Vegetable Tanning

Vegetable Tanning, unlike its counter Chrome Tanning, does not use chromium salts when being tanned.

 

This means that it’s better for the environment, to use vegetable tanning methods to create leather, as opposed to chrome tanning. This method of tanning uses various chemicals, chromium salts and other pollutants that infect, poison and damage ecosystems in rivers and streams if not treated correctly.

 

Because we predominately use Vegetable Tanned Leather, we will explain how it is made.

 

Production starts with a raw hide from the animal. The skin is then preserved with salt and dealt with by experienced cutters who separate the sections of hide.

These are the belly, butt and shoulders. During the soaking and dehairing processes, the hides are thrown into wooden drums, where they’re cleaned from the salt they were preserved in and any kind of impurities that the hides contain.

After being removed from the drums that have been spinning for hours, they’re in a wet state, making it perfect for fleshing and splitting.

 

The hides are then re-rinsed to restore their PH level. This helps then absorb the tannic acids, for tanning. These can be chestnut wood, mimosa bark, quebracho wood, etc.

 

They are soaked in large water baths with these tannins for several days, before being spun again.

 

Pressing and shaving then takes place, which removes excess moisture and dye from the hides, where they are sent off to go through vigorous drying to remove the vast majority of water.

 

The finish product is then your vegetable tanned leather, which can be enjoyed for many years.

 

 

Due to the natural characteristics of Vegetable Tanned Leather, over time, it never stays the same.

 

In terms of being a sustainable brand, picking this type of Leather is the best way to go about lessening your footprint on this earth.

 

Alongside this, vegetable tanned leather, requires using the by-products of mother nature, which then feeds back into the life cycle.

 

As you continue to use your Vegetable Tanned product, the Leather will pick up the idiosyncrasies of your lifestyle.

 

It will garner a beautiful, matured, developed look and get better with age and use.