Comments on: Saturday surveys: Bonded leather — green or not? http://greenlagirl.com/saturday-surveys-bonded-leather-green-or-not/ Urban environmental lifestyle blog in Los Angeles Mon, 22 Mar 2010 00:08:08 +0000 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.9.2 hourly 1 By: Helen Driscoll http://greenlagirl.com/saturday-surveys-bonded-leather-green-or-not/comment-page-1/#comment-367560 Helen Driscoll Mon, 13 Oct 2008 04:25:55 +0000 http://greenlagirl.com/?p=4302#comment-367560 It depends on what binder (glue) is used to hold the leather particles together. (how truly eco it is) Most of the glues are pretty nasty. I sold rare books for a long time. Leather binding thats are tanned using the old methods last about 500-1000 years with proper care. Bonded leather does not last -- falls apart at the joints etc. Lasts about 50 years with care. Bonded leather is generally considered a cheap and cosmetic binding material. Cloth is superior (in terms of quality) to bonded leather. It depends on what binder (glue) is used to hold the leather particles together. (how truly eco it is) Most of the glues are pretty nasty. I sold rare books for a long time. Leather binding thats are tanned using the old methods last about 500-1000 years with proper care.
Bonded leather does not last — falls apart at the joints etc. Lasts about 50 years with care. Bonded leather is generally considered a cheap and cosmetic binding material. Cloth is superior (in terms of quality) to bonded leather.

]]> By: Jodie http://greenlagirl.com/saturday-surveys-bonded-leather-green-or-not/comment-page-1/#comment-366626 Jodie Sat, 11 Oct 2008 17:07:39 +0000 http://greenlagirl.com/?p=4302#comment-366626 The militant vegan crack was a little harsh. I don't know too many vegans who are going around and claiming that vinyl is greener than anything. What is greener is using local, organic, plant-based materials and not trying to pretend that they look like leather. A little perspective can be a good thing. Scraps that would have otherwise gone to waste is better than nothing, but any demand for bonded leather still encourages the factory farming of animals to procure leather in the first place, which is a very un-green practice, no matter how you look at it. The militant vegan crack was a little harsh. I don’t know too many vegans who are going around and claiming that vinyl is greener than anything. What is greener is using local, organic, plant-based materials and not trying to pretend that they look like leather. A little perspective can be a good thing.

Scraps that would have otherwise gone to waste is better than nothing, but any demand for bonded leather still encourages the factory farming of animals to procure leather in the first place, which is a very un-green practice, no matter how you look at it.

]]>