Leather Patches: Premium Look, Classic Style

Traditional custom patches, whether embroidered, woven or PVC, are a time-tested way to boost morale, show membership, celebrate performance and increase brand visibility.

Now, leather patches offer a way to take the performance of your custom patches to a higher level. Leather gives your patches a premium look and feel that’s sure to impress, as well as performance that other materials can’t match.

What’s So Special About Leather?

Leather gives your patches a classic appearance, a link to earlier times with modern appeal. Let’s look at some of the reasons to choose leather over other patch types.

Premium Style

People associate leather with craftsmanship and flair. The leather jacket is a fashion staple for both men and women. From a full-length cowboy duster to a bomber jacket and everything in between, the look is sophisticated and timeless.

Leather patches evoke that same sense of style in a smaller format. If you want to add a touch of elegance to your patches that cloth can’t match, leather is the way to go.

Durability

Leather is a tough, durable material. With just a little bit of maintenance, leather products can last for decades and still look great. It’s water-resistant and can easily outlast woven or embroidered patches in harsh outdoor conditions with no cracking or fraying.

Customization To Fit Your Style

Leather patches are available in several styles, depending on your preference and budget:

Debossed or Embossed

These are the classic styles with the artwork pressed into the leather (debossed) or raised from the surface (embossed). If you want a clean, classic look that’s right at home on high-end branded products, this is the way to go.

Laser Engraved

This style burns the artwork into the leather surface, creating a precise look that’s perfect for line art, logos, text or highly detailed design.

UV Printed 

These patches combine the best of both worlds, classic leather style and full-color art. Offering greater visual contrast than engraving alone, they feature colorful art that’s perfect for gradients, detailed branding and colorful logos.

Where You’ll Find Leather Patches

You can find leather patches just about everywhere today, from streetwear to haute couture. Let’s take a look at some of the most popular applications.

Custom Hats and Caps

Leather hat patches are a terrific way to add style to baseball caps, trucker hats, beanies and other headwear. Whether sewn on, attached with adhesive or ironed on, they’re easy to apply and create a distinctive look. They’re an ideal way to promote your brand or logo in a high-visibility format.

Backpacks, Tote Bags and More

Custom leather patches added to backpacks, tote bags and similar item give the item a pop of style and a helpful identification mark

Jackets and Vests

A leather patch makes a bold statement on a denim or leather jacket or vest.. Whether a small rectangular accent on a lapel or a full back patch, they create a striking look that’s hard to ignore.

Uniforms

For uniform shirts and jackets, leather patches with a company logo or brand adds a more professional look that increases your brand visibility to potential customers.

Eco and Vegan Friendly Options

Real leather has a distinctive look and feel, but if you or your customers prefer an eco-conscious and/or animal-free product, faux leather offers a very similar look. Faux leather, a synthetic product, offers most of the same advantages of real leather at a lower price as well.

Attaching Leather Patches

You have multiple options when it comes to attaching leather patches to garments or fabric, just as with other patch styles.

Sew-on

Sewing the patch on is always an option. This is least expensive and most permanent way of attaching any patch style. A sewn-on patch will likely outlast the garment, bag or other article it’s attached to. It’s a truly permanent solution.

Adhesive

Adhesive backing is another option that works under certain circumstances, but is less permanent than sewn-on.

Iron-On (Yes, Iron-On)

You’ve probably heard that you shouldn’t use iron-on backing with leather products or materials. That’s not necessarily true, but it does require some caution. You’ll want to use a lower heat setting than you would to iron on a woven or embroidered patch. And you’ll need to be careful with both the patch and the material you want to attach it to. Sometimes the garment material isn’t suitable for iron-on purposes. It’s best to test in a small, inconspicuous area of the fabric before proceeding. If in doubt, don’t.

An Important Caveat

Attempting to iron leather patches onto a leather surface is not advisable. The combination of lower heat and the material itself can limit the adhesion of the patch. For leather garments and other items, sewing on the patch is strongly recommended.

If you want more information about ironing on leather patches, you’ll find it here. If you’re new to iron-on patches in general, you’ll find additional information on how to properly iron on a patch in our step-by-step iron on guide.

Hook-and-Loop Fasteners

Velcro® hook-and-loop fasteners are another option. This is ideal for morale patches, tactical patches, and any other kind hat you want to be able to remove quickly or transfer between multiple garments.

Are Leather Patches Right for You?

Maybe. It depends on your needs, intended use and budget. As a full-service patch provider, our experienced staff can advise you on whether embroidered, woven, PVC, printed or leather patches are best for you.

If you’re not sure, give us a call toll-free at (866) 847-2824, or email us. We’ll be glad to answer any questions you might have.

We’ve created custom patches of all kinds for thousands of customers for 20 years. When you’re ready to order, we’ll work with you every step of the way, from design through production and shipping to ensure you get exactly the patches you want. And we back up everything we sell with our 100% Satisfaction Guarantee. Should you find any product you buy from us to be defective in either materials or workmanship, just let us know. We’ll replace it at no extra cost to you.

Are you ready to add extra style to your patches with custom leather? Let us show you how easy it can be. Call or email us today!