Women's leather goods essentials
Since the dawn of mankind, the treatment of skins and leather has evolved to the present day, respecting the origins of this artisanal craft.
Women's leather goods essentials
Since our first steps as species millions of years ago, humanity has made craftsmanship and manual labor a profession that have lasted through the centuries. Today, we live in a world where technology and digitization have made it possible to mechanize a great deal of work in order to make life easier for merchants, leaving behind this more traditional form of preparation and manufacture
What is leather goods?
A stroll through the stores and bazaars of the world can still reveal quality products made with a technique whose origins are getting lost with time, but which has survived to the present day: leatherwork.
Leather working is an art that has been perfected over the years, and essentially consists of treating leather in order to give it different uses or shapes. Leather is an animal hide treated with the tanning technique, a process that combines manual labor with the use of natural chemical components and consists of different steps:
Preparation
This is the first part of the tanning process. The hair is removed from the animal hide, which is then washed with water and salt to prevent putrefaction. The future leather is kept in a salting room until processing begins.
The tanning process
The first step is to cut off the excess limbs and soak the fur in water for a period of time lasting 8 hours to two days, depending on the size and condition of the hide.
Vegetal or mineral methods are then used to stabilize the skin's collagen and transform it into leather.
Vegetable tanning
This uses tannins naturally produced in tree bark. The hides are fully stretched and placed in vats containing concentrated tannins.
Mineral tanning
This is a modern technique that first appeared in the 19th century, predominantly using chromium, a white metal. This is a faster process than the previous one, and produces leather that is more resistant and durable than vegetable tanning.
The next step involves mechanical drainage to remove excess moisture. The hide is then scraped to give the leather an uniform thickness.
What is retanning?
On many occasions, leather that has already undergone mineral tanning is subject to a process using (vegan) tannins to give it a softer, more natural appearance.
Refined and finalized
The final step is to dry the new piece and refine it with oils giving the leather its characteristic texture.
Once this long and complex process is complete, the leather can be shaped and used in the leather goods department. To create wallets, bags, jackets, pants or any other desired fashion article.
How did the term “leather goods” come about?
Maroquinerie comes from the French word “maroquin”, which translates as “Moroccan”, because Moroccan craftsmen were once the most skilled in leather working.
This profession has enjoyed great importance throughout human history. In the Roman Empire, craftsmen used this technique to design sandals, light armor and even bags, the design of which has survived to the present day.
In the military field, leather was used to develop clothing and foot wear for soldiers, as well as weapons and cavalry equipment such as spurs, saddles and harnesses.
In the world of fashion, high quality and design are at the fore front. Tanned leather has met a tremendous success amongst consumers, especially when it comes to buying jackets or pants to show off a style standing the test of time.