What a good Italian Pull-up Leather looks like after a few years.

I must hear about ten times a week, every week, every week : "I don't want a leather that shows scratches". Ahhh...missing out on one of the great leather categories by not considering a pull-up aniline hide, which shows color bursts in response to pressure. This is an mis-understood and under-appreciated category of leather that those of us in the business frequently buy for ourselves. In this case, look at this Hancock and Moore # 072 Campaign Ottoman in Tuscany Harness. For three years I kept it in my store and the H&M Sample handles were kept on top of it, so it got lots and lots of use. Then one day I decided it looked just about right with all that use and brought it home and has been in our family room for the past two years. So now its around 5 years old and just starting to look really good. Great Patina, and this kind of leather never loses its color, chips or peels - it just builds more and more patina over time. I took this photo today. And of course, being a H&M product, there is nary a wiggle or deterioration in the frame or workmanship. I actually prefer one that looks broken in vs a brand new one out of the box and has yet to acquire its color bursts. Keep it maintained with cleaner and conditioner and a piece like this will last a lifetime.

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And here is what it looked like the day I unpacked it and put it in the store.

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Beautiful! Wanna sell it?

I'll be glad to sell you a brand new one, in the Town and Country program. I rather like my 'patina' one, I used the Leather Solutions # 3 kit on it recently with the special Pull-Up oil and wax components and it looks really, really good. Better than new for me.

Some things DO look better with age. I learned a trick many years ago from a seasoned master woodworker, who told me the secret to getting a beautiful finish on a fine piece of furniture in Black Cherry is to leave it with just a coat of orange shellac with a 50/50 cut then put the piece in a window where the sun can play on it every day. He said "Be patient and its not going to be pretty when you first see it. but rotate the piece every three months and leave it in the window for a year and a half to two years. It will get the most beautiful and deep finish as the sun will 'ruby-up' the piece by turning it darker with reddish brown tones." So I tried it with a custom small desk I commissioned, and he was right. You get a look and depth of finish that is impossible to replicate with an applied finish.

Seeing the image in this thread sold me on the Italian pull-up leather.
We got to see it on the rack at a local dealer and scratched it with a finger nail with defined, thin streak scratches. After messaging the leather and rubbing it for 30 seconds or so, the scratches disappeared and the only evidence is the slight impressions my nail made into the leather swatch.
Sounds like a PERFECT leather to age well and deal with a dog claw or two should they try to fluff a nest up on the cushions.

A pull-up has a waxy topcoat on it and that 'scratch' is through the wax to show the color burst. By taking the heel of your hand and rubbing on it vigorously, the heat and pressure reflow the wax, and it will mostly disappear!

What a great visual! This kind of photo is invaluable to those of us new to leather. Thank you for having this kind of information available!