The Berber pouffe is undeniably a unique design piece that can add a modern and traditional touch to your home. Berber poufs come in many shapes and styles. An authentic pouffe from Morocco is the best choice of pouffe in terms of quality. After all, they were originally designed to withstand the harshness of life in the Moroccan desert.
Today there are many cheap alternatives flooding the shops, often with a variety of leather with a predominant smell, poorly stitched or in the worst case, fake leather. So be careful if you are looking for quality footstools that will last. We have put together a list of tips to ensure that you buy an authentic Berber pouffe straight from the regions of Morocco.
1. Is it real leather?
Make sure before you buy your Berber pouf that it is made of real leather and not one of the many industrial counterfeits that can be found all over the market. The different leathers known as “manufactured” wear out very quickly and after a certain time you will see unsightly cracks and flaking appear unlike a real Moroccan leather pouf. Here are some tips to help you differentiate between real and fake leather:
Check the specifications: this sounds obvious, but always look at the specifications of the footstool you want to buy. If it’s real leather, you’ll immediately see it with terms like “100% real leather” or “genuine leather”.
Check the texture of the footstool once you have received it: real leather is a natural material made from animal skin. Its surface structure is not completely uniform. These imperfections are usually a good sign.
Check its smell: if you have ever smelled real leather, you know that it has a characteristic “leathery” smell. It has an unmistakable natural, organic and skin-like scent.
2. Check the assembly of the footstool
One of the beautiful features of an authentic Moroccan pouf is its handcrafted design and distinctive look due to its intricate patterns. A Berber pouf takes traditional craftsmen weeks of work to produce a work of art to behold and use. Unlike handmade work, factory-sewn pieces use cotton, which is less durable and more likely to fall apart over time. Assembly is even more important as the padding puts a lot of pressure on the seams.
3. Ottomans with and without padding
Many beanbags are sold unupholstered to reduce delivery costs. However, you can easily get the padding through reliable websites, for example. Berber beanbags are mostly filled with a polyester or cotton wool blend.
You can find more information about filling a pouffe in the article “How to fill your new berber pouf”.Â
4. Leather tanning
Cheap and badly tanned leather can have a very strong smell. Choosing a Moroccan pouf made of high quality natural leather, tanned by a passionate and competent craftsman, will avoid this unpleasant smell.
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