Printing on leather
A form of product refinement that is more common in the textile industry than in the leather sector is the printing of the material with patterns, symbols and ornaments. In the case of leather articles, this method is used for handbags or leather labels.
The printing can be carried out by screen printing or by inkjet printing (analogous to the inkjet process in commercially available PC printers). The use of UV curing special ink has the advantage that even multi-coloured motifs of high quality can be applied to the leather. A prerequisite for this is that a pigmented smooth leather is used, since a transparent top coat is applied to prevent paint abrasion, which seals the ink layer and the leather is not allowed to have any release agents on the surface, which reduces the ink adhesion.
The basic tone of the leather to be printed should be white, but at least very bright, in order not to falsify the colour character of the motif. The colours are mixed from the basic colours magenta, cyan and yellow as well as a black component (subtracting colour mixture). White printing is technically not possible, so that dark leather surfaces are not suitable for printing.
Original photo -> print on a light natural leather.
Printing at 20x magnification.
Printed key bag and leather handbags from Argentina
Printed women's leather shoe from Spain and printed leather jacket.
Printed leather with beautiful motifs from www.cb-roesch.de.
Printed furniture, car and aircraft leather (printed by www.inexteriorprint.com).
Even Cow hides can be printed (from www.richter-leder.de).
Video about motifs on leather
A video about painting on leather, perforating leather, carving leather, embossing leather and several other methods to create motifs on leather.
Other possibilities how to provide leather with designs
- Embossed leather
- Carving leather
- Laser engraving - Laser cutting leather
- Perforated leather
- Hole punching
- Embroidery
- Leather seams
- Formed leather
- Painting on leather
- Braided leather
- Leather etching & engraving
- Leather tattoo
- Glued leather strips
- Burning designs on leather