Split: All leather hides have to be split because a hide is too thick to upholster or use in any type of manufacturing. The hide goes into a machine where a blade "filets" the hide into two hides. The bottom hide is known as split leather. This hide can be sanded down (corrected) and embossed with a consistent graining pattern to be used on the outside back and sides of sofa for a slight cost savings to achieve certain price points. A split leather is still 100% leather, and has all the same finishing treatments as the top grain portion.
Top Grain: In the above process the top grain portion is the top portion of the hide. It is generally used in the areas that receive more wear since the fiber of top grain is more compact than that of split grain.
Full Grain: Is top grain leather that uses the grain of the hide. No correction is made to the grain.
Corrected Grain: Top grain leather that has been sanded down to reduce some of the visual and natural characteristics. Of the various types of corrections, the most common is to sand down, and completely remove the natural grain and then emboss a consistent graining pattern. Another type of correction is to lightly buff the hide to remove the peaks and valleys of the grain.
Embossed Grain: From above, using rollers a consistent graining pattern is "pressed" into the leather. It can be as subtle a small natural looking graining pattern, or as different as a crocodile pattern.
Grades of Leather: nothing more than a price point. The main determining factor of a grade of leather is origin of the raw hide.
Nubuck: Full aniline that has been slightly buffed to create a velvet effect. This is a top-grain leather, not a split or a suede. Nubucks are especially vulnerable to stains and can be protected with specialized products.
Pull-up: aniline - dyed leather that has been waxed or oiled. When the leather is pulled, the oil/wax separates, causing the color to lighten.
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