I was looking at the tag that came from my leather furniture. There are 4 types that it could be.

Pigmented- top grain Finished and Protected easiest to care for. Recommended for families with pets and kids.

Semi-aniline- Slightly finished and protected with some resistance to fading. Better quality.

Aniline- Softest and luxurious Natural and unprotected. Natural markings, scars, needs careful maintenance.

Nubuck- Unprotected and sanded. Soft and comfortable. Unprotected against stains, liquid spills or stains. Top quality.

I called Art Van and all they could tell me is that it is a category 1 Leather. What does that mean? I hope I didn't buy something that is going to stain easily.

I had a quick scan around
All I could find was
category 1 Leather items... Furniture
category 2 Leather items... Bags
category 3 Leather items... shoes
off an Indian site
Don't know what that refers to? Perhaps the size of the leather hide used in the piece?

Clare, I found some interesting info - check out your tag to see if it has one of these codes:

Check deck tag
The former American Furniture Manufacturers Association (AFMA), now the American Home Furnishings Alliance (AHFA), in a joint industry venture with the IICRC, and other entities, is currently working on a cleaning and identification deck tag that allows the consumer and the professional cleaner to more easily assess what types of leather they are maintaining, for example:

P = Pigment
A = Aniline, aniline wax pullup, aniline oil pullup
N = Nubuck, nubuck wax pullup
Many tags are already in use

Those are the main 3 categories of leather, each having subcategories.
Leather Care

I don't have a tag.

The cushions do not come apart and I don't see anything underneath. The couch and the chair came with a plastic pouch. Inside the pouch was 2 brochures. It is Chateau d'Ax. It gives me the different types but doesn't say which one mine is.

My model number and description:

CHAT 1281DC-ICE Delano Sofa/119 Ice Tg/Sp
CHAT 1281M-ICE Delano Recliner/119 Ice Tg/Sp

The store could only tell me it is Category 1 and is most durable. I didn't pay very much for it, considering it is leather, so I don't see how it could be the most durable. I'm thinking it may be Pigmented but I'm not sure. It is a soft leather and there is a texture to it.

It looks sort of like this.

I have a feeling that the furniture is either Italian Leather....or bycast leather. This is a relatively new form of leather that is less than a fourth of the Chateau d'Ax collection.

Italian leather is made from the hides of animals in Italy. The climate is cooler so the hides are less weathered, and bug bitten which makes them top of the line (as well as any other hide from a cooler climate).

Bycast leather is made from the lower portion of the animal called the "split" and is weaker. It's then coated with polyurethane to make it waterproof and to protect the leather from marks. First met with skepticism in 2003 when it was introduced into the market.

But I'm thinking you have Italian leather Full Grain/Top-Grain but very unlikely that it is Aniline dyed (represents only 5% of all leathers)

What was the original question again.....lol

Thanks Bedstor and Georgia. I'm almost certain its pigmented.