Restaurant booths, hotel and event rental seating are typically upholstered in vinyl, though some use real leather. There's no way to effectively dye vinyl. Leather can be deglazed and dyed, but this requires a clear coating to prevent back-staining. At the end of the day, a paint is more versatile, and it's what most professionals use in commercial settings.
Consider the following:
- Acrylic finishes (like Rub 'n Restore®) look and feel more natural than elastomeric or urethane finishes (like SEM®), but they can be less durable.
- Constant chemical cleaning or disinfecting may degrade an acrylic finish more quickly, particularly with a change of color. Dry cloths dampened with water are going to minimize maintenance but may not satisfy health and safety regulations. However, acrylic finishes are easily touched-up.
- Many elastomeric and urethane coatings hold up well initially to more harsh, routine cleaning, but they too eventually degrade and may develop cracks, peel or flake. Such coatings require aggressive stripping before the color can be touched up compared to acrylic finishes do not peel or flake and are more
- If changing color, clean thoroughly and follow best practices. Add cross-linker to the color to boost adhesion. Adding Satin Sealer to the color will further improve durability and is needed to seal bright colors.
- Vinyl can be a little fussier than real leather, requiring an extra coat or two of color and a little extra finesse to avoid sponge marks and streaks. Big projects may benefit from spray application.
Many hotels, restaurants and event rentals have used Rub 'n Restore® with success.
“I want to thank you again for solving the biggest issue I had with the interior in our new restaurant. You really were my savior on this and I can’t thank you enough! The booths' Vs had been stark white, and you matched them perfectly to the ivory we needed.” - Dennis, The Harlem Shake, NYC
“We are refurbishing a large hotel/convention center, and we have several upper-end leather sofas and loveseats that are in good shape except for the surface of the leather. We just experimented using walnut on a loveseat that had worn leather and a few stains. One of our employees followed the simple instructions on the pamphlet you provided, and the transformation is nothing short of amazing. Only one coat was required to completely change the surface from worn, faded green to a beautiful walnut color with no flaws showing. This product will allow us to keep this beautiful furniture out of the landfill, and will also save us thousands of dollars. By the way, the bid we received for a professional to restain the loveseat was $500.00. We used perhaps $50.00 in Flite cleaner and Walnut Rub n Restore to complete our project. A ten fold savings.” - Anonymous