L U X T R A

Caring for vegan leather 

AppleSkin: Peony carrying an AppleSkin tote.

Dear all,

I hope this finds you in good spirits and in even better health.

A warm welcome to Ruth, Priti, Meryl, Michelle, Anaïs, Manish, Chrissi, Jess, Dipika, Ashutosh, 遥渚, Jon, Konnie, Arianna, Amy, Stefania, Wim, Teresa, Erin, Kaitlyn, Kim, Chloe, Rowena & Cassandra.

As vegan “leathers" become increasingly mainstream, one of the top questions we receive is how to care for them.

Happily gone are the days when imitation leather a.k.a. pleather *shudder* would crack and disintegrate: a sure sign of PVC if ever there was one. I'm sure you've heard of PVC, but to clarify: it's a highly toxic chemical that can be used in material production. You find it in anything vinyl, super glossy, or "wet-look", not to mention a lot of ultra-cheap vegan products.

These days, any self-respecting eco vegan leather will be staunchly PVC-free.

PVC: the poison plastic. Greenpeace know.

As a subscriber, you already know that today vegan leathers can be made from a whole host of wonderful plant-based ingredients including pineapple leaves, cactus, apple and corn. These new-generation materials are robust and durable, meeting international standards for heavy-duty use, and are of course PVC free.

Here below are some universal tips that will help you maintain your vegan leather item so that it will last a lifetime, no matter which plant it’s made from.

Dust bags: please make use of these little gems!

Top tips to keep your vegan leather item in fabulous condition:

• Sunshine does not discriminate: it ages skin and products alike, so store your products out of direct sunlight.
• Go easy on your bag: do not over fill it as it may permanently distort the shape.
• Perfumes & cosmetics are best kept for your skin, where at least they can be removed. Not the case with vegan leathers. Avoid.
• For bags delivered with a dust bag: please, please store the item inside this protective cover when not in use. Never store your precious piece in a plastic bag.
• Warmth & humidity are also no-goes, and avoid storing your items anywhere that is unventilated.
• As with any material, we recommend spills or stains be attended to and cleaned as soon as possible. Warm soapy water + gentle rubbing can often do the trick.
• We all know that prevention is better than cure, so take care of your items and avoiding rough surfaces.

Like any relationship: treat your item well and it will reciprocate, offering you a lifetime of good looks and devotion in return.

Not a dust bag in sight: Sadly Kylie isn't a LUXTRA subscriber ... yet.

For material specific care tips (i.e. for Piñatex, Cactus, AppleSkin etc) head over our blog post on this topic here:

And by all means, do drop me a line if you have a specific question: simply hit reply to this email.

Wishing you all a great week ahead,

Jessica x

Founder | Plant Parent | Proud B-Corper

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