19th, 2009, watches wholesaler said:

   You do have a point here I admire the stuff you post and the quality information you offer in your blog! Keep up the good work dude.Please visit my blog when you have time http://merchantaccounts.blogsome.com/

7. 7 On August 2nd, 2009, Amanda said:

   We accidentally left a bottle of Off Bug Spray (mostly alcohol) on our leather armrest in the car. It seems to have warped the leather. Not sure if it ate away the padding underneath. How can I fix this? Or will the armrest need to be recovered?

8. 8 On August 5th, 2009, Mike-TIG said:

   Amanda,
   Great to hear from you…this ones gonna be a hard one since I can’t see what the damage looks like.
   Sounds like to me that it has “puckered” the leather, as far as the padding underneath probably not. You can try to get a professional like myself to look at it, sometimes the dyes will deform the leather a bit and all that is needed is to be sanded down then resurfaced. If this isn’t an option then yes you will probably have to have the console cover replaced…
   If you can send me some pictures of the damage I can give you a better idea…theinteriorguy@gmail.com

   Talk to you soon,
   Mike “TIG”

9. 9 On August 31st, 2009, Curran said:

   Hi Mike,
   Thanks for your willingness to help!!

   I have a 2005 Volvo and I was wondering how to prevent creases in the leather? Do you recommend a particular cleaner/condition? I have heard Lexol and Maguires…. what do you think?

10. 10 On August 31st, 2009, Mike-TIG said:

    Curran,
    Great to hear from you! Thank you, I just like everyone to have a nice ride!

    Volvo’s have probably the most comfortable seats in them! I do love the Volvo leather!
    I have worked on a few though, the lighter leather seems to get dirty and worn pretty quick.

    As far as keeping leather from creasing… well there’s really no way to do that due to the foam underneath and stretching of the leather, it’s just the nature of the leather. Leather will stretch a bit as the foam breaks down.
    Now by keeping the leather soft and supple with conditioner will keep the creases from turning into cracks, and this is what you need your conditioner for. It won’t keep your leather from creasing though.

    The conditioners you mentioned will do just fine, I steer towards Lexol though myself due to these guys know leather, but both are good. Just clean periodically with warm water and Dawn dish soap (soft scrub brush to get down into the creases , wiping with a microfiber towel), then condition. I like using Dawn because it’s a neutral cleaner and contains no alcohol like some leather cleaners. It cleans great and does’nt hurt the leather a bit.
    By keeping them clean will help the conditioner to penetrate and do it’s job. This will also help to keep the seats from feeling greasy or all shiny looking.

    One big thing I tell you about leather seats is how you get into your car…sit into the car, don’t slide in…this will save the bolster ( the outer back portion of the lean back ) and keep you from leaving damage! I do more repairs on the bolsters of vehicles from people sliding into the seat, your clothes are just like sandpaper and buckles, well you can figure that one out.

    Just do this about every 6 months and your seats should look great for years! Leather takes a little more care then cloth, but there are so many other plus’s by having leather!

    Hope this helps http://theinteriorguyllc.com/clean-leather-seats/ check this out for keeping your leather seats clean and conditioned!

    Mike “TIG”
    The Interior Guy

11. 11 On March 26th, 2010, Rear PassThrough/Center Arm Rest Crease - Cadillac Owners Group said:

    [...] a while. Unless you've tried tht already, maybe let it soak in overnight? A picture would help http://theinteriorguyllc.com/fix-creases-leather/ __________________ 2009 CTS-V Sedan Radiant Silver Auto, Ebony Recaros, Nav, Ultraview Sunroof 2 [...]

12. 12 On October 2nd, 2010, Eric said:

    Any thoughts on trying to fix small creases left on the seat of my 02 Maxima when some books were left on the seat overnight? also have a few dents form a baby seat in the back. any hope?

13. 13 On October 3rd, 2010, Mike-TIG said:

    Eric,
    When leather stretches out like what your saying, sometimes there’s no help. I have seen in some instances where the car seat has been removed and over time the leather returns to its natural state, but as far as a quick fix I don’t know of one. You can try a garment steamer and see if they can be worked out by steaming and stretching the whole panel to match. But other then that there’s not much I can do to help with this one. I have seen liners that go under a seat that help to shield the seat from damage. I know this is kinda hind sight but it might help to keep the car seat from further damage or you could move the car seat to the other side with the liner and see if the dents might work themselves out over time. One thing I will tell you not to do and that is use a heat gun. This will only dry out and damage the leather so no heat gun. Well I wish you luck with this one…

    Talk to you soon,
    Mike Warren – The Interior Guy

Leave a Reply

You must be logged in to post a comment.