The Leather

EUR

Durable

It is supple and brown in color, with the exact shade depending on the mix of chemicals and the color of the skin. We use a variety of 4,5 & 6 mm leather sourced in Ireland and the UK, usually full hides and cut and shape as needed, we use a variety of alcohol based dyes for the dyeing process and thick waxed threads for the hand stitching. Leather is a durable and flexible material created by tanning animal rawhide and skin, often cattle hide. Vegetable-tanned leather is tanned using tannins and other ingredients found in different vegetable matter, such as tree bark prepared in bark mills, wood, leaves, fruits, and roots.

Insight

It is the only form of leather suitable for use in leather carving or stamping. Vegetable-tanned leather is not stable in water; it tends to discolour, so if left to soak and then dried it shrinks and becomes harder. In hot water, it shrinks drastically and partly congeals—becoming rigid, and eventually brittle. Boiled leather is an example of this, where the leather has been hardened by being immersed in hot water, or in boiled wax or similar substances. Historically, it was occasionally used as armour after hardening, and it has also been used for book binding.