What is Vegan Leather & Why You Should Avoid It?

Vegan leather basically contains ingredients that don't have anything to do with the animal skin. So long story short, faux and vegan leather are the same at so many levels. Making leather out of no animal skin is a tough job that is done by using synthetics like plastic along with other elements. It may feel like natural leather to some extent but its durability and characteristics are nowhere near real leather. Don't get confused if you hear the word ‘Pleather’, it’s another term that is commonly used for fake leather made out of plastic. There are very few manufacturers that use natural products in the making of Pleather, the rest of them use lots and lots of plastic which has adverse effects on the environment.

There is no comparison between real leather and vegan leather as the latter one is made up of plastic. It is produced with a number of chemicals and the bonding process totally differs from that of real leather. The plastic coating on a fabric is what pleather actually is and that cannot be compared with real leather. In relatively hot weather, vegan leather is most likely to get ruined as the plastic cannot handle heat and could be dangerous. Over the past few years, vegan leather manufacturers have taken precautionary measures to make sure that it is less damaging for the environment but it will take a lot of time and work to make it purely eco-friendly.

Vegan leather comes in a number of different types. Some of those are made from purely natural items such as pineapple leaves or coaks however others may contain harmful material i.e inflammable synthetic plastic. Overall, vegan leather is fake leather that is made from anything but animal skin hence it is basically just pleather.

Real leather products i.e. jackets, bags or shoes last as good as new for up to 10 years and if you take good care of them, you may enjoy their company for the rest of your life. On the other hand, vegan leather is not as durable. Even a little bit of water or sun exposure can cause serious damage to your vegan leather outfit. It is safe to say that vegan leather roughly lasts between 2 to 5 years.

Being waterproof is one of it’s biggest selling points as its made up of plastic. This makes it easy to clean and maintain. A damp cloth dipped in mild detergent will serve the purpose and like other leather types, this one doesn’t need any moisturizer or conditioner. Not capable of drying out and cracking makes vegan leather a preferable choice for many people.